Santana Minerals Limited announced further significant results from the 100% owned Bendigo-Ophir Project ("the Project"). The Project presently contains a global 1.9Moz inferred gold resource (MRE) in four Rise and Shine Shear Zone (RSSZ) deposits (ASX announcement on 11 July 2022), which remain open down-plunge at depth. Drilling (14,347 metres completed since the MRE) is continuing to expand resource potential.

Assays have been received for 5 RAS drillholes; MDD074 and MDD078 from RAS North (northern extension) and MDD072, MDD076, MDD079 from RAS Ridge (South-eastern extension). The two RAS sub-areas are 1,000 metres apart and lie at the limits of the presently defined 1.5-kilometre NNE trending down-plunge shoot. Significant new drillhole Intercepts in MDD078 and MDD079 together with the balance of assays for previously reported MDD072 (ASX announcement on 18 October 2022) confirm continuity of RAS shoot mineralisation in the north-east and south-east of RAS respectively.

The high-grade intercepts in these drillholes are in the upper mineralised domains of the RSSZ hanging-wall-shear (HWS) that reported 1.23Moz @ 3.6g/t Au (top-cut, 1.5g/t Au lower cut-off) within the overall 1.68Moz @ 1.9g/t Au July RAS MRE (top-cut, 0.50g/t Au lower cut-off), (ASX announcement on 11 July 2022). Lower grade intercepts in MDD074 and MDD076 have narrower thickness and appear to close off mineralisation to the north-west and south-east respectively. Structural analysis of close-spaced drillholes in the RAS Ridge area is presently underway to assist understanding of controls on mineralisation where a particularly thicker and higher-grade mineralised zone is emerging on the eastern flank, more significant than modelled in the July MRE The closer-spaced drillholes were designed to provide 40 metre intercept data on sections for geostatistical purposes to inform optimal drill spacing for raising resource classification from "inferred" category.

Mineralisation on section N5017180 is open both east and west and has been logged in all these close-spaced holes, with assay results pending. Assays have been received for 2 down-plunge drillholes at SHR & SRE deposits south-east along strike from RAS. At SHR deposit, MDD077, has 1m @ 0.52g/t Au (0.5g/t Au lower-cut-off) present within the upper 36.1 metres of the RSSZ with 40 metres of assays pending.

At SRE deposit, 500 metres SE of SHR, the balance of assays for MDD075 raise the previously announced intercept (ASX announcement on 18 October 2022) to 11 metres @ 0.65g/t Au (0.5g/t Au lower-cut-off). The width of new down-plunge mineralisation north of SHR and SRE 2021 MRE's is currently 280 metres and 370 metres respectively. Drilling is underway to follow the apparently strengthening SRE mineralisation to the north-east.

The continuation of highly mineralised intercepts being delivered from RAS have been a regular feature since the high-grade RAS shoot was first revealed 18 months ago in April 2021. Drilling in progress at RAS Ridge will assist interpretation of structural controls on mineralization and provide valuable geostatistical data to inform optimal drill spacing to raise MRE classification from "Inferred" category. To date 14,300 metres of new drilling in 46 drillholes have been completed since the July MRE database was closed with another RAS MRE upgrade scheduled to commence in December.

Broad widths of the down-plunge mineralised zones at SHR and SRE deposits add weight to the already defined multi-million-ounce potential of the RSSZ. Drilling has commenced at Thomsons Saddle (TSD) and Upper Thomsons (UTS) prospects as part of a broader drilling programme to identify another RAS-type deposit in the 30-kilometre length of the Bendigo-Ophir project. The Bendigo-Ophir Project is located on the South Island of New Zealand within the Central Otago Goldfields.

The 292km2 project area comprises Minerals Exploration Permit (MEP) 60311 (252km2) and Minerals Prospecting Permit Application (MPPA) 60882 (40km2) issued to 100% owned subsidiary Matakanui Gold Ltd. The Project is located 90 kilometres northwest of Oceana Gold Ltd. (OGC) Macraes Gold Mine. The Company embarked on diamond drilling (DD) and reverse circulation (RC) drilling programmes in November 2020 with the immediate objective to fast-track an increase to the existing Resources by drill testing the down plunge extensions of known mineralisation.