The Agreement Enables the Monetisation of the NI 43-101 Gold Resources and the Long-Term Alternative Land-Use Revenue OpportunitiesRoad Town, BVI, June 30, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=kQmBvZm1jOsteUHWF-_duUe4xKld6zy5hDRl9ox17VeE0KlLMnAj47DxtJNYI0V40vba_DRU6pugY5DXER2kpA==" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="">nGRND Inc</a>. (“nGRND” or the “Company”), a land management and sustainability company that supports verified gold discovery and enables its monetisation by keeping it in the ground for its partner property owners and investors, today announced the execution and closing of its first Site Programme agreement with UK-listed gold exploration and development company <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=1rFSiM9nLXb3zQ1WGW1imGpqJrpmWir5eIakX_UuV8Pd-s_XujYbFuZXHScV5VHDj75WHgkjx1EyZE2o3tWOlLLFs-6cRZLZeLg1iht0I3FrxIYk7exHR4b-tV-bdxYx" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="First Class Metals PLC">First Class Metals PLC</a> (LSE: FCM), for the Kerrs Gold Project located in the Larder Lake mining district in Ontario, Canada.   <img src="https://newsroom.submitmypressrelease.com/system/media_files/images/000/073/317/original_jpeg/image6.jpg" /> Under the terms of the minimum 30-year agreement, with renewal terms at the sole discretion of the  Company, nGRND will manage all of FCM’s rights and purchase its in-ground gold resources under its existing and any future NI 43-101 technical reports and related studies. The Kerrs Project currently hosts 386,465 ounces of inferred gold resources. FCM will retain full ownership of its mining claims and continue to maintain operational flexibility to conduct approved exploration activities designed to expand mineral resources, improve resource classifications, and support additional gold discoveries. Under the agreement, nGRND has secured the right to acquire up to 386,465 ounces of gold resources, with an initial purchase commitment of up to 77,293 eligible ounces. The agreement includes a minimum purchase threshold of 60% of the initial allocation within one year. Based on current spot gold prices, which remain subject to market fluctuations, the current purchase price of each ounce of gold from nGRND to FCM is currently pegged at USD $138 per ounce, with the potential aggregate proceeds, not including any additional bonuses, totals USD $10.64 Million for the total initial purchase agreed at current pricing. Upon achievement of the minimum purchase threshold, nGRND will hold a right of first refusal to purchase further gold ounces discovered and upgraded based on an agreed upon ranking process, with FCM receiving the full benefit, including funds and any bonuses, of those purchases from any future gold resource growth or upgrades achieved through mutually approved further exploration and development.   To further align long-term interests between the parties, First Class Metals has issued to nGRND Inc. 10 million common share purchase warrants at 5.5 pence sterling with an expiry date of 3 years from the date of issues and a further 10 million common share purchase warrants at 10 pence sterling with an expiry date of 5 years from the date of issue. In addition to the monetisation of gold resources on the property, nGRND, will engage independent specialist experts, to conduct a feasibility study for alternative land-use monetisation opportunities in order to establish a minimum 30 year roadmap focused on revenue-driven ESG and SDG-measured impact initiatives. These initiatives will support not only nGRND, FCM and expert providers, but also First Nations and other key parties.   Marc J Sale, CEO of First Class Metals PLC, commented: “The potential proceeds from this arrangement will materially strengthen the First Class Metal’s balance sheet and provide the flexibility to accelerate our exploration plans not only at Kerrs but across the portfolio. In particular, it would enable us to advance exploration at North Hemlo and Sunbeam. The resource review of Kerrs with an aim of expanding both the resource and increasing the confidence level has been reinitiated. This will potentially allow re-ranking of existing ounces as well as possible further monetisation of additional ounces identified. Progress will be reported as and when.” James Knowles, Executive Chairman of First Class Metals PLC, commented: “This agreement has the potential to be transformational for First Class Metals. It demonstrates how First Class Metal can unlock value from its existing NI 43-101 resource base at Kerrs, while retaining full ownership, certain control and long-term optionality across its portfolio. Crucially, this structure allows us to recognise value today without compromising our ability to grow, upgrade and ultimately develop our assets as market conditions evolve. It also reinforces our strategy of building a diversified, capital-efficient gold organisation in Ontario, capable of advancing multiple high-quality projects in parallel.” Professor Lisa Wilson, CEO of nGRND Inc., commented:   “This is the first of what is expected to be many nGRND Site Programme agreements to support the gold industry with over 184,000 tonnes of known in-ground gold resources remaining globally. Valuing and monetising gold in its natural state and avoiding its mining enables nGRND to establish additional long-term alternative land use monetisation and value improvements on these preserved sites. This innovative solution provides companies, like First Class Metals with the ability to secure funds without capital dilution.   