Wesdome Gold Mines Ltd.

Good morning. Welcome to West Dome's Goldmine's conference call to discuss the company's financial and operating results for the three months ended March 31st, 2026. As a reminder, this call is being recorded. Your host for today is Trish Moran, West Dome's Vice President of Investor Relations. Ms. Moran, please go ahead.

Thank you, operator, and good morning, everyone. Before we get started, I'd like to point out that during today's call, we may make forward-looking statements as defined under Canadian securities law. I ask that you view our slide presentation for cautionary language regarding forward-looking statements and the risk factors pertaining to these statements. Please note that all figures discussed on this call are in Canadian dollars, unless otherwise noted. Our press release, MD&A, and financial statements are available both on CDAR Plus and on our corporate website, westdome.com. With us on today's webcast is Anthea Bath, West Nome's President and CEO, Bill Yee, our Chief Financial Officer, Tyler Mitchelson, our COO, Jonah Lawrence, SVP Exploration and Resources, Raj Gill, SVP Corporate Development and Investor Relations, and Kevin Lonergan, SVP Technical Services. Following management's formal remarks, we will then open the call to questions. And now over to Anthea.

Thank you, Trish, and good morning to everyone. Supported by strong production, Q1 was a company best with record revenue, net income, EBITDA, and operating cash flow. We generated $126 million in free cash flow and enclosed the period with over $430 million in cash, even after repurchasing nearly $50 million of our own shares. Beyond financial results, we are making meaningful progress on initiatives that will drive long-term value for this company. Safety remains foundational. Across both Eagle River and Kina, we are building on a strong track record with continuous improvement programs firmly in place at each site. At Eagle River, the strategy is working. We're expanding operational flexibility by opening more mining areas, Combined with better stroke productivity and higher mold utilization, this should translate into lower unit costs as fixed costs are spread over higher output. The results are showing a steady production and a strong operating cash margin. At Kena, the operational improvements implemented over the past year are starting to translate into tangible results. Increasing operational flexibility, including the breakthrough of the ramp within the next week, combined with feed from the new preskill zone marks an important inflection point for this mine. With many more stoves available at any given time, KINA is progressing toward a more stable, consistent, and predictable operating profile and unlocking its capacity to grow. Exploration is a core pillar of the square stone growth story, and in 2026, we are leaning in, drilling more than 270 kilometers The news flow has started with a release detailing high-grade growth at Kena at the end of March and another update on the global model work at Eagle River earlier this week. We closed the corner with an exploration teaching designed to give the market a clearer, deeper line of sight into the long-term prospectivity of our large land packages. With over 220 targets, many of which are in categories with a high relative probability of conversion, One thing is very clear. There's a lot more to discover, and I have no doubt we'll be mining for decades to come. As we look ahead to the updated technical reports for both Eagle River and Kina this summer, I want to be clear about what these updates represent and why they matter. What the model will see in our late June release is the first tangible and quantifiable output of a deliberate plan to transform West Oak, a plan that was set in motion nearly three years ago Historically, our operations were managed around relatively short preserved lives, even though both assets sit within highly prospective mineral systems. The limitation was never geology. It was the scale of exploration and the long-term investment required to fully unlock these assets. We made a conscious decision to change the company's approach, shifting from short-term replacement toward a more growth-oriented and systematic approach, an approach designed to establish a visible organic growth pipeline. The updated technical reports will demonstrate the first tangible outcome of that strategy. At Eagle River, our focus has been twofold. First, to add reserves to the upper sections of the mine to incrementally increase talents, to extend mine life, and to maximize effective utilization of an existing processing infrastructure. While adding high grade will always be our priority, our drilling programs are also targeting areas close to infrastructure, where we can add additional economic tenants that can be brought into the mine plan efficiently and at a relatively low discovery cost. These areas, while lower in grade than the high-grade furnace zone, are still economic, they improve operational flexibility, and most importantly, they provide a top-up mill feed that can cost-effectively support the pursuit of high-grade targets in the pipeline across multiple areas in the mine. The second focus of Eagle River has been on deepening our understanding of the high-grade system. We believe Eagle River has the potential to evolve beyond its historic three-year reserve line by unlocking additional areas where shallower high-grade extensions are increasingly probable. Over time, this has the potential to improve output density per vertical meter and enhance the overall quality and flexibility of the mine plan. At Kena, the objectives have been slightly different. While we continue to seek opportunities to replace hybrid depletion, we also see opportunity across a lab package to identify new mining fronts, including along level 33 and across the northern corridor of this property. The updated technical work at Kena will demonstrate progress in rebuilding the hybrid inventory by advancing the pipeline of opportunities that can support higher throughput and production growth over the longer term. So while Eagle River is currently focused on adding incremental answers and operational flexibility, KINA is focused on strengthening and expanding its pipeline. Two different priorities, reflecting two different assets at different stages, but both in line with building longevity, improving consistency, and creating a stronger foundation for sustainable value creation. It's important to remember that what we report in June is a snapshot in time. reflecting drilling only through the end of 2025, and it's really just the beginning. We're now well into the second year of a multi-exploration program. As drilling intensity increases and our geological understanding deepens, we're systematically building the platform to do far more than extend my life. We're laying the foundation to reshape WestJones' long-term growth profile and ultimately to redefine what this company can become. And I'm pleased to say that we can pursue and fund exploration, unlocking the full potential of our large prospective land packages, all while continuing to return capital to our shareholders. Last evening's announcement that we're proceeding to a second tranche and our share by that program is a direct reflection of that confidence. And with that, I'll hand over to Phil to walk you through the first quarter financial highlights.

