Highland Copper Closes Sale of 34% Interest in White Pine for US$30 Million

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 02, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Highland Copper Company Inc. (TSXV: HI; OTCQB: HDRSF) ("Highland Copper" or the "Company") is pleased to announce, further to its press releases dated November 25, 2025 and January 13, 2026, that it has completed the sale (the “Transaction”) of the Company’s 34% interest in the White Pine North Project ("White Pine") to its joint venture partner, Kinterra Copper USA LLC ("Kinterra"), for aggregate consideration of US$30.1 million, pursuant to a definitive Membership Interest Purchase Agreement dated January 12, 2026 (the “Agreement”).

The total consideration consisted of US$18.3 million in cash, net of the outstanding principal and accrued interest on the loan made by Kinterra to the Company's wholly owned subsidiary, Upper Peninsula Copper Holdings Inc., which was a total of US$11.8 million at closing.

Proceeds from the sale of White Pine will be used to fund planned Copperwood Project activities, eliminate the existing debt to Kinterra, pay for the costs of the Transaction, and for general working capital.

“In divesting our non-controlling stake in White Pine, we are pleased to demonstrate a clear focus on our 100% owned, fully permitted Copperwood Project,” said Barry O’Shea, CEO of Highland Copper. “The divestment serves to eliminate debt and capitalize Copperwood to a construction decision. With the proceeds, we look forward to progressing detailed engineering, construction readiness and project financing through 2026.”

Concurrently with the Transaction the Company entered into an amendment to the Silver Royalty Option with OR Royalties Inc. on the Copperwood Project that is generally consistent with the Silver Royalty Option already in place. Pursuant to the Silver Royalty Option, OR Royalties has the option to increase its NSR royalty on silver produced from the Copperwood Project from 11.5% to 100% by paying the Company US$3.0 million on December 31, 2027, subject to certain conditions and the right of OR Royalties to extend the time for the payment by one year.

Moelis & Company LLC acted as exclusive financial advisor to the Company in connection with the Transaction and received a fee compliant with the TSXV policies. McMillan LLP acted as legal advisor to the Company.

Refiling of Financial Statements

On February 26, 2026 the Company refiled its interim financial statements for the three and six months ended December 31, 2025 to correct the comparative financial information in the Statement of Changes in Equity to include the balance as at December 31, 2024.

About Highland Copper Company

Highland Copper Company Inc. is a Canadian company focused on exploring and developing copper projects in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, U.S.A. The Company also owns surface rights securing access to the Copperwood deposit and providing space for infrastructure at Copperwood as required. The Company has 738,188,122 common shares issued and outstanding. Its common shares are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol "HI" and trade on the OTCQB Venture Market under symbol "HDRSF".

More information about the Company is available on the Company's website at www.highlandcopper.com and on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains “forward-looking statements” and “forward-looking information” (collectively “forward-looking statements”) within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. These statements include, without limitation, statements with respect to the anticipated use of the proceeds from the Transaction. These underlying assumptions may prove to be incorrect. Important factors that could materially impact the Company's expectations include: changes in Copperwood project parameters as plans continue to be refined; availability of services, materials and skilled labour to complete work programs, testing and drilling; effects of regulation by governmental agencies; the fact that permit extensions, renewals and amendments are subject to regulatory approvals, which may be conditioned, delayed or denied; there is no assurance that the grant funding we have applied for will be available, and any such approval may be subject to conditions; advancement to a construction decision at Copperwood is subject to additional studies, for which the Company will require additional funds, which may not be available on a timely basis and accordingly could delay a construction decision; unexpected cost increases, which could include significant increases in estimated capital and operating costs and the effects of inflation; fluctuations in metal prices and currency exchange rates; general market and industry conditions, the results of baseline studies and test work may result in unforeseen issues which could delay or hamper advancement of the project, and the other risks set out in the Company’s public disclosure documents, including the AIF, filed on SEDARPlus. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking statements in this news release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on forward looking statements. All forward-looking statements in this press release are based on information available to the Company as of the date hereof, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements except as required by law.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

For further information or media requests, please contact:

Barry O'Shea, CEO
Email: info@highlandcopper.com
Website: www.highlandcopper.com

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