January 8, 2026 News Release - Forty Pillars to Option Drill-Ready Golden Link Project in Newfoundland Gold Belt
FORTY PILLARS TO OPTION DRILL-READY GOLDEN LINK PROJECT IN NEWFOUNDLAND
GOLD BELT
Vancouver, B.C. – Jan 8, 2026 ‐ Forty Pillars Mining Corp. (CSE: PLLR ) (the “Company” or “ Forty
Pillars”) is pleased to announce that it has entered into an agreement (the “Agreement”) giving it the
right to acquire 100% of the Golden Link Project (the “ Project” or “GLP”) located in the prolific
Central Newfoundland Gold Belt.
The Golden Link Project consists of two contiguous mineral licenses encompassing a total land area
of ~36.25 km2 located approximately 21 km north of the town of Gander, Newfoundland. The GLP can
be accessed by road via the Trans-Canada Highway and well -maintained forest service roads. A
transmission line runs just 15km east of the Project.
Highlights
• Located on a Proven Gold-Bearing Structural Corridor
The Golden Link Project sits along the Dog Bay Line and related secondary structures, a major
regional fault system that hosts significant orogenic gold mineralization elsewhere in central
Newfoundland (Figure 1).
• Independent Regional Geochemistry Confirms Prospectivity
Regional work by Torq Resources and Heberlein Consulting identified coherent gold -in-till
anomalies along a ~25 km structural corridor, including a high -priority target directly within
the Golden Link Project area (Figure 2).
• Modern IP Survey Defines Multiple Drill-Ready Targets
The 2024 high -definition Alpha IP survey outlined 69 chargeability anomalies, including 16
first-priority and 34 second-priority targets, many with depth continuity exceeding 300 metres
(Figure 3).
• Strong Target Convergence De-Risks Exploration
The spatial overlap of regional geochemical anomalies, interpreted fault structures, and high-
priority IP responses provides strong confidence that the GLP is targeting the right parts of a
fertile gold system.
• Large Upside with No Historical Drilling
Despite compelling geological and geophysical indicators, the Project has seen no historical
drilling, leaving all the targets untested. The GLP is positioned for systematic exploration
followed by drill testing.
• District Validation from Newfound Gold’s Recent Land Consolidation and Positive PEA
Recent land consolidation along the Appleton Fault and Dog Bay Line, together with a positive
PEA completed by Newfound Gold Corp., validate the district’s prospectivity and
demonstrate its ability to support large -scale, economically viable orogenic gold systems,
providing important regional context for exploration-stage project.
2
*Readers are cautioned that the geology of nearby properties is not necessarily indicative of
the geology of the Project.
Figure 1: Plan view map showing New Found Gold land package, regional structures and drill highlights in relation to the
GLP
Forty Pillars CEO Nader Vatanchi commented “Golden Link gives us exposure to one of the most
active and prolific gold districts in Canada, but in an area that remains largely untested. We’re not
starting from scratch here, targets are already defined, the structures are well understood, and the
upside is clear. This is exactly the type of acquisition we believe can deliver meaningful exploration
upside for our shareholders.”
3
The 2023 Newfound Gold Orthoimagery/LIDAR Survey
The entire Golden Link Project is covered by a high -resolution LiDAR and orthophoto survey
completed in 2023 by Newfound Gold Corp., providing a consistent, high-precision digital elevation
model ( the “ DEM”) across all mineral licenses. The survey delivers a uniform elevation dataset
referenced to a single vertical datum, ensuring reliable spatial control for exploration planning and
interpretation.
This dataset provides a strong technical foundation for the Project, supporting precise geophysical
survey design, accurate structural interpretation, and future drone -based and autonomous
exploration programs. The DEM also captures key surface and hydrological features, including lakes,
wetlands, rivers, and watersheds, which are important for both exploration logistics and
environmental planning.
The survey was completed as a single, large -area program over a short time frame, resulting in
consistent resolution and data quality across the entire Project area. This approach avoids the
common issues associated with patchwork LiDAR coverage, such as v ariable resolution,
mismatched elevation datums, seasonal artifacts, and data gaps that can complicate interpretation
and automated analysis.
By surveying the broader area in a single program, the dataset provides clean, seamless coverage
that enhances the effectiveness of structural mapping, watershed analysis, and integration with
geophysical and geochemical datasets. The scale and consistency of this LiDAR coverage represent
a meaningful advantage for Golden Link, as high -quality topographic control is critical when
advancing structurally focused gold exploration projects (Newfound Gold Corp., 2023).
