Gold Developer Advances Fully Permitted Tanzania Mine

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1. Ownership and Share Structure Information

The information listed above was updated on the date this article was published and was compiled from information from the company and various other data providers.

Lake Victoria Gold Ltd. (LVG:TSX.V; LVGLF:OTCQB; E1K:FSE) has begun Phase 1 earthworks at its fully permitted Imwelo gold project in Tanzania as construction of the project's site camp approaches completion, according to a July 28 release.

The initial work includes improvements to the existing access road and preparation of the processing plant site. The company said these activities, together with the nearly completed camp, establish the essential infrastructure needed for the next phase of construction and represent another milestone in the project's development.

"Imwelo is moving beyond planning and mobilization into visible, sequenced site execution," President and Chief Executive Officer Marc Cernovitch said. "We are establishing the infrastructure in the order the project requires while ensuring that early investments, including the camp, continue to serve Imwelo through construction and into operations. This practical, capital-conscious and Tanzanian-led approach is the model we intend to carry through the next stages of project development."

Lake Victoria Gold is carrying out the program under its previously announced engineering, procurement and construction management (EPCM) framework. City Engineering Company Ltd. (CECL), a 100%-Tanzanian-owned qualifying indigenous company, is leading the work, supported by international technical expertise from Sutton Consulting International Ltd. Daily project coordination is being handled by Lake Victoria Gold's on-site team.

The company said Phase 1 earthworks are now underway, including upgrades to the access road and initial preparation of the plant site. Construction of the camp is nearing completion, with water storage and power systems installed, plumbing finished, electrical work continuing, and accommodations being progressively fitted out. The camp has been designed for long-term use, allowing it to transition directly from a construction camp into the permanent mine operations camp once development is complete.

Lake Victoria Gold also said it has mobilized its earthmoving fleet, with equipment deployment and utilization being managed by its on-site project team. The company added that project execution continues to follow Tanzania's local content requirements through CECL's management of contracting activities.

As part of the Phase 1 program, crews are repairing and upgrading the existing access road to support the reliable transport of heavy machinery and construction materials. Plant-site preparation includes clearing vegetation, removing and stockpiling topsoil for future reclamation, building and compacting the plant pad, constructing sound berms, and excavating trenches for site services. The company said the required earthmoving equipment is now operating on site, while procurement arrangements for road-building and earthworks materials have been established in coordination with the relevant Tanzanian authorities.

Camp to Be First Stage of Permanent Operations

The camp is approaching completion as Lake Victoria Gold said it is preparing the site for commissioning. The company said water storage and power generation systems have been installed, plumbing work has been completed, electrical installation continues to advance, and both modular and tented accommodations are being outfitted for use.

Lake Victoria Gold said the camp has been designed to become the first stage of the permanent operations camp rather than serving only as temporary construction infrastructure. By transitioning the facility directly into mine operations, the company expects to avoid duplicate capital spending while making more efficient use of its early project investments.

Lake Victoria Gold's on-site project team is overseeing field operations, equipment deployment, contractor coordination, and construction sequencing. The company said this approach combines local execution, regulatory compliance, and international technical support while strengthening project delivery capabilities within Tanzania.

In the near term, Lake Victoria Gold plans to complete and commission the construction camp while continuing upgrades to the access road and preparing the plant pad. The company also expects to finish topsoil stripping, berm construction, and reticulation trenching as it advances detailed engineering, procurement activities, and construction planning.

Lake Victoria Gold also cautioned that although the Imwelo project has been evaluated through JORC-compliant preliminary economic assessment (PEA), prefeasibility study (PFS), and updated PFS work, those studies are not current under National Instrument 43-101. The company said it has not completed a feasibility study establishing mineral reserves that demonstrate the project's economic and technical viability under Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (CIM) standards. As a result, any future decision to begin production would not be based on a feasibility study supported by mineral reserves and would therefore carry greater economic and technical uncertainty. The company added that there is no assurance the planned low-capex open-pit mine will prove economically viable or that production will proceed as expected, noting that potential risks include variations in ore grade and recovery, along with unforeseen geotechnical or metallurgical challenges.

Analyst: Important Drilling Milestone Reached

Lake Victoria Gold reached an important milestone in advancing its Imwelo gold project after completing a sterilization drilling program that confirmed the planned locations for the processing plant and accommodation camp do not contain significant gold mineralization, according to Atrium Research Analyst Ben Pirie in a June 23 report.

Pirie said the work reduces development risk by allowing construction to proceed without compromising potentially valuable mineral resources as the project moves closer to the construction stage.

The program included 23 drill holes, with 12 drilled beneath the proposed process plant and 11 beneath the planned accommodation camp, Pirie said. The results aligned with the area's total magnetic intensity survey, confirming that the known mineralized trend lies south of the planned infrastructure. He added that the drilling also identified a continuous clay layer measuring between three and five meters across the proposed plant site, providing geotechnical information that will support foundation and civil engineering designs.

