NOVAGOLD RESOURCES INC

The Company has adopted the mining disclosure standards ofSubpart 229.1300 of Regulation S-K–* Disclosure by Registrants Engaged in Mining Operations* (“S-K 1300”). The Company is subject to and required to disclose mineral resources and mineral reserves in accordance with S-K 1300. While the S-K 1300 rules are similar to NI 43-101 rules in Canada, they are not identical and therefore two reports have been produced for the Donlin Gold project. The information inItem 2, Properties, below is common to both reports and contains pertinent information required under S-K 1300.

Donlin Gold Technical Report (NI 43-101)

During 2025, the Company retained Wood Group USA Inc. (“Wood”) and Geosyntec Consultants International, Inc. (“Geosyntec”), unaffiliated third-party firms comprising mining experts, to update content in its previously filed “NI 43-101 Technical Report on the Donlin Gold Project, Alaska, USA,” with an effective date of June 1, 2021 (the “2021 Technical Report”). Wood and Geosyntec’s Qualified Persons (“QPs”) completed an exercise to verify which content in the 2021 Technical Report remains current, and what was required to update the report content with the latest information. Updated content includes legal agreements, drill hole database, geologic model, mineral resource estimates, mine plan, mineral reserve estimates, production schedule, operating costs, capital costs, tax law summary, long-term gold price, and the economic analysis. Additionally, work done on the property since 2021 with respect to exploration, drilling, permitting, and minor mine design changes as a result of recent permitting activities are summarized in the updated content. A data verification exercise was completed by each Wood and Geosyntec QP co-authoring the report. This included an August or September 2025 site visit by six of the report QPs; review of the drill and assay data, geologic data, geologic model, and resource model; review of metallurgical test work; review of designs for processing and infrastructure, including minor design updates; update of capital and operating cost estimates utilizing a combination of cost indices and vendor quotations; and updated mine designs, production schedule, and economic analysis. Canadian NI 43-101 Definitions, CIM Definition Standards for Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves (“CIM Definition Standards”), adopted by CIM Council on May 10, 2014, and CIM Estimation of Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves Best Practice Guidelines, November 29, 2019 (CIM MRMR Best Practice Guidelines) apply for this exercise.

The Wood and Geosyntec review determined that there was no material change to the mineral resources or mineral reserves as increases in operating costs since the 2021 Technical Report were generally offset by increases in the long-term gold price used in the study. On January 22, 2026, the Company filed an updated NI 43-101 technical report for the Donlin Gold project in Alaska, USA, and titled “NI 43-101 Technical Report on the Donlin Gold Project, Alaska, USA,” with an effective date of November 30, 2025 (the “2025 Technical Report”) reflecting the results of the above exercise. The 2025 Technical Report was prepared by Wood and Geosyntec. The 2025 Technical Report is available on the Company’s website and on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.

Donlin Gold Technical Report Summary (S-K 1300)

The Company is a registrant with the SEC and is reporting its exploration results, mineral resources or mineral reserves using the mining disclosure standards of S-K 1300. The Company requested that Wood and Geosyntec update content in its previously filed “S-K 1300 Technical Report Summary on the Donlin Gold Project, Alaska, USA”, with a report date of November 30, 2021 (the “2021 Technical Report Summary”). Material aspects of the 2021 Technical Report Summary were updated by Wood in 2025 and made current with “S-K 1300 Technical Report Summary on the Donlin Gold Project, Alaska, USA”, with a report date of November 30, 2025 (the “2025 Technical Report Summary”). As part of the update process, Wood’s subject matter experts completed an exercise to verify and update the content of the 2021 Technical Report Summary with the latest information under the supervision of Wood and Geosyntec’s QPs. Updated content includes legal agreements, drill hole database, geologic model, resource estimates, mine plan, mineral reserve estimates, production schedule, operating costs, capital costs, forecast long-term gold price and the economic analysis. Additionally, work done since 2021 on the property with respect to exploration, drilling, permitting and minor project design changes as a result of recent permitting activities are summarized in the 2025 Technical Report Summary. A data verification exercise was completed by Wood and Geosyntec QPs. Wood and Geosyntec QPs verified that the updated content of the 2021 Technical Report Summary met at least pre-feasibility level of study as defined in S-K 1300, and it supports the disclosure of exploration results, mineral resources, and mineral reserves using S-K 1300 standards. The 2025 S-K 1300 Technical Report Summary is available on the Company’s website and on EDGAR at www.sec.gov. None of Wood or Geosyntec or their QP employees are affiliated with the Company or Donlin Gold.

