Contango ORE Announces Earnings For Quarter Ended December 31, 2022

Contango ORE, Inc. (“CORE” or the “Company”) (NYSE American: CTGO) announced that it had a net loss of $(14.3) million, or $(2.10) per basic and diluted share, for the three months ended December 31, 2022 compared to a net loss of ($4.9) million or $(0.72) per basic and diluted share for the same period last year. For the six months ended December 31, 2022, the Company reported a net loss of ($21.4) million, or ($3.15) per basic and diluted share, compared to a net loss of ($9.4) million or ($1.41) per basic and diluted share for the same period last year. The increase in net loss for the sixth month period ended December 31, 2022, is due to increased exploration and development expenses on the Lucky Shot project and as a result of increased costs related to advancing the Company’s 30% equity interest in Peak Gold, LLC, where early works construction was initiated after receipt of the Wetlands 404 Permit. The Company expects to experience additional losses until the Manh Choh project begins commercial production, which we anticipate will be in the second half of 2024. The Company also announced that it filed its Form 10-Q for the quarter ended December 31, 2022, with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse, the Company’s President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “The Company ends 2022 with a very productive period of initial construction activities at its 30% owned Manh Choh project. So far, in 2023, we have completed construction of a 176-person camp near the mine site in the town of Tok, Alaska and continue to advance road construction. Once the Mine operating permits have been issued by the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, we will be able to initiate mine site construction activities. We expect to announce shortly the selection of a well-established contract miner who will be responsible for mine site preparatory work in advance of actual mining activities. These will include construction of a truck shop and administration buildings, storm water drainage and collection systems, permanent and temporary storage areas for growth media material, waste rock stockpiles, an ore stockpile and loading facility, and other facilities that will support actual mining activities. As currently planned, site activities will continue through the year with the objective of achieving our goal of first production in the second half of 2024 when the project is anticipated to produce 225,000 GEO (Gold Equivalent Ounces) per year (Contango’s 30% = 67,500 GEO). I am pleased to report that we are on track to complete an initial resource on our Lucky Shot project by the end of March. We look forward to continuing to update shareholders and investors on our progress in developing Alaska’s next gold mines.”