Agnico Eagle Exercises Top-Up Right

Orla Mining Ltd. (TSX: OLA) (NYSE: ORLA) announces the results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2023 as well as the partial exercise by Agnico Eagle Mines Limited of its top-up right.

First Quarter 2023 Highlights:

• During the first quarter, gold production was 25,910 ounces and gold sold was 26,859 ounces (pre-released, April 14, 2023). The Company remains on track to meet 2023 annual gold production guidance of 100,000 to 110,000 ounces.
• All-in sustaining costs ¹ of $693 per ounce of gold sold during the first quarter 2023. The Company remains on track to meet 2023 annual AISC guidance of $750 to $850 /oz sold.
• Adjusted earnings¹ for the first quarter was $11.4 million or $0.04 per share.
• Net income for the first quarter was $13.2 million or $0.04 per share which included $6.9 million in expensed exploration and development costs.
• Cash flow from operating activities before changes in non-cash working capital during the first quarter was $nil after the Company made its first planned income tax payment (including the Special Mining Duty) in Mexico of $26.5 million related to the 2022 fiscal year.
• Cash balance of $83.8 million and net debt¹ of $56.6 million at March 31, 2023.
• Subsequent to quarter end, Agnico Eagle partially exercised its top-up right.

“The Company transitioned seamlessly into 2023 with another consistent operating quarter with strong cash margins,” said Jason Simpson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Orla. “We remain committed to all our stakeholders including our local communities and host governments.”

Financial and Operations Update

Financial and Operations Summary

The Company declared commercial production at Camino Rojo on April 1, 2022 following sixteen months of construction which began in December 2020. Camino Rojo produced 25,910 ounces of gold in the first quarter of 2023 at an average ore stacking rate of 18,902 tonnes per day. The average mining rate during the first quarter was 34,804 tonnes per day with a strip ratio of 0.61.  The average grade of ore processed during the first quarter was 0.80 g/t gold, in line with our plan.

Gold sold during the first quarter totaled 26,859 ounces.

First quarter cash costs and AISC totaled $472 and $693 per ounce of gold sold, respectively. The key contributors to the AISC being at the lower end of the guidance range are attributable to mining less waste tonnes, lower blasting costs, lower maintenance costs and lower reagent costs. Lower waste tonnes mined during the quarter was due to limited access to certain areas of the pit as the Company waits for permit amendments from the Secretariat of Environment and Natural Resources. Mined waste tonnes are expected to remain below average during the second quarter and increase during the second half of 2023, thus contributing to lower mining cost in the first half of the year.

Mined ore tonnes are reconciling well to the block model and process recoveries to date are in line with the metallurgical recovery model.

Sustaining capital during the first quarter of 2023 was $1.1 million. Sustaining capital covered items such as the construction of a dome over the ore stockpile for dust control, the construction of water wells and IT network infrastructure. During the first quarter, the Company made its first income tax payment (including the Special Mining Duty) in Mexico of approximately $26.5 million, related to fiscal 2022 taxable income. Cash flow from operating activities before changes in non-cash working capital and cash flow per share were impacted accordingly. Beginning in May 2023, the Company expects to make monthly tax installments.

Exploration Update

Additional exploration details related to 2022 results and 2023 plans on individual country exploration programs were provided in press releases dated January 31, 2023, February 8, 2023, and February 16, 2023. In 2023, exploration spending will be increased to $35 million. In the first quarter, $8.5 million was spent in exploration with a focus on drilling near-mine Sulphides and regional targets at Camino Rojo in Mexico and regional targets in Panama.

Camino Rojo Sulphide Project and Regional Exploration Update (Mexico)

A 34,000-metre, 57-hole follow-up drill program to infill the Camino Rojo Sulphides is planned for 2023 (20% of the holes will extend to test the deep potential of the deposit). During the first quarter, about 25% of the Sulphide infill program was completed. Initial results are positive and will be released as the program is advanced further.

In addition to the Sulphide infill program, 6,500 metres will be drilled on the extensions of the Camino Rojo oxide deposit to update and expand resources and reserves. This program is planned to begin in the second quarter.

Confirmatory resource drilling on the Camino Rojo Oxide Layback Area is expected to begin early in the second quarter and 2,500 metres is planned.

On the regional exploration program, the Company continued to drill-test the Guanamero target area, approximately 7 km northeast of the Camino Rojo Deposit, during the first quarter. This recent drilling is following-up on encouraging results (previously reported) from the first diamond drill hole completed by Orla outside of the Camino Rojo Deposit in 2022. Through the remainder of the year, regional exploration will consist of drill testing multiple targets outside the Camino Rojo Deposit along the northeast-southwest mine trend.

For additional detail, please see the news release dated January 31, 2023, Orla Mining Continues to Intersect Wide, Higher-Grade Sulphide Zones and Expose Deeper Potential at Camino Rojo, Mexico.

South Railroad Project and Exploration Update (Nevada, US)

Drilling at South Railroad is expected to commence in the second quarter. The exploration objectives are to upgrade and grow resources at satellite deposits and drill test multiple targets for new discovery. For additional detail, please see the news release dated February 8, 2023, Orla Mining Drills Significant Gold Intersections at Multiple Oxide Targets upon Reactivation of Exploration at South Railroad Project, Nevada.

Cerro Quema Exploration Update (Panama)

The 2023 exploration program has been following up on encouraging results generated at La Pelona and La Prieta regional targets in 2022. Exploration activities at Cerro Quema will be concentrated in the first half of 2023. Exploration and operational activities will be reduced in Panama in the second half of 2023.