4
Figure 2: Plan view map of six discrete gold-in-till anomaly targets generated by Torq Resources and Heberlein Consulting
Exploration Program (Target 4 located on GLP)
5
Torq Resources and Heberlein Consulting Exploration Program
Regional exploration completed by Torq Resources between 2017 and 2018 provides a strong
technical foundation for the Golden Link Project. Torq’s program covered a large portion of central
Newfoundland, including the Golden Link area, and was designed to identify structurally controlled
gold systems along the Dog Bay Line and associated fault corridors.
The program integrated multiple independent exploration methods, including detailed pXRF till
sampling, biogeochemical sampling, conventional till and rock sampling, and compilation of
regional geophysical and geological datasets. These data were interpreted by Heberlein Consulting,
which applied advanced multivariate statistical techniques to identify coherent gold and pathfinder
element patterns related to bedrock sources.
This work identified six discrete gold -in-till anomalies distributed along a ~25 kilometre structural
corridor parallel to the Dog Bay Line. One of these anomalies, referred to as Target 4, lies directly
within the Golden Link Project area. Target 4 was in terpreted as a high-priority gold target, spatially
associated with major regional structures, including the Dog Bay Line and the Appleton Linear, and
supported by coincident geochemical responses from multiple sampling media (Torq Resources,
2018; Heberlein Consulting, 2018.
Importantly, the Torq–Heberlein targets were generated prior to any modern geophysical surveying
on the Golden Link Project, providing an independent line of evidence for gold prospectivity.
Subsequent exploration by VOA Exploration utilized these results to guide follow-up work, including
the design and placement of a high-resolution IP survey specifically over the Target 4 area.
The coincidence of Torq -defined geochemical anomalies, Heberlein’s interpreted structural
controls, and modern IP -defined chargeability targets significantly enhances confidence in the
Golden Link Project and supports its interpretation as part of a larger, structurally controlled orogenic
gold system.
6
Figure 3: Plan view map of the Alpha IP Trends (after Simcoe Geoscience) on the GLP , alongside historic Au in till samples
About the 2024 IP Survey
A high-definition 2D Alpha IP ™ resistivity and chargeability survey was completed over the Golden
Link Project in 2024 by Simcoe Geoscience Ltd. The survey comprised 16 east –west oriented IP
profiles with approximately 50 -metre dipole spacing, providing detailed coverage across priority
structural corridors on both sides of the Project area.
The wireless Alpha IP ™ system enabled imaging to depths of greater than 300 metres on longer
profiles, consistent with the target depths being explored elsewhere in the district. Data quality was
monitored and processed on a daily basis during acquisition, allowing for real -time refinement of
survey parameters and ensuring a robust final dataset.
Subsurface modeling integrated both resistivity and chargeability responses using industry-standard
inversion techniques, generating depth -constrained sections and plan maps at multiple levels.
These datasets were compiled into a comprehensive interpretati on that integrates geophysical
responses with topography, structure, and property boundaries.
The IP survey successfully delineated sixty -nine (69) chargeability anomalies across the Project,
highlighting the target-rich nature of the Golden Link Project. These anomalies were ranked based on
strength, geometry, and geological context (Simcoe Geoscience Ltd., 2025; Rodway, 2025):
7
• Sixteen (16) first -priority targets, characterized by strong chargeability responses and
favourable resistivity signatures, interpreted to represent zones of significant sulphide
concentration and high exploration potential.
• Thirty-four (34) second -priority targets, displaying moderate chargeability and resistivity,
interpreted as structurally controlled mineralized zones.
• Nineteen (19) third-priority targets, generally deeper-seated anomalies interpreted as down-
dip or along -strike extensions of higher -priority targets, suggesting potential vertical
continuity of mineralization.
Importantly, many of the highest -priority IP targets coincide with regional gold -in-till anomalies
identified by Torq Resources, providing strong independent validation from multiple exploration
methods. All priority targets remain untested by drilling, po sitioning the Golden Link Project for
immediate follow-up exploration (Torq Resources, 2018; Rodway, 2025).
Geology of the Golden Link Project
The Golden Link Project is located within the Exploits Subzone of the Dunnage Zone in central
Newfoundland, a highly prospective tectonostratigraphic domain formed during the Paleozoic
Appalachian orogeny. This region represents accreted volcanic arc and m arine sedimentary
sequences associated with closure of the Iapetus Ocean and is dissected by several major, long -
lived crustal-scale fault systems (Williams et al., 1988; Currie, 1995; Torq Resources, 2018).
