Carolina Rush Intersects Porphyry-Style Copper-Gold Mineralisation in South Carolina

• Carolina Rush has completed the first-ever deep drilling program at its Brewer Gold-Copper project in South Carolina. Two of three holes (37 and 38), totaling 3,500 metres, have been reported and have confirmed a copper-gold porphyry system beneath the historic near-surface gold mine.
• Hole 38 intersected copper-gold mineralisation below the "lithocap" for the first time, including a 60-metre interval grading 681 ppm copper and 0.24 g/t gold within potassic alteration - the zone type that typically hosts porphyry copper deposits.
• New geological modelling, developed with independent porphyry specialist Dr. Richard Sillitoe, suggests the mineralised system is tilted roughly 20–30 degrees to the northwest rather than sitting vertically, which could place the deeper target at a shallower, more economically favourable depth.
• Partner OceanaGold Corporation must spend US$8 million on Brewer exploration during 2026 and 2027 to earn a 50% project interest; Carolina Rush remains operator, and OceanaGold's Haile gold mine sits just 15 minutes away.
• Assay results from the third deep hole (hole 39) are pending, and management is preparing a follow-up drill program to step out further to the northwest along the interpreted tilt of the system.

Carolina Rush is an exploration company advancing the Brewer Gold-Copper project in South Carolina, part of one of North America's earliest gold-producing regions. After spending its first five years defining a near-surface gold resource, the company has now completed its first deep drilling program in search of a copper-gold porphyry system believed to underlie the historic mine workings. In a recent update, Layton Croft, President & CEO, walked through the results of two deep holes drilled in partnership with OceanaGold Corporation, the revised geological model that has emerged from the data, and the company's plans for the next phase of testing. 

From Near-Surface Gold to a Deeper Target

Carolina Rush's exploration history at Brewer began with a focus on near-surface, high-sulfidation epithermal (HSE) gold mineralisation. With fewer than 35 drill holes, the company defined a maiden resource, published last year, of roughly 500,000 ounces of gold under Canadian NI 43-101 standards. That near-surface story remains intact and, in management's view, still has room to grow with further drilling around the existing mine footprint.

The current phase of work shifts focus to a larger, deeper target: a porphyry copper-gold system the company believes lies beneath the known gold mineralisation. Under the new earn-in partnership with OceanaGold, Carolina Rush drilled three deep holes - 37, 38 and 39 - for a combined 3,500 metres, aligned along a line of induced polarization (IP) geophysics completed the prior year. Hole 37 stepped out 250 metres northwest of the historic mine; hole 38 stepped out a further 750 metres.

Hole 37: Early Indicators of a Porphyry System

Hole 37, drilled to 1,288 metres, returned three findings management described as encouraging. First, an interval of more than 400 metres averaged approximately 183 ppm copper - well above Brewer's typical background level of about 50 ppm. Second, the copper mineral identified was chalcopyrite, the sulfide most commonly associated with porphyry deposits, in contrast to the chalcocite, covellite, and minor enargite seen in prior drilling. Third, the hole showed B-type quartz veining containing molybdenite, another classic proximity indicator, along with distinct zones of alteration, including an advanced argillic "lithocap" zone near surface.

Hole 38: Breaking Through the Lithocap

Hole 38, drilled to 1,374 metres, extended these findings. For the first time in the project's history, the company intersected copper-gold mineralisation below the lithocap. Grades increased progressively with depth across four reported intervals: 81 metres at 167 ppm copper and 0.07 g/t gold; 46 metres at approximately 366 ppm copper and up to 0.08 g/t gold; 66 metres at 470 ppm copper and 0.15 g/t gold within a chlorite-sericite zone; and, most notably, 60 metres at 681 ppm copper and 0.24 g/t gold within a zone of minor potassic alteration - characterised by chlorite-biotite and A-type veining. Potassic alteration is significant because it is the alteration type generally associated with the core of porphyry copper deposits. 

A Tilted System: Reworking the Geological Model

Rather than interpreting the system as vertical, Carolina Rush's model - developed in consultation with Dr. Richard Sillitoe - now suggests the mineralised trend is tilted to the southeast and dips and plunges to the northwest at an angle of roughly 20 to 30 degrees. Applied to a schematic porphyry model Sillitoe originally published in 2010, the near-surface gold mine sits at the top of the system, while hole 38's copper-gold intersection sits below and lateral to it, rather than directly beneath. If accurate, this interpretation could be favourable: one of the key risks in porphyry exploration is that a mineralised deposit, even if found, may sit too deep to be economic.