Agnico-Eagle Exercises Top-Up Right

Further to the amended and restated investor rights agreement dated December 17, 2019 (between Agnico Eagle and the Company, Agnico Eagle partially exercised its top-up right and has subscribed for 3,987,241 common shares of the Company (the “Common Shares”) at a price of C$6.27 per Common Share, for total gross proceeds of C$25 million (the “Investment”).

In accordance with the Investor Rights Agreement, Agnico Eagle’s top-up right was triggered as a result of its percentage ownership in the Company’s Common Shares being diluted by at least 1% due to the exercise or settlement of convertible securities of the Company. The top-up right gave Agnico Eagle the right to increase its ownership up to 15%. The subscription price of C$6.27 per Common Share was calculated in accordance with the Investor Rights Agreement and is equal to the five-day volume weighted average price of the Common Shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange on April 17, 2023, being the date the Company advised Agnico Eagle that its top-up right had been triggered. The Investment increases Agnico Eagle’s ownership in the Company from 7.65% to 8.82% on a non-diluted basis, and from 10.65% to 11.76% on a partially diluted basis.

Financial Statements

Orla’s unaudited financial statements and management’s discussion and analysis for the quarter ended March 31, 2023, will be available on the Company’s website at www.orlamining.com, and under the Company’s profiles on SEDAR and EDGAR.

Qualified Persons Statement

The scientific and technical information in this news release was reviewed and approved by Mr. J. Andrew Cormier, P. Eng., Chief Operating Officer of the Company, and Mr. Sylvain Guerard, P. Geo., Senior Vice President, Exploration of the Company, who are the Qualified Persons as defined under NI 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

About Orla Mining Ltd.

Orla’s corporate strategy is to acquire, develop, and operate mineral properties where the Company’s expertise can substantially increase stakeholder value. The Company has three material gold projects: (1) Camino Rojo, located in Zacatecas State, Mexico, (2) South Railroad, located in Nevada, United States, and (3) Cerro Quema, located in Los Santos Province, Panama. Orla is operating the Camino Rojo Oxide Gold Mine, a gold and silver open-pit and heap leach mine. The property is 100% owned by Orla and covers over 160,000 hectares which contains a large oxide and sulphide mineral resource. Orla also owns 100% of the South Railroad Project, a feasibility-stage, open pit, heap leach gold project located on the Carlin trend in Nevada. Orla also owns 100% of Cerro Quema located in Panama which includes a pre-feasibility-stage, open-pit, heap leach gold project, a copper-gold sulphide resource, and various exploration targets. The technical reports for the Company’s material projects are available on Orla’s website at www.orlamining.com, and on SEDAR and EDGAR under the Company’s profile at www.sedar.com and www.sec.gov, respectively.

Non-GAAP Measures

The Company has included certain performance measures in this news release which are not specified, defined, or determined under generally accepted accounting principles (in the Company’s case, International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS””)). These are common performance measures in the gold mining industry, but because they do not have any mandated standardized definitions, they may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other issuers. Accordingly, the Company uses such measures to provide additional information and you should not consider them in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”).

In this section, all currency figures in tables are in thousands, except per-share and per-ounce amounts.

Average Realized Gold Price

Average realized gold price per ounce sold is calculated by dividing gold sales proceeds received by the Company for the relevant period by the ounces of gold sold.  The Company believes the measure is useful in understanding the gold price realized by the Company throughout the period.

Net Debt

Net debt is calculated as total debt adjusted for unamortized deferred financing charges less cash and cash equivalents and short-term investments at the end of the reporting period.  This measure is used by management to measure the Company’s debt leverage.  The Company believes that in addition to conventional measures prepared in accordance with IFRS, net debt is useful to evaluate the Company’s leverage and is also a key metric in determining the cost of debt.

Adjusted Earnings (Loss) and Adjusted Earnings (Loss) per share

Adjusted earnings (loss) excludes deferred taxes, unrealized foreign exchange, changes in fair values of financial instruments, impairments and reversals due to net realizable values, restructuring and severance, and other items which are significant but not reflective of the underlying operational performance of the Company.  We believe these measures are useful to market participants because they are important indicators of the strength of our operations and the performance of our core business.

Companies may choose to expense or capitalize their exploration expenditures.  We generally expenses our exploration costs based on our accounting policy.  To assist the reader in comparing against those companies which capitalize their exploration costs, we note that included within Orla’s net income (loss) for each period are exploration costs which were expensed, as follows:

Free Cash Flow

The Company believes market participants use Free Cash Flow to evaluate the Company’s operating cash flow capacity to meet non-discretionary outflows of cash.  Free Cash Flow is not meant to be a substitute for the cash flow information presented in accordance with IFRS.  Free Cash Flow is calculated as the sum of cash flow from operating activities and cash flow from investing activities, excluding certain unusual transactions.

Cash Costs and All-In Sustaining Costs

The Company calculates cash cost per ounce by dividing the sum of operating costs and royalty costs, net of by-product silver credits, by ounces of gold sold.  Management believes that this measure is useful to market participants in assessing operating performance.

The Company has provided an AISC performance measure that reflects all the expenditures that are required to produce an ounce of gold from operations.  While there is no standardized meaning of the measure across the industry, the Company’s definition conforms to the all-in sustaining cost definition as set out by the World Gold Council in its guidance dated November 14, 2018.  Orla believes that this measure is useful to market participants in assessing operating performance and the Company’s ability to generate free cash flow from current operations.

Figures are presented only from April 1, 2022, as the Camino Rojo Oxide Gold Mine commenced commercial production on that date.