Results of the Donlin Gold Technical Report (NI 43-101) and Donlin Gold Technical Report Summary (S-K 1300 Technical Report Summary)

Wood and Geosyntec used the recent drilling results (through December 31, 2024), updated costs, and long-term forecast gold prices to update the geologic and mineral resource models and prepare mineral resource estimates that are current as of November 30, 2025. The 2025 mineral resource model was used in the updated mine plan, along with current technical and economic inputs to the modifying factors to generate updated mineral reserve estimates that are current as of November 30, 2025. A long-term gold price of US$2,400 per ounce was used for the mineral resource estimates, and US$2,100/oz for the mineral reserves. The difference in gold price is to ensure the mineral reserves are a sub-set of the mineral resources. A comparison of the 2021 mineral resources and mineral reserves to the 2025 mineral resources and mineral reserves shows no material change to the estimates. The increase in costs were generally offset by the increased gold prices.

Outside of verifying the mineral resource and mineral reserve estimates, the primary efforts in the 2025 Technical Report and the 2025 Technical Report Summary were to incorporate recent exploration drilling data and updated economic assumptions. This includes updates to estimated capital costs, operating costs, reclamation and closure costs, royalties, taxes, and economic analysis, as well as current status of the permits. Updated capital costs are based on fourth calendar quarter 2025 pricing (cost indices and current commodity pricing and equipment quotes) applied to the engineering designs and material take-offs from the “Donlin Creek Gold Project Alaska, USA NI 43-101 Technical Report on the Second Updated Feasibility Study,” effective November 18, 2011, and amended January 20, 2012 (the “2011 Mining Study”), except for minor changes made during permitting in the operations water treatment plant and the natural gas pipeline. As a result of the content updates, the total initial capital cost estimate is $9,233 million, which is an increase of 24.7% or $1,831 million compared to the 2021 Technical Report Summary total initial capital cost estimate. Likewise, the total sustaining capital estimate is $2,325 million, which is an increase of 34.9% or $602 million compared to the 2021 Technical Report Summary total sustaining capital estimate. The 2021 Technical Report Summary operating costs were updated to fourth calendar quarter 2025 by updating key cost drivers like energy, labor, consumables, and freight. The manning schedules and consumables remain largely unchanged. The updated estimated Life of Mine (“LOM”) operating costs total $24,504 million.

The economic evaluation of the Donlin Gold project in both the 2025 Technical Report and the 2025 Technical Report Summary was updated using the following inputs:

Based on the economic evaluation, the Donlin Gold project generates positive before and after-tax economic results. Total after-tax cash flow is $19,614 million, after-tax NPV at a 5% discount rate is $5,058 million, and the after-tax internal rate of return is 10.3%. After-tax payback is achieved 6.5 years following the start of production.

The following descriptions summarize selected information about the Company’s 60% interest in the Donlin Gold project located in Alaska, USA. Except for subsequent events or as otherwise noted, the disclosure in this Annual Report on Form 10-K of a scientific or technical nature for the Donlin Gold project is based on both the 2025 Technical Report and the 2025 Technical Report Summary, as of November 30, 2025. The 2025 Technical Report Summary meets at least a pre-feasibility level. The 2025 Technical Report and the 2025 Technical Report Summary do not incorporate the latest Donlin Gold drill program, optimization work on the geologic modeling concepts, or other optimization work since these assessments are still underway.

The 2025 Technical Report was filed on SEDAR+ on January 22, 2026. The 2025 Technical Report Summary was filed on EDGAR on January 22, 2026. The 2025 Technical Report and the 2025 Technical Report Summary were prepared by Wood and Geosyntec.

The 2025 Technical Report has been filed with securities regulatory authorities in each province of Canada and the 2025 Technical Report Summary has been filed with the SEC. Portions of the following information are based on assumptions, qualifications and procedures that are not fully described herein. Reference should be made to the full text of the 2025 Technical Report which is available for review on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and the 2025 Technical Report Summary which is available for review on EDGAR at www.sec.gov.

Paul Chilson, P.E., a QP and an employee of the Company, has approved the mineral reserves and mineral resources included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K as of November 30, 2025 and reviewed the reserves and resources in the 2025 Technical Report and the 2025 Technical Report.