Thank you, Anthea. Good morning, everyone. Turning to slide seven, Q1, 2026 marks another record quarter as strong gold prices and solid production continued a two-year trend of sequential financial growth. Record results this quarter included revenue of 300 million, net income of 119 million or 79 cents per share, EBITDA of 212 million, of 126 million, or 84 cents per share. Our free cash flow as a percentage of revenue is 42%, and ranks among the highest in the gold sector. Margin expansion is a priority for Westone, irrespective of gold price, as the company delivers initiatives designed to reduce costs. Turning to cost on slide eight, $1,707 U.S. per ounce. ASIC at Eagle River was $1,616 per ounce, while Kena was $1,844 per ounce, each driven by higher contractor, consultant, and maintenance consumable costs. given the competitive labour environment. We are also monitoring broader industry inflation in fuel and consumables, and while our exposure is not material and availability is not a concern currently, we are taking proactive steps to mitigate potential supply chain disruptions. Corporate DNA of 10 million in Q1 was in line with plan for Q1 and is expected to decrease in subsequent quarters. We are maintaining full-year consolidated production and cost guidance. Moving to slide nine, to support your modeling, I want to summarize where we are after the first quarter. Eagle River production is expected to be evenly distributed across all four quarters. Kinas Q1 was the lightest quarter, with approximately 60% of annual production weighted to the second half of the year, supported by the wrap-up at Presque Isle. Consolidated ASIC is expected to peak in Q2, then decline as savings from supply chain initiatives are realized. Both sustaining and growth CapEx remain in line with guidance for the year. Depreciation is expected to decline following publication of our updated Mineral Resource and Reserve Statement at the end of June, as it is calculated as a percentage of 2P reserves. Exploration expense guidance is on track for $30 million for the year, $15 million per site at Eagle River and Kena. And our effective tax rate on pre-tax income remains at 35%. Turning to slide 10, as of March 31, 2026, our cash balance grew to $431 million, even after deploying $49 million to repurchase our shares at a substantial discount to where the shares are traded today. including our revolving credit facility, which is fully undrawn. Total liquidity now exceeds $770 million Canadian, and we expect this to continue strengthening throughout the year. Our balance sheet remains debt-free, and we are deploying capital with discipline. Investing $205 million in CapEx this year, with approximately 45% directed to growth, and a record $55 million in exploration budget. In April, we completed the first tranche of our NCIB, repurchasing 3 million shares for 68 billion. As announced last night, we are proceeding with a second tranche to repurchase up to an additional 3 million shares. Given our strong and growing cash generation, we are well positioned to execute on our organic growth plans, preserve operational and strategic flexibility, and continue returning meaningful capital to shareholders.

safety, we have zero lost time incidents and a total recordable incident frequency rate improved 13% year over year. As our programs mature, we are enhancing our focus on critical controls and non-negotiable standards as they relate to potential high-risk incidents. Across both sites, people remain our biggest challenge, but also our biggest opportunity. Attracting and retaining quality talent is a top priority, and its importance to safety, operational stability, and cost control cannot be understated. Moving to slide 12. In Q1, Eagle River performed in line with expectations, delivering 28,000 ounces, roughly 25% of the full-year value as a midpoint. Average grade came in. and processing of 11,000 tons from a lower-grade stockpile. We are starting to see some of the results of our global model work coming into production. Opportunistic planning of incremental lower-grade areas is providing more tons to the mine plant for the rest of the year. Furthermore, we can also measure the productivity improvements Mill throughput has been increasing on a fairly consistent basis, averaging approximately 800 tons per day compared to an average of 600 in 2024 and 700 in 2025. Stove productivity is improving, up more than 20%, quarter over quarter, and trending upward. Proactive maintenance is now fully embedded site-wide. with 80% or better scheduled compliance. This is in line with industry best practices and is driving measurable reliability gains. The path to 1,000 tons per day is clear to us. To get there, underground flexibility is our top priority, and the required processes, equipment, and infrastructure are being put in place. As part of our longer-term strategy, we continue to invest spending, stepping up through the second and third quarter. We are making a critical investment in a full camp replacement, something that would dramatically increase our ability to attract and retain talent in Eagle River. And as an added benefit, replacing the camp will allow us to realize significant operational savings as we consolidate 13 separate structures into one building. additional capital for targeted power and tailings improvements. After a few months in this role, what is immediately evident to me is the breadth and depth of the team at Eagle. Strong on-site leadership and a mindset of continuous improvement gives me confidence in our ability to execute on our long-term strategy. Moving to slide 13. Keenan is off to a solid start in 2026, producing 17,500 ounces in what we anticipate will be the softest quarter of the year. With the receipt of the Presque Isle operating permit in January, we have begun processing development ore and stock piles, contributing more than 2,000 ounces of ore. Overall process grades were in line with our reserve rate, averaging 10 grams per ton per quarter. I am pleased to report that the RAP connection to Keenan materially reduces the risk associated with having our shaft as a single point of entry. It represents another major milestone for the operational flexibility at Kena. Ventilation room development continues to progress. Fan installation and commissioning targeted for around near-end. This marks the last step in creating operational headroom we need to capture new opportunities underground. And importantly, capital spending in Kenan tapers off in the second half as both the ramp and the ventilation programs are brought to completion. Beyond the ramp, we've done a lot of work to create operational flexibility. We now have three active mining horizons in Kenan out from one just a year ago. The impact was tangible in Q1. For the first time, we marked two stoves simultaneously, a meaningful step forward that reflects several quarters of deliberate, targeted work. We also just started mining our first one-level 136, giving us a third-level opening key to deep concurrently, a major milestone by any measure. In addition, we are developing it per scale with production ramping up through the back half of the year. ground drifts in place, we are seeing noticeably more effective drilling across the operation. As a result, stability is beginning to take hold. Equipment delays have been dramatically reduced, allowing us to shift our focus translate to stronger equipment availability. Since rolling out our operating model this quarter, operating delays relative to previous years' performance are down 70%, a clear indicator the changes we're making are working. For the balance of 2026, our priority is to embed these operating processes, tighten our schedule adherence, and continue reducing variability across the operation. Looking ahead, Q2 is off to a strong start. Production ramped up through March and exceeded 7,000 ounces in April. Development rates at first scale has accelerated. First oak is being prepared for mining before the end of Q2. Our first near-term surface or YAPM. We currently have a high-grade stockpile. and expect to process it over the next few weeks. Delivering a step change over Q1, full production from the steel is expected by year end. I'm genuinely seeing the impact that leadership stability is bringing to the operation. KINA is stabilizing, and it is progressing towards the operation we know it can become. There is still work ahead of us. We are addressing it systematically, one item at a time. Boxes are being tipped, projects are being delivered. Keeney is on track, and we are confident in the plan. I'd like to make one final comment on cost before I pass across the channels. As mentioned at the beginning, the importance of labour availability to cost cannot be understated. Continued tightness in the labour market, not just in Bell Door, across the industry, is driving our reliance on contracts, which is something that our labour needs. This is not new. years, we've been working actively on our attraction and retention programs, and these continue to be top priority. Our commitment to transitioning labour to our own employees is resonant, but it will take time. And now over to Chana for her explanation.

