After-tax NPV (5%) $326-million on an initial capex of $178-million with an after-tax IRR of 39% producing at $11.96 AISC over 7.8 year mine life at head grade of 570 g/t AgEq

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA (Newsfile Corp.– September 4, 2024) – Blackrock Silver Corp. (TSX-V:BRC) (OTC: BKRRF) (FSE: AHSO) (“Blackrock” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce the results of a Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) for its 100%-owned Tonopah West Project (“Tonopah West” or the “Project”), in one of the largest historic silver districts in North America, located on private land in Nye and Esmeralda counties, Nevada, United States, approximately 1 kilometre (km) northwest of Tonopah.

The PEA was prepared by Minetech, LLC (“Minetech”) in accordance with Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (“CIM”) Definition Standards – For Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves adopted May 19, 2014 (the “CIM Definition Standards”) and in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (“NI 43-101”) with an effective date of September 4, 2024.

Highlights of the Tonopah West PEA

(All amounts are in United States Dollars unless otherwise indicated)

At the base case gold price of $1,900 per ounce and silver price of $23 per ounce, the Project commands an after-tax net present value discounted at 5% (“NPV5%”) of $326-million on a low initial capex of $178-million (including $22-million contingency) with a payback of 2.3 years and an after-tax internal rate of return (“IRR”) of 39.2%
At a gold price of $2,280 per ounce and a silver price of $27.60 per ounce (base case +20%), the economic profile of the Project escalates to an after-tax NPV5% of $495-million and an after-tax IRR of 54.0%.
All-in Sustaining Costs (“AISC”)1 of $11.96 per silver equivalent ounce basis.
Over the approximately 8-year life of mine (“LOM”), production from the mining and processing of approximately 4.1 million diluted tonnes of material containing 75.4 million silver equivalent (“AgEq”) ounces (silver/gold ratio of 90/1) which equates to 66.8 payable AgEq ounces. The mine is expected to deliver 424,000 payable gold ounces and approximately 31.8 million payable silver ounces generating $496-million after-tax LOM cash flow.
Tonopah West is situated on patented mineral claims (private land) and benefits from a stream-lined permitting process with only State and County regulators involved.
The PEA is based on an updated Mineral Resource Estimate (“MRE”) with an effective date of August 23, 2024, comprising 6.35 million tonnes grading 2.82 grams per tonne (“g/t”) gold (“Au”) and 237.8 g/t silver (“Ag”) totaling 577,000 ounces of gold and 48.5 million ounces of silver. At a AgEq grade of 492.5 g/t AgEq, the Inferred Resources in the updated MRE represent a total of 100.56 million AgEq ounces.
Recoveries of 96.1% for gold and 88.9% for silver from a 3-stage crushing circuit and processing plant.
Significant expansion potential: PEA excludes NW step out deposit (12 million AgEq ounces) from the mine plan. 3 drills are at site on a 20,000 metre resource expansion and conversion program aimed at de-risking an initial 3 years of production and bridging a one kilometre mineralized strike potential to NW step-out zone that could bring additional ounces online.
The Project incorporates local contract mining and is expected to stimulate the local economy, benefitting the municipality of Tonopah and surrounding communities through direct and indirect employment at the Project, local sourcing of services and supplies and community programs funded by the Company.
Andrew Pollard, President & CEO of the Company commented: “Four years on from our initial discovery at Tonopah West, completion of this PEA is an important achievement for Blackrock as it outlines the potential for it to be a key driver of domestic growth, increasing America’s annual silver production by over 12%2, while doing so at some of the lowest AISC in the world3 at $11.96 per silver equivalent ounce. With a lot more drilling in front of us, our Project already demonstrates a highly positive economic profile with an estimated after-tax NPV5% of $326 million, an after-tax IRR of 39% and a payback period of 2.3 years on a low initial capex of $178-million at a base case of $23 per ounce of silver and $1,900 per ounce of gold. At higher metals prices, the Project exhibits an estimated after-tax NPV5% of $495 million and an after-tax IRR of 54% at a price of $27.60 per ounces of silver and $2,280 per ounce of gold (base case +20%). The PEA outlines substantial silver-gold production of 66.8 million silver equivalent ounces over an initial 7.8-year mine life, averaging 8.6 million silver equivalent ounces annually (averaging 4.1 million ounces of silver and 54.6 thousand ounces of gold) providing for exceptional free cash flow. This PEA represents just this moment in time, with near-mine expansion potential identified to our NW step out deposit (12 million AgEq ounces) that was omitted from this mine plan, and with a 20,000 metre drill program currently underway, the Company aims to link up that mineralization while de-risking our ounces for the early years of the operation. Situated entirely on patented mineral claims adjacent to the town of Tonopah, Nevada, right along US highway 95, Tonopah West benefits from existing infrastructure and a stream-lined permitting process, of which findings from this PEA will be used as a roadmap to kickstart.”

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