Donlin Gold Project, Alaska, USA

The Donlin Gold project (the “Project”) is a development-stage gold project held by Donlin Gold, a limited liability company that is owned 60% by the Company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, NOVAGOLD Resources Alaska Inc., and 40% by Donlin Gold Holdings LLC, a subsidiary of Paulson. The Company’s book value of its investment in the Donlin Gold project is $213.2 million as of November 30, 2025.

Prior to June 3, 2025, Donlin Gold was owned equally by wholly-owned subsidiaries of NOVAGOLD and Barrick since December 1, 2007 when the Company entered into the limited liability company agreement with Barrick (“LLC Agreement”). Pursuant to the LLC Agreement, the Company agreed to reimburse Barrick out of future mine production cash flow for a portion of Barrick’s prior expenditures on the Donlin Gold project. As of November 30, 2025, the promissory note, including accrued interest, amounted to approximately $166.3 million. Concurrent with the closing of the Donlin Gold transaction on June 3, 2025 whereby Barrick sold its 50% interest in Donlin Gold to Donlin Gold Holdings LLC and NOVAGOLD Resources Alaska, Inc., the Company entered into an amended and restated secured promissory note with Barrick that provides the Company with the option to prepay the promissory note in full for $100 million on or before December 3, 2026. For more information regarding the amended and restated secured promissory note, refer to “Amended and Restated Promissory Note” in Management’s Discussion and Analysis.

Except for events subsequent to the reports, or as otherwise stated or implied, the scientific and technical information regarding the Donlin Gold project in this Annual Report on Form 10-K is based on both the 2025 Technical Report and the 2025 Technical Report Summary.

Property Description and Location

The Donlin Gold deposits are situated approximately 61°86’ north latitude and 158°13’ west longitude, which is 450 km west of Anchorage and 250 km northeast of Bethel up the Kuskokwim River. The closest village is the community of Crooked Creek, approximately 20 km to the south, on the Kuskokwim River.

The resource areas are within T. 23 N., R. 49. W., Seward Meridian, Kuskokwim and Mt. McKinley Recording Districts, Crooked Creek Mining District, Iditarod A-5 USGS 1:63,360 topography map. The mineralization is centered on approximately 540222.50 east and 6878534.36 north, using the NAD 83 datum.

The Donlin Gold property is located in the Kuskokwim region of southwestern Alaska on private, Alaska Native-owned mineral and surface land and Alaska state mining claims. The property is under the Calista Lease for subsurface rights and some surface rights from Calista and SUA from TKC, two Alaska Native corporations. Calista is one of 13 regional Alaska Native corporations established as part of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971 (“ANCSA”) and under ANCSA has title to the subsurface estate and some surface rights in the region. TKC was formed in 1977 when the ANCSA village corporations of Lower Kalskag, Upper Kalskag, Aniak, Chuathbaluk, Napaimute, Crooked Creek, Red Devil, Georgetown, Sleetmute and Stony River, which are located along the middle region of the Kuskokwim River, merged. Under ANCSA, TKC has title to extensive surface estate in the region, including most of the project lands. The property hosts a gold deposit currently estimated at 32.8 million ounces of proven and probable mineral reserves averaging 2.02 grams per tonne. The Company believes that significant exploration potential remains in the Donlin Gold district, with prospects to increase mine life and/or justify future production expansions. SeeMineral Reserve and Mineral Resource Estimate, below.

Other lands required for offsite infrastructure, such as the Jungjuk port site, the road from the port site to the mine site, and natural gas pipeline are categorized as Native, State of Alaska conveyed, or BLM lands. Rights-of-way are required from other Alaska Native corporations, the State of Alaska and BLM for the road and pipeline alignments that cross Native corporation, state, and federal lands.

Permits

The Project is subject to a rigorous permitting regime at federal, state, and local levels. Major permits obtained include the USACE Section 404/10 permit (with a JROD issued in 2018), the ADEC Integrated Waste Management Permit, Air Quality Control Permit, and APDES permit. Additional permits for water rights, dam safety, and fish habitat are in place or in process. BLM and ADNR have issued right-of-way (“ROW”) authorizations for the natural gas pipeline. The Project is working to secure a land agreement from Cook Inlet Region, Inc. (“CIRI”) for the remaining piece of the ROW for the natural gas pipeline.

All permits remain current, with renewals processed as required and no expirations to date. Several permits have been administratively extended, merged into other ROW permits, or are under review for extensions consistent with regulatory timelines and Project contingencies. The permitting process has included extensive agency and stakeholder consultation, and the Project is designed to comply with the NEPA Clean Water Act, Alaska Dam Safety Guidelines, and other applicable regulations.

