Novagold Resources Inc.

thank you for standing by this is the conference operator welcome to the nova gold first quarter 2021 financial results conference call and webcast as a reminder all participants are in listen only mode and the conference is being recorded after the presentation there will be an opportunity to ask questions to join the question queue you may press star then one on your telephone keypad Should you need assistance during the conference call, you may signal an operator by pressing star and zero. I would now like to turn the conference over to Melanie Hennessy, Vice President, Corporate Communications. Please go ahead.

Thank you, operator. Good morning, everyone. We are pleased that you have joined us for NOVA Gold's 2021 First Quarter Financial Results and for an update on the Donner Gold Project. On today's call, we have Dr. Thomas Kaplan, Novogold's chairman, Greg Lang, Novogold's president and CEO, and David Otterwell, Novogold's vice president and CFO. At the end of the webcast, we will take questions both by phone and by text. I would like to remind our webcast and call participants that, as stated on slide three, any statements made today may contain forward-looking information, such as projections and goals, which are likely to involve risk, detail in our various EDGAR and CDAR filings, and forward-looking disclaimers included in this presentation. I now have the pleasure of turning over the presentation to our President and CEO, Greg Lyon. Greg?

Thank you, Melanie, and good morning, everyone. Our Donlin Gold project is in the western part of Alaska, as shown on slide four. Donlin is a 50-50 partnership with Barrick Gold. Mining has always been an important part of the Alaskan economy, and it is becoming even more important to state revenues with the decline in oil prices and tourism. As shown on the map, there are six producing mines and numerous exploration and development projects in the state. In terms of scale, quality, and exploration potential, Donland Gold's attributes far exceed any other gold development project on the horizon. When combined with our long-standing native corporation partnerships, the exponential leverage to rising gold, a strong cash position, key federal and state permits in hand, and an experienced management team and board, as well as supportive long-term shareholders, NOVA Gold is in a league of their own. Slide five. highlights the 2021 achievements. Novigold and Barrick jointly released the remaining assay drill results in March from the 85-hole program we completed last year, which yielded higher drill grade thicknesses than predicted by previous modeling and has improved interpretation of gold mineralization controls. These results have bolstered our confidence in the recent geologic modeling concepts and confirmed multiple high-grade extensions in both the intrusives and sedimentary rocks, and very importantly, many of this near-surface. For permitting, in November 2020, Alaska published an additional public notice comment period for the water rights applications for the mine site and transportation facilities. This closed in December 2020. Water rights are for local surface water sources and groundwater to be used for process water, dust, fire control, and other mining activities. In March 2021, with Donland Gold's support, Alaska introduced a second public notice period, which closed on March 26th. We anticipate the Department of Natural Resources will issue final decisions on the water rights applications in the first half of 2021. Donland Gold. working with its native partners, continues to support the state of Alaska to advance other permits and certificates needed for the project. The image on slide 6 shows the top 10 intervals from the 2020 drill program with core hole locations in both the ACMA and Lewis deposits. With BEREC, we jointly issued the final set of assay results last week. The program totaled over 23,000 meters and successfully increased our confidence in the modeling concepts and was the largest program at Donlin in over 12 years. Results exceeded the expectations with higher grades over narrower intervals, primarily in the sedimentary rocks. The program has improved our geologic interpretations. Additional confirmation and high-grade extension drilling are planned for 2021 to further test the ore body continuity, structural controls, and gather geotechnical and geometallurgical data for analysis. As noted on slide seven, federal permits are in hand and additional key state permits and approvals have also been obtained while we continue to progress on the remaining state permits there are three primary state permitting out areas that are outstanding none of which are on the critical path for the project's development the division of oil and gas has reconsidered its decision for the state right-of-way agreement and lease authorization for the gas pipeline. Under the reconsideration, Alaska issued a revised comment document for additional public input. The document further describes how Alaska is considering previous public input that was solicited in the right-of-way review, primarily on how cumulative impacts are addressed in the decisions. The comment period ended in November 2020, and we expect Alaska to reissue the right away agreement and lease authorizations in the first half of 2021. Additionally, Alaska published an initial notice period for comment on the water right applications and transportation facilities. Water rights are key for the mining activities. Alaska introduced a second public notice period which closed last week. We anticipate they will issue final decisions on the water right applications in the first half of 2021. The dam safety certifications process is a multi-year commitment to gather additional geologic information to advance the final engineering work on the tailings facilities and water retention structures. from a feasibility level to a final construction package, which is required for the project's dam safety certification. This field work will resume later this year. We are proud to say that the 2020 drill program was safely and successfully completed. And this achievement was done with no COVID cases at the project site. For the past year, policies were implemented to reduce risk and ensure the safety and well-being of all employees and contractors. Alaska is a leader among the states in COVID-19 vaccination availability. with Governor Dunleavy announcing earlier in March that vaccinations are now available to everyone 16 and older. Much of the success of the vaccination program in the YK region can be credited in a large part to the leadership of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation and Native Health Partners, who made home visits in remote communities used the extensive medical clinics, and even offered vaccinations outside of grocery stores. Donland Gold's stringent safety measures and on-the-ground support allowed us to safely operate four rigs last summer for the program with careful collaboration with our native partners, as well as tribal groups in the YK region were key to a successful field season. The protocol we established last year will be followed for the 2021 field season. Donnellan Gold is committed to support the needs of community partners and first quarter community engagement highlights can be seen on slide nine. In partnership with TKC, the Village of Crooked Creek, and the Nepi-Mute tribe, Donlin was again the lead sponsor of a project to construct and maintain the upper sections of an ice road on the Kuskokwim River. Donlin also provided technical data to assist the road builder, including aerial photographs and ice measurements. It improves safety and access to nearby communities for the residents in these remote locations. At its completion in February, The ice road was almost 200 miles long. In January, the village of Toluskalak's water purification plant was destroyed by fire, creating a health and safety crisis for the community. Donlin worked closely with their tribal administrator and tribal council to assess how Donlin could best help and coordinate efforts. Donlin as well as several other community organizations and companies stepped in to assist with much needed water and supplies. To date, Donlin has signed friendship agreements with six villages in the YK region that formalize the current engagement practices with local communities. These agreements expand upon our long-term relations already well established with these communities and address specific community needs such as water, sewer, landfill projects, as well as other social programs. We support our Native partners, Chalista and TKC, and their mandates established through the 1971 Alaska Native Claims as highlighted on slide 10. We are helping them develop their land for the economic benefit of the region and all of their stakeholders. Donovan is fortunate to have time-tested partnerships with Chalista and TKC, the owners of the mineral and surface rights. The project's location on private land specifically designated for mining activities is a key attribute that distinguishes it from other mining assets in Alaska. With a long history of mining and a skilled workforce in Alaska, Donland Gold offers the opportunity of a future with good paying year round jobs and training for young people so that they can live closer to home. About 80% of our local workforce on the drill program were Alaska Natives. and we are proud to provide significant economic and social benefits to the YK region and are thankful for the long-term support and commitment to the project and its continued success. Over the past 25 years, Donlon Gold has worked closely with Chalista and TKC, along with other representatives of the communities, to effectively respond to their needs and concerns. On slide 11, you can see quotes from the leadership of our Native Corporation partners. These partnerships and the activities and programs we undertake together are illustrative of our commitment to the sustainable and responsible development of the Donilon Gold project for the benefit of all stakeholders. And with that, I'll turn the call over to our Chief Financial Officer, David Ottawa. Dave?