RUA GOLD Corporation provided an update on the 2024 exploration program for its New Zealand Gold Projects. Highlights: RUA GOLD launched a well-funded gold explorer focused on two prolific, historic gold- producing regions in New Zealand. Drilling is already ongoing at the Company properties in the Reefton district.

New Zealand is a tier 1 jurisdiction, with attractive geology, a long history of mining, an incoming government focused on local economic development and an experienced workforce. The Company is supported by a well-seasoned Board of Directors led by Oliver Lennox-King (Fronteer, Roxgold) with diverse experience and a successful track record of developing projects and companies. Following three years of methodical reconnaissance, mapping and sampling, RUA GOLD is launching a fully funded exploration program across its two properties in New Zealand: The Reefton district has a $2.5 million exploration program underway.

The Reefton Orogenic district produced 2Moz of gold at 24.5g/t up to the early 1900s; the RUA GOLD properties have seen limited drilling in the last 30 years. Latest drill campaign of 2,500m of planned diamond drilling focused on the Pactolus prospect; a greenfield discovery 1km east of any historical mining. Channel sampling of the Pactolus discovery outcrop assayed 16.4g/t gold over 7m, including highlights of 32, 34g/t gold over 1m intervals.

Drill holes from the 2022/2023 campaign at Pactolus were highlighted by DD_PAC_004 reporting 9.41g/t gold over 12m. Analogous in age, geology, mineralization style, and geological structure to the Fosterville gold mine. Additional targets are currently being modelled and surveyed at RUA GOLD's Reefton assets, including historically producing targets in the Capleston area which produced 89Koz of gold at 61.4g/t. Glamorgan on the North Island is an exciting new epithermal gold target: RUA GOLD has applied for minimum impact access agreement and drilling access agreement(s) for its on-ground exploration.

The Company's tenement is neighboring OceanaGold's' Wharekirauponga gold project. OceanaGold recently announced its intention to accelerate development of its Waihi North Project, including the Wharekirauponga gold deposit. RUA GOLD's Chief Operating Officer had previously joint-ventured the Wharekirauponga project to OceanaGold and was a member of the exploration team that led to its discovery.

Reefton district highlights: The Reefton district comprises a contiguous group of two exploration permits and one prospecting permit, with a combined area of over 56,000 hectares, covering ~50% of the historic Reefton district on the west coast of New Zealand's South Island. In the past three years of exploration, RUA GOLD has mapped the historic mines and made a promising new discovery, the Pactolus vein, which is the initial target for drilling. Over 16,000 soil samples collected and analyzed ­ the most comprehensive geochemical dataset in the region.

Detailed geological mapping and UAV Magnetics have defined exciting targets for the 2024 exploration program. To the end of 2023, the Company has drilled 26 holes at Pactolus totaling 4,377m, with highlights shown in the significant intercepts table in the Company's technical report available on the RUA GOLD website and filed on SEDAR+ under the RUA GOLD profile. Table 10­3: Significant intercepts for Pactolus Phase 1 and 2, calculated with a 1.5g/t Au cut- off and up to 2-m internal dilution.

The 2024 exploration program is underway including: 2,500 meters planned drilling, commencing on the Pactolus vein; 3D modelling of Capleston and Murray Creek to provide further drill targets for Second Quarter 2024; and continued soil sampling, UAV magnetics and geological mapping of remaining targets. The geology and mineralization in the Reefton district are analogous to the orogenic Lachlan Fold belt in Australia, which hosts the Bendigo-Ballarat goldfield and the exceptional Fosterville gold deposit. The Reefton district produced over 2 million ounces at an average produced grade of 24.4g/t gold up to the 1950's. The historical workings on the Company's tenements have been neglected by modern exploration and have not been tested at depth.

Glamorgan highlights: RUA GOLD's Glamorgan project comprises of over 4,600 hectares in the Hauraki district on New Zealand's North Island. The Company is excited about the potential within this permit where previous exploration outlined a zone of silicification, veining and alteration with > 50ppb gold in soils over 3.8km in length, and rock samples in the vicinity have returned up to 95g/t gold. These samples suggest classic features of an epithermal gold mineralized system are present at the Glamorgan property.

The Company has applied for a Minimum Impact Access Agreement to New Zealand Department of Conservation ("DoC"); once granted, the Company will commence an exploration program, including: soil sampling; magnetic and resistivity geophysical surveys; and geological mapping. An application for Drilling Access Agreement has also been submitted and is expected to be granted later in 2024. Glamorgan is located 2.8km north of OceanaGold's recent significant discovery at Wharekirauponga.

As of March 31, 2022, the WKP epithermal gold deposit contained an Indicated Resource of 1.69Mt at 12.3g/t gold for 0.66Moz gold and Inferred Resources of 2.6Mt at 7.8g/t gold for 0.64Moz gold.