Thank you, Chana, and good morning. with growth across all time horizons, keeping the pipeline full and mineral inventories moving in the right direction. We're not just drilling more, we're drilling smarter. Data integration and technology are driving how we identify geologic patterns, mineralization trends, and resource gaps. On March 30th, we hosted our two-hour analyst teaching, walking through our evolving strategy start at Eagle River, with results to date supporting resource growth and conversion potential. Slide 15 highlights the progress made at two key zones, 6 Central and the adjacent 800 zone. In 6 Central, four holes tested the down-plunge extension of the high-grade chute, and the results delivered. We confirmed a further 100-metre extension, bringing the total to 700 metres since discovery in late 2024. At the 800 zone, 11 holes focused on infill and conversion demonstrated great continuity of depth and sharpening our confidence in the zone's geometry and grade distribution. Critically, both zones, including the high-grade chutes, remain open at depth, making them a priority focus for high-grade reserve replacement. We've also been drilling deep surface holes beneath both the coming weeks. Turning to slide 16, a look at our global model outcomes. Last year, we drilled over 40,000 metres on global model targets. Since the start of this year, we've added another 16,000 metres. Of the 32 initial targets, nine remain untested or partially tested. And the number of targets outside of the existing resources continues to evolve as the program advances. which includes targets outside the global model. One example stands out as a strong demonstration of what this program can deliver, the 7-11 zone. In Q1, we targeted a previously untested portion of the 7-11, centrally located in the mine with established underground access and at intermediate depths, a textbook global model target. 17 holes later, we've confirmed continuity confirming not just mineralisation but continuity and high grades, is particularly encouraging, especially in a mine with 30 years of production history. This area remains open and we're pushing to bring it into the mine plan in the short to medium term. Before leaving Eagle River, there are other areas that are growing. Firstly, Falcon 311. Drilling has identified potential mineralisation extending 100 metres to the west and And thirdly, at Falcon 720, drilling has improved confidence in geometry, with the zone remaining open at depth towards surface and to the west. Together, these results strengthen our confidence in near-term conversion opportunities and the broader resource growth potential at Eagle River. Looking ahead, we will be releasing results from some of our longest drilling ahead of our June technical report release. Moving to Kina, the completion of the exploration platform on level 134 has been truly transformative, improving drilling angles and significantly reducing drill hole distances into Kina D and the B zones. In Q1, we announced the discovery of six new lenses at Kina, a direct outcome of enhanced drilling access. Three of these new structure and two in the football zone. Beyond the new lens discoveries, we've also seen increased continuity of both known lenses in Keener deeps and football zone, with expanded vertical and lateral extents. We expect this to drive meaningful mineralisation growth in Keener deeps over the medium term, translating into higher ounces per vertical meter. of the Normanite Fault. An historical drill hole in this area intercepted more than 80 metres at 10 grams per tonne, and we've been actively following up around that intercept. Drilling through the Normanite Fault presents technical challenges. However, a discovery in this area would be genuinely transformative for the asset. We look forward to providing an update to the market later this year. To slide 18, we announced the discovery of three new lenses at the B-Zone in Q1, along with the identification of high-grade mineralisation within the zone. Continued drilling and improved angles have allowed us to reinterpret the zone. We're now modelling it as four distinct lenses, rather than a single lower-grade lens. We've also identified a corridor of higher-grade intercepts that has the potential to improve the economics of the zone. This area is a high priority given its proximity to existing infrastructure adjacent to Kina Deep. Should we define economic mineralisation here, the path to production would be relatively straightforward. A brief update on the remainder of the Kina program. Drilling has commenced at the VC zone, another prospective ore source located near underground infrastructure. And we completed 10 surface holes at a target south of the Kina mine in an area with geology analogous to the Malartic Mine. Look for updates on both programs in the coming months. Our surface exploration program is set to ramp up in the coming weeks as seasonal conditions improve. Surface rigs have been mobilised to Shorkey, who will be planned to drill for several months through the summer. We're also looking forward to deploying our barge-mounted drills at Northwest, Westone, Sisko and Doobasong. There's a great deal of activity the results come in. Operator, you may now open the line for questions.