The Project is centred on the Dog Bay Line, a major Silurian tectonic boundary that separates Middle
Ordovician clastic sedimentary rocks of the Davidsville Group to the east from Silurian sedimentary
rocks of the Indian Islands Group to the west. These units are locally overlain by red shale, siltstone,
and sandstone of the Ten Mile Lake Formation. The Dog Bay Line and associated secondary and
tertiary fault splays are interpreted to have accommodated multiple phases of strike -slip, oblique-
slip, and britt le to brittle -ductile deformation, creating favourable structural traps for gold
mineralization (Pollock et al., 2007; Torq Resources, 2018).
Gold mineralization in the Project area is interpreted to be orogenic in style and structurally
controlled. Historical work indicates that mineralization is associated with quartz and quartz -
carbonate veining, brecciation, silicification, and carbonate ± s ericite alteration. Sulphide
mineralization includes disseminated and blebby pyrite, arsenopyrite, and locally chalcopyrite, with
reported occurrences of scheelite and Au -Ag tellurides. Mineralization and alteration are not
restricted to a single host lith ology and have been documented in sedimentary, volcanic, and
intrusive rocks, including sandstone, siltstone, greywacke, gabbro, diorite, and monzonite (Torq
Resources, 2018).
Recent exploration success to the south by Newfound Gold Corp. has demonstrated that the regional
structural framework is capable of hosting extensive, high-grade epizonal to orogenic gold systems
developed along major fault corridors. In response, exploration at the Golden Link Project is focused
on testing secondary, tertiary, and higher-order structures associated with the Dog Bay Line, where
structural complexity, favourable host rocks, and multiple generations of deformation are interpreted
to enhance gold prospectivity (Newfound Gold Corp., 2023; Newfound Gold Corp., 2024).
8
Newfound Gold Discovery and District Advancement
Exploration success in central Newfoundland has rapidly elevated the district’s profile and validated
the broader structural framework that the Golden Link Project is targeting. Newfound Gold Corp. ’s
initial breakthrough at the Keats Zone included the widely cited intercept in discovery hole NFGC-19-
01 of 19.0 m grading 92.86 g/t Au (including 285.2 g/t Au over 6.0 m), which helped catalyze renewed
exploration interest along the Appleton Fault and adjacent regional structures.
Following that early success, Newfound Gold’s ongoing systematic drilling has continued to expand
and connect high -grade mineralized zones along strike within its Queensway Project footprint,
reinforcing the interpretation that this is a large, structurall y controlled orogenic gold system with
meaningful scale potential. In parallel, continued consolidation and expansion of land positions in
the district has underscored the strategic value of controlling prospective strike length along key fault
corridors in central Newfoundland.
Most recently, Newfound Gold advanced the district from discovery -driven exploration into
economic evaluation with the release of a Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) on the
Queensway Project in July 2025. The progression from discovery to a formal economic study provides
important regional context for Golden Link, which sits within the same highly active exploration
district and targets structurally analogous corridors associated with the Dog Bay Line and related
fault splays.
*Readers are cautioned that the geology of nearby properties is not necessarily indicative of the
geology of the Project
Transaction Summary
The Agreement was entered into with with 1487049 B.C. Ltd . (“ 1487”) and VOA Exploration Inc.
(“VOA”) on January 7, 2026 (the “Effective Date”). Pursuant to the Agreement, the Company will be
assigned (the “ Assignment”) an option (the “ Option”) to acquire the Golden Link Project in
consideration for (i) the issuance of an aggregate of 17,500,000 common shares in the capital of the
Company (the “ Assignment Shares ”) and (ii) the assumption of $200,000 in liabilities. All
Assignment Shares issued in connection with the transaction will be subject to a voluntary hold
period of six months from the date of issuance.
The Agreement also contemplates certain amendments to the existing option agreement respecting
the Option (as amended, the “ Option Agreement ”). Upon completion of the Assignment, the
Company will hold, through the Option Agreement, the right to earn a 100% interest in the Project by
satisfying the following cash payments, share issuances, and exploration expenditure commitments:
Cash Payments
• $100,000 payable to VOA on or before the first anniversary of the Effective Date;
• $275,000 payable to VOA on or before the second anniversary of the Effective Date.
Share Issuances
• 3,000,000 common shares issuable to VOA on or before the first anniversary of the Effective
Date, to be held in escrow and released as follows: