HIGHLIGHTS:

• Veta Madre drilling:
  • 10.9 m grading 22.1 g/t gold from 187.7 m, including 1.3 m grading 174 g/t gold
  • 40.8 m grading 2.23 g/t gold from 51.3 m, including 17.45 m grading 4.55 g/t gold
  • 147.2 m grading 0.70 g/t gold from 32.65 m, including 10.7 m grading 1.98 g/t gold
  • 20.65 m grading 3.35 g/t gold from 337.4 m
  • 32.0 m grading 1.65 g/t gold from 52.5 m
  • 52.35 m grading 1.23 g/t gold from 50.3 m
• Significant intervals of mineralization outside of the current Veta Madre reserve pit
• Final approvals for Veta Madre pit expansion received from the Mexican permitting agency
• Engineering of Veta Madre Plus pit is ongoing with waste stripping on track to start in early Q3 2026

Heliostar Metals Ltd. (TSXV: HSTR) (OTCQX: HSTXF) (FSE: RGG1) is pleased to announce drill results from the Veta Madre pit area at its operating La Colorada mine in Sonora, Mexico. The drill program aimed to identify mineralization to expand the current 376,200 ounces of gold (17.1 Mt grading 0.68 grams per tonne gold) currently in reserves at La Colorada. The additional mineralization can support a larger pit cutback, called Veta Madre Plus that the Company intends to commence in early Q3, this year.

Heliostar CEO, Charles Funk, commented, “The expansion of the Veta Madre Pit is the next step in our plan to grow Heliostar’s production profile. We are currently designing a larger pit shape to commence pre-stripping in the next two months and are targeting an additional 20,000 ounces of gold above the current mine plan. With all permits received, we are on track to start producing gold from the pit in the first half of next year. Cash flows from La Colorada and San Agustin will support construction of our flagship Ana Paula project and are key deliverables for Heliostar’s aggressive growth ambitions.”

Permit Receipt

The Company recently received the final documentation for the Change of Use of Soils permit for the Veta Madre pit expansion announced on December 15, 2025. That is in addition to the existing environmental permits for the Veta Madre pit expansion and a leach pad expansion. The Company’s permits support both the technical report pit design for Veta Madre and the potential larger Veta Madre Plus pit.

Drilling Program

Heliostar has completed 44 holes and 8,425 metres to date, focused on de-risking and expanding the Veta Madre pit reserve. This drill program has defined areas of high grade within the current Veta Madre reserve pit. Additionally, it intersected mineralization that may allow the pit to be further expanded to the south. The Company refers to this expanded pit scenario as Veta Madre Plus. The results reported today are being incorporated into an updated resource model. Geotechnical analysis and engineering assessment are ongoing to support the design of the Veta Madre Plus pit. This updated evaluation of the Veta Madre area also incorporates the impact of the increase in the gold price since the last technical report for La Colorada was released. That report had an effective date of October 19, 2025. Heliostar does not anticipate releasing an updated technical report for the results of this expansion study; however, the impact will be reflected in the Company’s annual production and cost guidance starting in 2027.

Figure 1: Plan Map of the drill program at Veta Madre, with highlighted results labelled. Core drillholes labelled in red and RC drillholes labelled in blue.

Figure 2: Cross section of Veta Madre drilling with select intervals showing intercepts outside of the pit design that may support a larger pit shell.

Veta Madre Drill Results Summary

Hole 26-LCDD-303 was drilled 50 to 100 metres under the current mine design. The upper portion successfully tested the lateral extent of the main Veta Madre Vein, returning 33.7 metres grading 0.62 g/t gold, including 5.1 metres grading 2.39 g/t gold. The deeper portion of 26-LCDD-303 returned 34.05 metres grading 0.59 g/t gold, including 17.05 metres grading 0.93 g/t gold, extending mineralization at depth.

Hole 26-LCDD-316 was drilled on the same section, stepping down an additional 50 metres. The top significant mineralized intercept assayed 28.65 metres grading 0.68 g/t gold, including 15.0 metres grading 1.09 g/t gold and including 3.75 metres grading 1.88 g/t gold. The test of the main Veta Madre mineralization at depth in this hole returned 25.85 metres at 1.00 g/t gold, including 12.25 metres at 1.74 g/t gold.

Both of the holes above were drilled to test and infill the lateral extent of the high-grade South body and the depth extent of the main Veta Madre vein. The intersections in these holes demonstrate the continuity of mineralization with good thickness and grade, that extend beyond the current Veta Madre reserve pit to the south, and up to 150 metres deeper. These holes highlight the potential to extend the current mine design to the south and at depth as a potential future underground target.

Hole 26-LCDD-320 was also drilled on the same section as the holes above, primarily to test the depth extent of the main Veta Madre mineralization beneath the current reserve pit limit. The hole returned 55.45 metres grading 0.72 g/t gold, including 8.95 metres grading 2.80 g/t gold. These results confirm the continuity of the grade and thickness of mineralization beneath the current mine design.

Highlighted Drilling Results

Table 1: Highlighted drill intercepts only. Full results can be found on the La Colorada page of the Company’s website www.heliostarmetals.com.

Drilling Coordinates Table

Table 2: Drill Hole Details

Quality Assurance / Quality Control

Core holes were drilled with HQ tools, and drill core was sawn in half, with one half submitted for analysis and one half retained as a record. Reverse circulation (RC) holes were drilled with 5-1/4 inch tools. Reverse circulation samples with a mass of >20kg were split into one-quarter, which was submitted for analysis. Reverse circulation samples with a mass of ≤20kg were split into two halves, which were submitted for analysis. One-quarter of the samples were retained as a record. Drill samples were shipped to ALS Limited in Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico, for sample preparation and for analysis at the ALS laboratory in North Vancouver. The Hermosillo and North Vancouver ALS facilities are ISO/IEC 17025 certified. Gold was assayed by 30-gram fire assay with atomic absorption spectroscopy finish, and overlimits were analyzed by 30-gram fire assay with gravimetric finish.

Control samples comprising certified reference and blank samples were systematically inserted into the sample stream and analyzed as part of the Company’s quality assurance / quality control protocol.

La Colorada Updated Technical Report Note

Heliostar announced the results of an Updated Technical Report for La Colorada on October 17, 2025.

Statement of Qualified Person

Stewart Harris, P.Geo., a Qualified Person, as such term is defined by National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, has reviewed the scientific and technical information that forms the basis for this news release and has approved the disclosure herein. Mr. Harris is employed as Exploration Manager of the Company.

About Heliostar Metals Ltd.

Heliostar is a growing gold producer with a goal to produce 500,000 ounces per year by the end of the decade. The cash flow from the Company’s La Colorada Mine in Sonora and the San Agustin Mine in Durango supports the development of its 100% owned pipeline of growth projects in Mexico and the USA. These include the flagship Ana Paula development project in Guerrero, the Cerro del Gallo project in Guanajuato, the San Antonio project in Baja Sur and the Unga project in Alaska.