Donlin Gold obtained the necessary permits and certifications that allowed for the exploration, environmental monitoring, and Environmental Impact Study (“EIS”) baseline data collection efforts. The current status of these permits is in line with the termination of the baseline data collection effort, temporary closure of the camp in May 2015, and the seasonal reopening of the site for the geological drill program from July to November 2017, the geotechnical drill program in 2019 and 2023 for the Alaska Dam Safety certificate applications, and the latest geological drill programs in 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2025. The active permits include Alaska Department of Natural Resources (“ADNR”) temporary use of water; ADNR Application for Permit to Mine in Alaska (approval for the 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2025 drill programs), the Corps individual 404 and nationwide 26 permits; Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (“ADEC”) authorizations (landfill, septic system, multisector stormwater general permit – sector G, air permit); and Federal Aviation Administration approval. Other permits were either put on hold, closed, or allowed to expire.

On August 7, 2012, we announced that Donlin Gold commenced permitting of the project by submitting a draft Plan of Operations and Section 404 Clean Water Act (“CWA”) draft permit application to federal and state regulators. The Section 404 permit application initiated the environmental review process under the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) which involves preparation of an EIS. The Corps selected AECOM, formerly URS, an independent contractor, to prepare the EIS. The Notice of Intent for the EIS was published in the Federal Register on December 14, 2012, and the NEPA public scoping process was completed on March 29, 2013. During the remainder of 2013 and through 2014 and 2015, Donlin Gold worked to address the remaining data needs for the draft EIS. Donlin Gold also continued to provide application materials and maintained ongoing dialogue with the key permitting agencies. The Corps addressed the cooperating agency comments on the preliminary draft and filed the Notice of Availability for public release of the draft EIS in the Federal Register in November 2015. After the filing of the draft EIS, the Corps issued a schedule for public meetings on the Donlin Gold draft EIS in the Y-K region and Anchorage, Alaska. The Corps conducted, and at the end of May 2016 completed, a six-month public comment period for the draft EIS, including 17 public comment meetings in communities across the Y-K region and in Anchorage. The Corps received comments from federal and state agencies, local and tribal governments, Alaska Native organizations, businesses, special interest groups/NGOs, and individuals.

On April 27, 2018, the Notice of Availability of the Donlin Gold final EIS was published in theFederal Register. On August 13, 2018, the Corps and the BLM issued a joint Federal Record of Decision (“ROD”) for the Donlin Gold project. Along with the ROD, the Corps issued a combined permit under CWA Section 404 and Section 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act. Additionally, the BLM issued the Offer to Lease for the state pipeline ROW for those portions of the natural gas pipeline that would cross federal lands. The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration previously issued a special permit for the natural gas pipeline on June 5, 2018. As a result of a legal challenge, discussed in further detail below, the Corp and BLM are undertaking a supplementation of the EIS to analyze the environmental impacts of a larger hypothetical release from the tailings storage facility. The CWA permits and BLM ROW remain in place during this supplementation, which is being undertaken under the Fixing America’s Transportation Act (“FAST-41”) program coordinated by the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council (“Permitting Council”). The Corp has submitted a schedule for completing the supplemental analysis by mid-2027 to the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council.

Several major State of Alaska permits were also issued and advanced during 2018 through 2023. After a public notice and comment period, ADEC issued a Certificate of Reasonable Assurance under CWA Section 401 on August 10, 2018, indicating that the CWA 404 permit complies with the state’s water quality standards. The Alaska Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (“APDES”) water discharge permit was issued by ADEC on May 24, 2018 and became effective on July 1, 2018. Donlin Gold submitted its application to ADEC for the regularly scheduled re-issuance of its APDES permit, which originally was to expire in January 2024, but has been administratively extended pending renewal. The State of Alaska Department of Fish and Game (“ADFG”) issued Title 16 Fish Habitat permits for the mine area and transportation corridor on August 30, 2018. The new air quality permit was issued by ADEC on July 1, 2023. The final approvals of the Donlin Gold Reclamation Plan and the Waste Management Permit were issued by ADNR and ADEC, respectively on January 18, 2019. On September 18, 2023, Donlin Gold submitted timely applications to ADEC and ADNR for renewal of the approval and permit. On October 17, 2023, ADEC administratively extended the Waste Management Permit pending renewal. The Reclamation Plan approval, which was also to expire in January 2024, has been administratively extended to January 2026. ADNR issued the easement, land leases, land use permits, and material site authorizations for the proposed transportation facilities, and easement for the fiber optic cable on state lands on January 2, 2020. On January 17, 2020, ADNR’s State Pipeline Coordinator Services issued the final state ROW authorization for the natural gas pipeline. On June 29, 2021, ADNR’s Division of Mining Land and Water issued 12 final Water Rights for the mine site and transportation corridor. On November 1, 2021, ADFG issued two Special Area Permits required for pipeline facilities located within the Susitna Flats State Game Refuge (“Refuge”). One permit authorizes the compressor station, and the other permit authorizes the section of the pipeline ROW in the Refuge. On November 1, 2022, ADNR finalized approval of the proposed re-location plan for public easements in the mine site and transportation facility areas.

