Vancouver, British Columbia — February 18, 2026 — Leads & Copy — Blue Star Gold Corp. has significantly expanded its Auma Property in the Kitikmeot Region of Nunavut, Canada, increasing the highly prospective property from 614 hectares to 11,794 hectares. The expansion consolidates a large and underexplored portion of the High Lake Volcanic Belt.
The company’s 2026 exploration program will include a phase-1 diamond drilling program to test priority targets defined by historical drilling, recent surface exploration, and integrated interpretation of geophysical datasets.
According to Blue Star, the expansion allows the company to explore the Auma gold system at a scale that reflects its potential. The company plans to advance the project through systematic exploration using modern tools and approaches.
CEO Grant Ewing stated the expanded land position allows the company to explore the Auma gold system at a scale that reflects its potential and the 2026 drill program will represent the first modern test of Auma’s highest priority targets.
The original Auma Property hosts high-grade, vein-hosted gold mineralization within mafic volcanic rocks. Quartz veins containing pyrrhotite ± pyrite and local chalcopyrite have returned surface samples exceeding 100 g/t gold. Elevated gold grades are commonly associated with pyrrhotite-rich vein selvages, while disseminated sulphides occur within alteration halos characterized by silicification and biotite alteration.
Historical drilling has tested only a small portion of the known mineralized system. Subsequent surface work has significantly expanded the footprint of known mineralization well beyond the historically drilled areas.
The expanded Auma Property includes approximately 4,255 hectares of Crown mineral claims and 7,539 hectares subject to a Mineral Exploration Agreement on Inuit Owned Land. The land package captures a favorable stratigraphic sequence considered prospective for both orogenic gold and volcanogenic massive sulphide mineralization.
Gold occurrences have been identified within carbonate-altered shear zones associated with arsenopyrite, representing a distinct mineralization style from the original Auma showing. VMS-style showings occur in the Canoe Lake area, with zinc-and copper occurrences spatially associated with iron formation elsewhere on the property. Large portions of the Auma Property remain underexplored.
Planned drilling will focus on:
- Zone 1, testing down-dip extensions of historical mineralization, targeting coincident EM and magnetic anomalies that are associated with mapped quartz sulphide veining and high-grade surface samples
- Zone 3, which hosts the highest-grade surface gold samples on the property and has never been drill tested, targeting a coincident EM and magnetic anomaly interpreted to potentially reflect pyrrhotite-rich vein selvages observed at surface
- Penny Lane, where a reconnaissance scout hole is planned to test copper-gold mineralization identified in surface sampling
Existing historical data includes airborne DIGHEM electromagnetic and magnetic surveys, detailed ground magnetic and MaxMin electromagnetic surveys, extensive surface grab samples, and soil geochemical sampling. A detailed geological map completed by Stubley (2006) documented quartz veining, and major structural features across the property.
This exploration data is complemented by limited historical drilling and a modern SkyTEM heliborne electromagnetic and magnetic survey completed in 2025. Collectively, these datasets indicate that electromagnetic and magnetic responses appear to be spatially associated with mapped mineralization and veining.
During the 2026 season, the Company will continue to compile historical data throughout the winter season. Summer work on the Auma Property will include an extensive prospecting program over the newly acquired ground targeting known historical gold and VMS showings, in addition to areas highlighted by the 2025 SkyTEM survey.
Qualified Person Darren Lindsay has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this release.
Blue Star Gold Corp. controls over 420 square kilometres of highly prospective and underexplored mineral properties in the High Lake Greenstone Belt. Its principal assets include the Ulu Gold Project – comprised of the Ulu Mining Lease and Hood River Property, and the Roma and Auma Projects. The Ulu Mining Lease hosts the high-grade Flood Zone Gold Deposit. Blue Star’s projects are strategically located 40-100 km south of the proposed Grays Bay deep-water port.
Blue Star is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (BAU), the OTCQB Venture Market (BAUFF), and the Frankfurt Exchange (5WP0).
Source: Blue Star Gold Corp.
