Liberty Gold Provides Insights on Gold Market and Company Strategy

• Liberty Gold, led by CEO Jason Attew, is focused on oxide heap-leap opportunities in the Great Basin of the United States.
• Liberty Gold is attending the Precious Metals Summit conference to engage with its long-term gold investors and discuss the company's prospects and challenges in the gold sector.
• The gold commodity has shown resilience despite challenges like the US dollar strength. Gold equities, however, are significantly underperforming, trading at 10-20% of their fundamental value.
• Liberty Gold recently partnered with Wheaton Precious Metals, raising funds to advance its Black Pine project in Idaho. They plan to file a mine plan of operation after conducting a pre-feasibility study, starting the time-consuming US permitting process.
• The gold industry is cyclical, and while the current market conditions are challenging, there's hope for a more constructive phase. The focus remains on proper capital allocation, especially given the industry's past mistakes.

About Liberty Gold

Liberty Gold (TSX:LGD; OTCQX:LGDTF) specializes in discovering and developing open pit oxide gold deposits in the Great Basin region of the United States. This prolific area, stretching across Nevada, Idaho and Utah, has produced some of the world's largest and most profitable gold mines.

With superior knowledge of the Great Basin's geology and favorable mining conditions, Liberty Gold is driven to explore and advance new oxide discoveries amenable to profitable, large-scale open pit mining. The company leverages its regional expertise to pinpoint exploration targets with the potential to become the next major gold producing district.

By focusing on shallow oxidized deposits ideal for low-cost open pit operations, Liberty Gold aims to create significant value for shareholders through new gold discoveries in one of the world's premier mining jurisdictions.

At the 2023 Precious Metals Summit in Beaver Creek, Liberty Gold President and CEO Jason Attew provided his perspective on the current state of the gold market and Liberty Gold's strategy going forward. Despite headwinds, Liberty remains focused on advancing its flagship oxide heap leach Black Pine and Goldstrike projects in Idaho and Utah.

Interview with President & CEO, Jason Attew

Weak Sentiment Weighing on Gold Equities But Fundamentals Remain Strong

While the gold price has shown resilience, gold equities have significantly lagged the metal over the past three years due to weak investor sentiment. Attew noted this has disconnected equities from reality - quality exploration and development companies are trading at steep discounts to net asset value.

This weak sentiment stems from a prevailing risk-off environment, extended underperformance of gold stocks, and past poor capital allocation by some gold companies. Attew believes this bear market has provided discipline and expects more prudent capital allocation industry-wide going forward. According to Attew, the US dollar's strength against other currencies has been a headwind for gold due to its strong negative correlation. He thinks a pivot by the Fed on tightening in 2024 or beyond will ignite a new bull market for gold and gold equities. This view aligns with many other gold sector experts.

When sentiment improves, Attew expects capital to first flow back into senior gold producers with strong cash flows and dividends. Interest should eventually trickle down into attractive exploration and development plays to fill depleted reserves.

Liberty Focused on Advancing Flagship Black Pine Project in Idaho

Attew highlighted Black Pine as Liberty's flagship asset, with an existing 3.1 million ounce gold resource open for expansion. The company recently raised C$5.7 million to fund a pre-feasibility study for Black Pine. The study will establish economic viability and support permitting efforts.

Federal permitting follows a 24-36 month timeline under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Attew stressed the importance of advancing Black Pine through permitting given the lengthy process. He cited this as the biggest potential catalyst for a re-rating of the stock. The Black Pine pre-feasibility study should demonstrate a 15-17 year mine life producing ~200,000 ounces per year. This could position the asset as a potential takeover target for a major looking to add low-cost North American production ounces.

In addition, filing for permits would start an important 24-36 month countdown. Attew suggested capital allocation focused on Black Pine offers the most risk reduction for shareholders relative to exploration spending.

Wheaton Investment Provides Capital and Credibility

A key component of the recent raise was the lead investment by renowned streaming company Wheaton Precious Metals (WPM). This provided capital but also credibility through their due diligence.

Liberty Gold sold a 0.5% gross royalty on Black Pine to Wheaton for C$4 million, while retaining an option to buy back 25% of the royalty. Attew highlighted the minimal encumbrance of a 0.5% royalty, while noting Wheaton's involvement as a positive endorsement. The Wheaton name and network should also help with future capital raises to fund Black Pine development capital expenditures. Attew called them an important new partner and prospective financier.

Upside Potential at Second Project - Goldstrike in Utah

While most drilling is focused on Black Pine, Liberty Gold's second project called Goldstrike in Utah also provides significant upside potential. Attew says while smaller than Black Pine, Goldstrike offers a quicker and cheaper path to production. Goldstrike already has an 8-year mine life defined with an upside to growing the resource. Advancement has been delayed due to permitting challenges, but this could change in Liberty's favor.

The US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Utah’s School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA) are proposing a land swap. If approved by US Congress, it would place Liberty's Goldstrike land under state rather than federal jurisdiction.

Attew highlighted how state-level permitting could halve typical permitting timeframes. This could allow Goldstrike to overtake Black Pine in the development pipeline. Management is closely monitoring the land swap proposal as a potential game changer. Despite an extremely challenging market for gold equities, Liberty Gold continues advancing its portfolio of fully permitted oxide heap leach projects in tier-one American mining jurisdictions.

The company is tightly focused on risk reduction at Black Pine in Idaho, with a pre-feasibility study and permitting process underway. Major catalysts are expected over the next 12-24 months from drilling, economic studies and permitting milestones. Upside also exists at the Goldstrike project in Utah, where a potential land swap could accelerate simple state-level permitting. With 4.3 million ounces of oxide gold resources outlined, Liberty offers substantial leverage to the inevitable recovery in the gold sector.

The Investment Thesis

• Large gold resource base with over 4 million ounces outlined. This provides significant upside leverage to the gold price.
• Assets located in top-tier mining jurisdictions (Idaho and Utah) with stable regulatory regimes. This reduces political risk.
• Focus on simple, low-cost heap leach mining of oxide gold deposits. This will deliver strong profit margins when put into production.
• Clear path to de-risk flagship Black Pine project through pre-feasibility study and permitting over next 12-24 months. Important catalysts ahead.
• Potential to fast-track permitting and development at the second project Goldstrike through a strategic land swap. Provides a second shot at near-term production.
• Current market conditions have pushed quality gold developers like Liberty to steep valuation discounts relative to peers. Stock could re-rate significantly in a recovering gold market.
• New partnership and investment from Wheaton Precious Metals provides credibility and financial backing.
• Experienced management team with a track record of success and prudent capital allocation.
• Significant acquisition appeal once in production. Would be an attractive addition for mid-tier and major gold producers looking to bolster reserves.

Liberty Gold offers strong leverage to an upswing in investor sentiment towards gold. The assets, plan and partnerships are in place to de-risk and advance toward production. As progress continues, the discounted valuation gap should close. These factors make Liberty an appealing investment at the current stock price for investors bullish on gold.