Rubicon Minerals Corporation provided details on its 2018 Exploration Program at the Phoenix Gold Project. 2018 Exploration Program: Up to 14,000 metres of drilling: The 2018 Exploration Program plans for 10,000 m of infill and step-out drilling from the 305-, 610- and 685-metre levels to potentially improve mineral resource classification and grow the mineral resources within the F2 Gold Deposit. In addition, the company plans up to 4,000 m of bazooka drilling, which entails drilling short holes within the developed test stopes to better define the extent of the mineralization in the stoping blocks and stoping shapes. Underground development and test mining: Rubicon has advanced 153.6 m in exploratory underground development at the Project on the 122- and 244-metre levels. The company has begun stockpiling mineralized development material on surface that will ultimately be used for bedding in the mill. Upon completion of the development program, the company will move into a test mining phase that is anticipated to commence in mid-2018. Rubicon has identified a number of stopes to conduct its test mining activities. These test stopes are located in the upper portion of main F2 Gold Deposit mineralized envelope and have substantial development and drilling already completed, enabling the company to take advantage of sunk capital, reducing costs and timelines. Please refer to Diagrams 1 to 6 at the end of this release for visual depictions of the planned test mining. During the test mining program, Rubicon plans to: Test various mining methods, including sublevel longhole stoping and mechanized cut-and-fill, which will help determine the appropriate mining method(s) in the future; gather data including chips, muck samples and mapping that will help to potentially reconcile, refine, and validate the new geological model and Mineral Resource Estimate; and Collect cost data that would be beneficial for a potential feasibility study of the Project. Rubicon is planning to test mine an initial 15,000 to 25,000 tonnes of mineralized material from the test stopes. Based on the 2016 Mineral Resource block model, the estimated grades of the mineralized material from the test stopes are between 4 to 6 grams per tonne of gold. The company cautions that these estimates are not necessarily representative of the estimated block model grades that Rubicon and its consultants are formulating for an updated Mineral Resource Estimate of the F2 Gold Deposit. Rubicon will continue to stockpile mineralized material on surface from the test mining until sufficient tonnes have been accumulated to be processed through the mill. Milling of bulk sample: The company plans to re-start its mill at the Project to process the mineralized bulk sample material from the test mining. The mill is currently configured and permitted to process approximately 1,250 tonnes per day. Rubicon will charge up its mill using low-grade development material prior to processing mineralized material from test mining. The company anticipates operating the mill between 700 to 1,000 tonnes per day and will clean out the mill following the processing of all bulk sample material. Rubicon anticipates mill start up to commence in mid-2018. Preliminary structural analysis, updated geological model and NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate. The company and its external consultants are completing an initial draft of the preliminary structural analysis of the F2 Gold Deposit, which will potentially form the foundation of a new geological model. Rubicon expects to communicate observations from the preliminary structural analysis in the first quarter of 2018. The new data collected from the diamond drilling, test mining, and bulk sample processing will be used to further enhance and refine the new geological model and potentially validate the updated NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate for the Project. Rubicon remains on track to deliver the NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate in the second half of 2018. The company could then potentially commence a feasibility study if there is a meaningful increase in mineral resources at the Project.