Aura Minerals Inc. (TSX: ORA) (B3: AURA33) (OTCQX: ORAAF) is pleased to announce Q4 2023 preliminary production results from the Company’s four operating mines: Aranzazu Mine, EPP Mines (Apoena Operation), San Andres Mine (Minosa Operation), and Almas Mine. Total production in Q4 2023 reached 69,194 gold equivalent ounces¹, a 7% increase compared to Q3 2023 as a result of improved operating performance at three mines, Apoena (EPP), Minosa (San Andrés) and Almas. When compared to the same period last year, production increased by 2% mainly due to Almas achieving commercial production in August 2023.

Total production for 2023 reached 235,856 GEO at current prices, within the range of the Q3 2023 MD&A Consolidated Production Guidance of between 231,000 – 253,000 GEO for 2023.

Q4 2023 Highlights

• At Aranzazu, production was 26,532 GEO. Production was 2% lower compared to Q3 2023 and 1% above Q4 2022 at constant prices, due to mine sequencing and in line with the Company’s Guidance.
• At Apoena (EPP), production was 15,217 GEO, 36% higher in Q4 2023 compared to the previous quarter as the high-grade Ernesto pit was accessed and a lower volume of existing low-grade stockpiles were processed. Despite this increase, production was still influenced by the adverse impact of rains during Q3 2023. Aura anticipates mining to continue in Ernesto during Q1 2024 with improving production rates. Compared to Q4 2022, production decreased 43% when record production was achieved as a result of the beginning of accessing phase II in the Ernesto pit.
• At Minosa (San Andres), production was 17,854 GEO for the quarter, representing a 2% increase compared to the previous quarter and an increase of 47% over Q4 2022. This represents the fourth quarterly increase in production in a row, due to the higher stacked tonnage resulting from the upgrade in the stacking system in Q3 2023.
• At Almas, production was 9,591 GEO, representing the first full quarter of production. Despite the lower volume than expected in the quarter, mine performance improved by 93% between October and December, with 584 thousand tons moved in October, 731 thousand tons in November and 1,128 thousand tons in December, achieving stable performance levels as expected in 2024.

Since commencing commercial production in August 2023, results have exceeded market benchmarks. Furthermore, upgrades in infrastructure are underway to increase the plant processing capacity for the upcoming quarters.

Rodrigo Barbosa, Aura’s President and CEO commented, “We have made considerable progress in the fourth quarter, with production enhancements across multiple operations and achieved our highest quarterly production in 2023, reaching 69k GEO. Production at Apoena significantly improved once we reached again the Ernesto pit and pushed some of the higher grades to early 2024. At Minosa, we stabilized the mine and achieved four consecutive quarters of production improvements. At Aranzazu, we maintained a high performance level during the quarter, with stable production. Despite minor setbacks at Almas due to lower performance when we reached fresh rock, we have addressed all issues and finished December with mine productivity according to plan, setting the stage for a successful start to 2024. We are now well-positioned to continue improving our overall performance while simultaneously advancing construction at the Borborema project and finalizing licensing for Matupa.”

Production Results

Preliminary GEO²³ production volume for the three months ended December 31, 2023, when compared to the previous quarter and the same period of the previous year is presented below:

Production for the last twelve months (“LTM”) as of December 31, 2023 was 235,856 GEO. In LTM, production increased for the second quarter in a row, a trend the Company expects to continue throughout 2024 as a result of production from Almas. The chart below shows the quarterly consolidated GEO production measured in current and constant prices since Q4 2021, as well as the LTM at the end of each reporting period:

Consolidated GEO Production per Quarter and LTM

(000’s GEO, current and constant prices as reported)

The table below shows production by each type of metal at Aranzazu. Production was in line with the Company’s expectations and stable at constant metal prices.

Qualified Person

The scientific and technical information contained within this news release has been reviewed and approved by Farshid Ghazanfari, P.Geo. Mineral resources and Geology Director for Aura Minerals Inc. and serve as the Qualified Person as defined in National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

About Aura 360° Mining

Aura is focused on mining in complete terms – thinking holistically about how its business impacts and benefits every one of our stakeholders: our company, our shareholders, our employees, and the countries and communities we serve. We call this 360° Mining.

Aura is a mid-tier gold and copper production company focused on operating and developing gold and base metal projects in the Americas. The Company has 4 operating mines including the Aranzazu copper-gold-silver mine in Mexico, the EPP (Apoena) and Almas gold mines in Brazil, and the San Andres gold mine in Honduras. The Company’s development projects include Borborema and Matupá both in Brazil. Aura has unmatched exploration potential owning over 630,000 hectares of mineral rights and is currently advancing multiple near-mine and regional targets along with the Serra da Estrela copper project in the prolific Carajás region of Brazil.