According to Pirie, Lake Victoria also reported favorable geotechnical findings at Area C that support the project's final pit design. He noted that the company recently completed its convertible debenture financing in two tranches and strengthened its leadership team in Tanzania as it prepares for construction and future operations. Pirie added that a recent geotechnical review indicated strong rock conditions that could allow for steeper pit slopes, subject to further engineering work. The findings are being incorporated into an updated pit design alongside ongoing resource modeling, mine planning, and engineering activities.

Looking ahead, Pirie said Lake Victoria expects to continue drilling at its Tembo Project through its partnership with Barrick while targeting the start of construction at Imwelo during the third quarter of 2026. He also emphasized the company's exploration potential, stating, "The company has plenty of exploration upside across the portfolio, with Imwelo offering mine-life extension potential and Tembo hosting multiple targets adjacent to Barrick's Bulyanhulu Mine." Pirie maintained a Buy rating on the shares with a target price of CA$0.50.

Separately, Red Cloud analyst Alina Islam wrote on April 2 that Lake Victoria's agreement with Monetary Metals represented another significant step forward for the company. She said the arrangement provides a credible financing option with limited shareholder dilution to support Imwelo's development. According to Islam, the proposed gold loan, which would be repaid with up to 6,000 ounces of gold, carries a 15% annual interest rate over a multi-year term and was expected to close within 60 to 90 days, subject to due diligence and regulatory approvals.

The Catalyst: Could Gold's Next Major Move Be Upward?

Gold prices are likely to remain in a consolidation phase around US$4,000 per ounce through the remainder of the summer as investors await greater clarity from the Federal Reserve regarding the direction of U.S. monetary policy for the rest of the year, according to Neils Christensen writing for Kitco News on July 27.

Despite the current period of sideways trading, Aakash Doshi, Head of Gold Strategy at State Street Investment Management, told Kitco News that he believes gold's next major move of US$1,000 is more likely to be upward than downward. He argued that financial markets have become too aggressive in pricing expectations for continued Federal Reserve tightening.

"The markets have done a lot of the Federal Reserve's work already," he said, according to Christensen. "There is a strong case to be made that the Federal Reserve can stay on hold through the rest of the year as real rates have moved higher."

Doshi made the comments as gold has repeatedly struggled to sustain gains above US$4,100 per ounce while long-term real interest rates remain near their highest levels in recent years. He noted that 10-year real Treasury yields are trading around 2.4%, close to their highest point since October 2023.

Even with those headwinds, Doshi said gold has continued to find strong support near US$4,000 per ounce because market expectations for restrictive Federal Reserve policy appear to have reached their peak ahead of next week's central bank policy meeting.

He added that gold is likely to continue trading within a range until investors gain greater certainty about the outlook for U.S. monetary policy. Doshi reaffirmed his base-case forecast for gold to trade between US$4,750 and US$5,500 per ounce over the next six to nine months, while also maintaining that prices could reach US$5,000 per ounce during the first half of next year.

"If there is a shift in rate expectations, which pushes two-year yields below 4%, gold prices could get to US$4,500 to US$4,750 an ounce before the end of the year," he said. "That puts US$5,000 back into play."

In a separate report for Kitco on the same day, Christensen said muted investment demand from Western markets has limited gold's upside in recent months, but one bank says strong buying from Asia, particularly China, continues to provide critical support for the precious metal and that the country's influence may be far greater than official figures indicate.

Despite a prolonged correction, gold has held above the key US$4,000-per-ounce level. In a recent report, commodity analysts at BMO Capital Markets said renewed buying from China appears to be a major factor supporting prices. The firm also argued that China's role in the global gold market is significantly larger than many investors appreciate.

BMO expects Chinese demand to remain the primary driver of higher gold prices during the second half of the year. The analysts said that even with what they describe as a substantial undeclared gold stockpile, China is likely to continue purchasing the metal at a pace that could eventually allow it to exceed U.S. reserves.

"China has another ~5 years of buying at current rates for the PBoC to reach the USA's level of treasury reserves, but in total gold terms could surpass the U.S. much sooner," the analysts said. "What's more, as achieved elsewhere, China is set to gain more leverage in global pricing, enabled by its sheer scale of demand and growing futures and OTC market liquidity."

Ownership and Share Structure¹

Lake Victoria Gold Ltd. has a market cap of CA$50 million, with 199.58 million shares outstanding. The company's 52-week range is CA$0.16-CA$0.36.

Institutions own 10% of shares, while Strategic Corporate Investors own 18%, Management and Insiders own 21% of shares, and the remaining 51% of shares are held by Retail.