Anacortes Peruvian Subsidiary Awards Drilling Services Contract and Begins Final Preparations for Phase 1 Drilling Program

Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - March 23, 2022) - Anacortes Mining Corp. (TSXV: XYZ) (OTCQB: XYZFF) ("Anacortes" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that its wholly-owned Peruvian subsidiary, Aurifera Tres Cruces S.A. ("ATC") has awarded the contract for drilling services to Remicsa Drilling S.A. ("Redrilsa") and is making final preparations for the Phase 1 Drilling Program at its Tres Cruces gold project in the prolific Quiruvilca Mining District in northern Perú.

Highlights

1. Redrilsa will mobilize two Christensen CS14-C core rigs to site in early April, with drilling projected to begin by April 15, 2022. Drill roads and drill pads will be constructed by a local contractor, Dakar Driller S.A.C.
2. Both contractors will utilize local labor to the greatest extent possible in accordance with the Company's commitment to maximizing local employment.
3. ATC has assembled a team of experienced geologists to plan and supervise the drilling campaign. Core logging will be done at a facility near the site, and then the core will be shipped to ATC's core storage facility in Trujillo for sample preparation and storage. Samples will be sent to Lima for analysis at a certified assay laboratory.
4. ATC will be using a rigorous QA/QC program consistent with NI 43-101 requirements.
5. Final regulatory approvals for the drilling program are on track and are expected by early April.
6. The Phase 1 Drilling Program is designed to confirm previous drilling results, expand oxide resources at edges of known mineralization, test targets beyond areas of known mineralization, convert Indicated Oxide Resources to Measured Oxide Resources, and obtain representative samples of "fresh" oxide samples for metallurgical testing.

Jim Currie, CEO of Anacortes, commented: "We are excited to have contracted with Redrilsa to carry out the Phase 1 Drilling Campaign. Redrilsa is a very experienced drilling services provider and has carried out drilling at a number of projects and operations throughout Peru, and specifically in Northern Peru near our Tres Cruces Project. With the contracting in place for drilling and site preparation, we are now making the final arrangements to start our Phase 1 Drilling Program as planned by mid-April. Our experienced and well qualified geology team are anxious to begin drilling to deepen holes that ended in wide zones of higher-grade mineralization, to test the extent of the deposit, and obtain fresh samples required for our upcoming metallurgical testing program."

The Tres Cruces project was last drilled in 2008 by Barrick. To date, 371 holes have been drilled, for a total of 74,000 meters of diamond and reverse circulation drilling. In parallel with the Phase 1 drilling program, ATC has initiated a property wide exploration program consisting of geologic mapping and sampling, geochemistry, and geophysics. These programs will complement the previous exploration work done on the property from 1996 through 2008.

About Anacortes

Anacortes is a new growth-oriented gold company in the Americas, which owns a 100% interest in the Tres Cruces gold project located in Peru. Tres Cruces is one of the highest-grade oxide deposits globally and hosts oxide plus sulphide indicated resources of 2,474,000 oz at 1.65 g/t gold, inclusive of 630,000 oz of high-grade leachable gold at 1.28 g/t gold and inferred resources of 104,000 oz at 1.26 g/t gold. The recently released PEA on the leachable resource at Tres Cruces indicates a robust open-pit, heap leach project. Anacortes is well capitalized and intends to aggressively advance the Tres Cruces Oxide Project through feasibility, permitting and to production as quickly as possible. Additionally, Anacortes will continue to seek further growth opportunities in the Americas, with the goal of creating the next mid-tier multi-asset gold producer.

Qualified Person

The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and validated by James ("Jim") Currie, P. Eng., a qualified person as that term is defined in National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Currie is the President and CEO of Anacortes Mining Corp.

For more information visit: www.anacortesmining.com
Twitter: @anacortesmining
LinkedIn: Anacortes Mining

On Behalf of the Board:

James A. (Jim) Currie
President & CEO

Investor Relations Contact:
Kin Communications Inc.
604-684-6730
XYZ@kincommunications.com

Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking statements which constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation ("Forward-looking Statements"). All statements included herein, other than statements of historical fact, are Forward-looking Statements and are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those reflected in the Forward-looking Statements.

The Forward-looking Statements in this news release may include, without limitation, statements about the Company's expectation that it can receive approval of its application to begin exploration activities and the timing of both that approval and the exploration activities, its expectation that the planned drill program can test the extent of the deposit and increase confidence in the resource and, finally, the Company's intent to aggressively advance Tres Cruces through feasibility and to production under a heap leach open-pit scenario. Often, but not always, these Forward-looking Statements can be identified by the use of words such as "anticipated", "estimated", "potential", "open", "future", "assumed", "projected", "used", "detailed", "has been", "gain", "planned", "reflecting", "will", "anticipated", "estimated" "containing", "remaining", "to be", or statements that events, "could" or "should" occur or be achieved and similar expressions, including negative variations.

Forward-looking Statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which are beyond the ability of the Company to control or predict and which may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the Forward-looking Statements. These risks include changes in general economic conditions and financial markets; political risks; risks relating to the current and potential adverse impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economy, financial markets and the Company's operations; and risks inherent in mineral exploration and development. Although Forward-looking Statements contained in this news release are based upon what each of the parties believe are reasonable assumptions at the time they were made, such statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company disclaims any obligation to update any Forward-looking Statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, except as required by law. There can be no assurance that these Forward-looking Statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, the reader should not place undue reliance on Forward-looking Statements.

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