Dr. Sillitoe is a UK-based independent consultant who has worked in more than 100 countries and is widely regarded as a leading authority on porphyry copper systems; he has visited Brewer four times and authored the 2010 Economic Geology paper the company's current model is adapted from. He has recommended at least two additional deep holes, stepping further northwest of hole 38, to continue testing for potassic alteration.

Interview with Layton Croft, President & CEO, Carolina Rush

The OceanaGold Partnership and Regional Context

Under the earn-in agreement, OceanaGold must spend US$8 million on Brewer exploration across 2026 and 2027 to earn a 50% interest in the project. Carolina Rush remains the operator during this phase, managing drilling contractors and assay labs, while OceanaGold funds the work; a four-person technical committee, with two representatives from each company, approves each phase's program and budget.

OceanaGold is a mid-tier gold producer operating four mines globally, including the Haile mine in South Carolina, roughly 15 minutes from Brewer. Haile is expected to account for up to 45% of OceanaGold's global production this year, with company guidance of 200,000 to 250,000 ounces of gold, alongside a recently announced capital program of more than US$200 million to expand underground mining. Management noted that Brewer's near-surface gold resource could, in time, serve as a strategic feed source should Haile's processing mill have spare capacity as its own reserves deplete.

Next Steps and Wider Significance

Assay results for hole 39 are still pending, and management is preparing a follow-up program and budget proposal for OceanaGold's approval, aiming to drill at least two further deep holes stepping northwest of hole 38 to test for potassic alteration along the interpreted tilt of the system. Management was careful to frame the current results as encouraging but preliminary: 

"It's peripheral, if you will... there's no guarantee it's going to be mineralised. It's likely that it is because we're seeing so much copper and gold all around, but there's no guarantee how much is there or what grade it is or how big it is."

The company also emphasised the historical and regional significance of the results. References to Brewer as a possible porphyry target date back to an 1893 North Carolina Geological Survey publication and a 1977 US Geological Survey report on the southeastern US, but no prior drilling had confirmed the deposit type. Dr. Sillitoe has told the company his view is that Brewer is "categorically not" a molybdenum porphyry, supporting the copper-gold interpretation. As Layton explained: 

"This is science at the end of the day, and scientists don't say things like 'confirming copper-gold porphyry system' unless there's enough evidence to do so."

Beyond Brewer itself, management framed the results within a broader regional narrative. Established porphyry copper districts cluster in specific regions globally - western North America, the Andes of South America, Asia's Ring of Fire, and Central Asia - and the southeastern US has not historically been considered part of that map. As Layton put it: 

"By cracking the code, I'm also talking about proving something that no one else has done before - that there is copper porphyry potential in the south-eastern US."

The Investment Thesis for Carolina Rush

• Early confirmation of a new target type: After decades of historical speculation dating to 1893, hole 38 marks the first drill-confirmed intersection of copper-gold mineralisation in porphyry-associated alteration at Brewer.
• Two-pronged asset base: A defined, near-surface NI 43-101 gold resource of roughly 500,000 ounces sits alongside unquantified deeper porphyry copper-gold upside.
• Funded exploration, reduced near-term dilution: OceanaGold's earn-in commits US$8 million to Brewer exploration in 2026-2027 in exchange for a 50% interest, funding drilling without requiring Carolina Rush to raise all capital itself.
• Credible, well-resourced partner: OceanaGold is an established mid-tier gold producer with an operating mine, Haile, just 15 minutes from Brewer, and has committed over US$200 million to expand that operation.
• Independent technical validation: Dr. Richard Sillitoe, a globally recognised porphyry copper authority, has personally reviewed Brewer's core and is directly involved in guiding the exploration model.
• Improving vectoring with depth: Consecutive holes have progressed from the lithocap into chlorite-sericite and, in hole 38, potassic alteration, with copper and gold grades increasing at depth.
• A more favorable depth scenario: The interpreted 20-30 degree tilt of the system may place the porphyry target at a shallower, more accessible depth than a vertical model would imply.
• Longer-term optionality: Proximity to Haile raises the potential for Brewer's near-surface gold resource to eventually supplement mill feed as OceanaGold's own reserves are depleted.
• Near-term catalysts: Pending hole 39 assay results and a proposed follow-up program of further step-out holes are due in the coming months.

TL;DR

Carolina Rush has drilled the first deep holes in Brewer's history, confirming for the first time that the project hosts genuine copper-gold porphyry-style mineralisation beneath its established near-surface gold resource. Hole 38 showed increasing copper-gold grades with depth, including a zone of potassic alteration, while a new tilted-system model suggests the deeper target may sit at a more accessible depth than previously assumed. The work is funded through an earn-in with OceanaGold, which must spend US$8 million by the end of 2027 to earn a 50% stake, with hole 39 assays and a further step-out drill program still to come.

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