Traditionally, gold’s value is seen as a binary choice. Extract the resources or preserve the land. Our innovation breaks this dichotomy by unlocking two distinct and concurrent value streams that results in a winning formula and economic model for all parties – including where applicable traditional and Indigenous landowners. nGRND’s solution creates a new paradigm to support the gold industry with environmental stewardship and derive new benefits for 30 years or more from the monetisation of measured ESG, SDG and other sustainability impact initiatives.”  Looking beyond this first agreement, nGRND is currently negotiating with a number of parties in Canada, the USA, Australia, Central and South America, and the EU to create similar Site Programmes to this First Class Metals PLC Agreement for potentially millions of gold ounces that are currently stranded, abandoned, difficult to permit, and / or currently uneconomically viable for extraction. nGNRD’s vision is to become the world’s largest resource company that doesn’t mine and to support our partners with revenues that secure funds that allow them to grow without increased pressure on their capital structure whilst delivering a solution to the critical need to transition to a low-carbon and more sustainable climate positive economy. For more information, please visit <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=9V5D2FAInFoJb8KP59nSGCdMsHk-S0lFlslKMdzU3_xc8nBQISHQRky9ITeus-j3A3VBdfzvYC-boFBnr13TIQ==" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="">https://ngrnd.com</a>  About nGRND Inc. nGRND Inc. is a land management and sustainability company that supports verified gold discovery and enables its monetisation by keeping it in the ground for its partner property owners and investors. Alternative land use addresses the critical need to transition to a low-carbon and more sustainable climate positive economy with additional long-term monetisation opportunities through ESG and SDG measured impact initiatives.  nGRND’s vision is to become the world’s biggest resource company that doesn’t mine. nGRND’s Site Programme process allows verified gold mineral resources to remain in-ground providing sources of revenue that are not dilutive to the capital structure for property owners that may be facing a currently uneconomical or environmentally difficult pathway to extraction, helping to mitigate risks such as geological uncertainty, cost of extraction, and regulatory and environmental exposure, while still supporting their further exploration and prospecting abilities.  Through its partners, nGRND also explores and implements alternative land use Carbon and ESG Programme feasibility origination engagement agreements and multiple methodology projects creating additional revenue  For more information, visit <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=9V5D2FAInFoJb8KP59nSGKo5z8tj29QZPWbSmw1JgNS0casagnErnbz1v3OBj0IjQjRsKeVThvaZOA50hB2SPg==" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="">https://ngrnd.com</a> and follow us on <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=NDHxmOadAm1W4iTfMmpNmqD5iZzmiLamofjPqX_5CypCuYiV1MiPoIQ-g7S7ramCZwpblcTgaCV6L09HMVd6OQ==" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="X">X</a>. About First Class Metals PLC   First Class Metals PLC listed on the LSE in July 2022 and is focused on metals exploration in Ontario, Canada which has a robust and thriving junior mineral exploration sector. In particular, the Hemlo 'camp' near Marathon, Ontario is a proven world class address for gold exploration, featuring the Hemlo gold deposit previously operated by Barrick Mining (&gt;23M oz gold produced), with the past producing Sugar Zone (&gt;1M oz gold), Geco and Winston Lake base metal deposits also situated in the region. FCM currently holds 100% ownership of six claim blocks covering over 260km² in northwest Ontario. A further three blocks are under option and cover an additional 60km2. FCM is focussed on exploring for gold but has base metals and critical metals exploration projects. FCM maintains a joint venture with GT Resources on the West Pickle Lake Property, a drill-proven ultra-high-grade Ni-Cu project. The flagship properties, North Hemlo and Sunbeam, are gold focussed. North Hemlo has a significant discovery in the Dead Otter trend which is a