Thank you. If you would like to ask a question, please press star 1 in your telephone keypad. If you would like to withdraw your question, simply press star 1 again. Your first question comes from a line of Luke Bertozzi from CIBC. Your line is open.

Thank you, Operator, and good morning, Anthony and team. Congratulations on the strong quarter. I just like to get a sense of the cadence of buybacks going forward. I believe in the past you viewed the buyback as an opportunity to repurchase shares when they're trading below net asset value. Does that continue to be the view or should we expect buybacks to continue regardless of share price fluctuation?

Yeah, I would say, you know, the, we have in the past based on NAB, NAB per share. And as you know, we've announced a second tranche. And as we continue to grow our cash, I would say that we will continue to look at further opportunities as well.

Okay, thanks. That's it for my questions.

Your next question comes from a line of Alison Carson from Desjardins. Your line is open.

Thank you. Good morning, Anthony and team, and thanks for taking my question. My first question is just on Kina. It's great to hear that things are ramping up at Presque Isle. Can you give us a little bit more detail on the contribution we should expect from Presque Isle and Q2 in terms of production?

Sure. Hi, I'm Hannah. This is Tyler for this one.

Morning. Yeah, as we go into Q2, we're going to start the stoping actually at the end of June. So we'll see the wrap-up. Generally, you'll see a 60-40 split between Keene and Perskeel towards the end of the year.

So will we get any production from Perskeel in Q2, though? You said you were going to process some low-grade or some of the stockpiles as well.

Yeah, we're continuing to do development in Q2, so we're pulling development on the first scope. It should be coming out the second part of Q2.

Okay, great. And then my next question is also on shareholder capital return. You know, it's great to see you expanding the NCIB. Are you looking at linking your capital return program to anything like a percentage of free cash flow in the future? Yeah.

Hi, Alison. It's Phil. I mean, the focus right now is really on the second tranche of the NCIP to be consistent from, as I mentioned earlier, we look at being opportunistic in that program. And then as we grow our cash, You know, we'll look at other options to expand our capital allocation strategy. And we haven't finalized our approaches at this point yet, but obviously, you know, all the various options are being considered. I would say that's one of them.

Okay, great. Well, that's it for me. Thanks and congratulations on the quarter.

Again, if you'd like to ask a question, press star 1 in your telephone keypad. We'll pause for just a moment. And there are no further questions. This does conclude today's conference call. Thank you for your participation. You may now disconnect.