discontinuous 3.5km gold anomalous trend with a 19.6g/t Au peak grab sample. This sampling being the highest known assay from a grab sample ever recorded on the North Limb of Hemlo. In October 2022, FCM completed the option to purchase the historical high-grade past-producing Sunbeam gold mine near Atikokan, Ontario, ~15 km southeast of Agnico Eagle’s Hammond Reef gold deposit (3.3 Moz of open pit probable gold reserves). The Sunbeam property is now 100% owned by FCM. FCM acquired the Zigzag Project near Armstrong, Ontario in March 2023. The property features Li-Ta-bearing pegmatites in the same belt as Green Technology Metals’ Seymour Lake Project, which contains a Mineral Resource estimate of 9.9 Mt @ 1.04% Li2O. Zigzag was successfully drilled prior to Christmas 2023.FCM now owns 80% of the property and has entered into a JV with Nuinsco Resources Limited.  The Kerrs Gold property is located in northeastern Ontario within the Abitibi Greenstone Belt, one of the world’s most prolific gold-producing regions. The project holds a historical inferred resource of approximately 386,000 ounces of gold, underscoring its potential as a meaningful addition to FCM’s expanding gold portfolio. Kerrs Gold complements the First Class Metal’s exploration strategy and provides exposure to a well-established mining district. FCM is currently reviewing plans to advance the project and further unlock its value.100% ownership of the Kerrs property was achieved in H1 2026. The significant potential of the properties for precious, base and battery metals relates to ‘nearology’, since all properties lie in the same districts as known deposits (Hemlo, Hammond Reef, Seymour Lake), and either contain known showings, geochemical or geophysical anomalies, or favourable structures along strike from known showings (e.g. the Esa project, with an inferred Hemlo-style shear along strike from known gold occurrences). For further information see the First Class Metal PLC presentation on the web site: <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=VXZLwtaGX9JdFMnOHq4SsVlWRXIfsk6gLfWisTSxPRu8xxYJGCsE70jN50nM74zrtLlQB1jc78Xv6zWVNAQUx8BWHGO_DxLSgdeqpjq3IJgDv9_Dt3BBAzBG5xyQrf0H" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="www.firstclassmetalsplc.com">www.firstclassmetalsplc.com</a>  Media Contact <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=Do5nPKfcyqEbn55n7fsoS9BzLONcptH6TM3smQwB4SDaz39lQAaS4RGaKR1__hBPUAlFdZT6O7D--oyGxN7ztw==" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="Info@ngrnd.com">Info@ngrnd.com</a> <a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/Tracker?data=ePhLM8E2v_eylQpMSG-xYNIGbWX3pin8QhDRIHaklgxPB5Tbo4_k86zuWWwiHRRKEyxJ9hoYI2UEo20mmY5LRdSQZMTHUnRSCk_694LGW90=" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="robert@thronepr.com">robert@thronepr.com</a>  Disclaimer: The information contained within this announcement is deemed to constitute inside information as stipulated under the retained EU law version of the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014 (the "UK MAR") which is part of UK law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. The information is disclosed in accordance with the First Class Metal PLC's obligations under Article 17 of the UK MAR. Upon the publication of this announcement, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain. This press release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice, financial guidance, or a solicitation to buy or sell any securities, commodities or digital assets. The statements, views, and opinions expressed in this release are solely those of the issuing company or its authorized representatives. The publisher, distributor, and any associated third parties make no representations or guarantees of profit, and explicitly disclaim any liability for losses or damages incurred as a result of using or relying on the information presented. Digital asset investments carry a high level of risk, including the potential loss of all capital. There are no guarantees of performance, and markets may become illiquid or go to zero. Readers are strongly encouraged to conduct their own independent research and consult with licensed financial professionals before making any investment decisions. By accessing and reading this press release, you agree not to reproduce, distribute, or use this content for any unlawful or unauthorized purposes. Use of this content signifies your acceptance of these terms. For any questions or clarifications, please contact the issuing company directly. Do not contact the publisher, distributor, or any unrelated third party. <img alt="" src='https://ml.globenewswire.com/media/MjY4MWQ1YmItMTY1ZS00MzQwLWE0NTEtMmRkMzQ0MWY0ZjM4LTEzMjEzODctMjAyNi0wNi0zMC1lbg==/tiny/nGRND-com.png' referrerpolicy='no-referrer-when-downgrade' />

nGRND Executes First Site Programme Agreement with First Class Metals for 386,465 Ounces of Gold

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