The Project is working to secure a land agreement from CIRI for the remaining piece of the ROW for the natural gas pipeline. CIRI and Donlin Gold LLC have agreed on the terms of this lease and are working on finalizing the agreement. Other operational permits will be required immediately prior to construction, such as stream crossing from ADF&G, water sources from ADNR, and development from the Matanuska-Susitna borough. Legal challenges to ADNR’s issuance of the ROW are also complete with the Alaska Supreme Court issuing a ruling in November upholding ADNR’s issuance of the ROW.

On April 5, 2023, Earthjustice, representing Orutsararmiut Traditional Native Council (“ONC”), Kwethluk, and Tuluksak filed suit in the United States Federal Court for the District of Alaska, challenging BLM’s and the USACE’s issuance of the JROD.

On June 10, 2025, the District Court of Alaska issued an order remanding the matter to the federal agencies to supplement the EIS to include analysis of a larger hypothetical tailings release. The Court did not vacate the permits. Donlin Gold LLC has started working on the supplemental briefing while a Notice of Intent is expected from the Army Corp of Engineers in early 2026.

Mineral Tenure

The Calista Lease between Calista and Donlin Gold, includes subsurface (mineral) rights leased from Calista. Calista also owns the corresponding surface estate on a portion of these lands, the rights to which are also included in the Calista Lease. The Calista Lease provides Donlin Gold with rights to approximately 19,988 hectares of Calista-owned land. The Calista Lease was restated on February 11, 2011, to reflect all assignments and amendments made between its original execution on May 1, 1995 and February 11, 2011. The Calista Lease was amended once again effective June 6, 2014 (the “2014 Amendment”). The 2014 Amendment did not affect the lands subject to the Calista Lease as restated on February 11, 2011.

On June 6, 2014, the Company announced that Donlin Gold and TKC reached an updated long-term SUA for the Donlin Gold project. The SUA with TKC grants non-exclusive surface use rights to Donlin Gold for mining activities. TKC owns and contributed to the SUA the corresponding surface estate over most of Calista’s subsurface estate included in the Calista Lease as well as some additional surface estate. The SUA with TKC provides Donlin Gold with rights to approximately 16,923 hectares of TKC-owned land.

A small surface estate of 5.7 hectares to which the Lyman family has title, is within the Snow Gulch area lying immediately to the north of the Project’s pit shell. Lyman Resources in Alaska, Inc. (“Lyman Resources”), the Lyman family and Donlin Gold LLC executed a Surface Lease and Assignment of Mining Lease assigning the Lyman placer lease, located within the Calista Lease area, to Donlin Gold LLC for mining use (the “Lyman Lease”).

In addition to the leased land, Donlin Gold holds 493 State of Alaska mining claims comprising approximately 29,008 hectares in the Kuskokwim and Mt. McKinley Recording Districts. The mining claims abut and largely surround northern and western boundaries of the lands subject to the Calista Lease and TKC SUA. The mining claims are located on lands that are owned by the State of Alaska (409) and on state-selected lands from the BLM (84). All claims are approximately either 16.2 hectares or 64.8 hectares in size.

The terms for the Calista Lease and TKC SUA include various royalty and other payment provisions and considerations such as shareholder employment and contracting opportunities. The Lyman Lease provides for rent and certain other payments.

Royalty terms of the Calista Lease include:

Payment terms of the TKC SUA include:

The term of the Calista Lease is to April 30, 2031 and extends automatically year to year thereafter, so long as either mining or processing operations are carried out on or with respect to the property in good faith on a continuous basis in such year, or Donlin Gold pays to Calista an advanced minimum royalty of $3.0 million (subject to adjustment for increases in the Consumer Price Index) for such year. The TKC SUA remains in effect through April 30, 2031, and on a year-to-year basis thereafter, so long as the Calista Lease remains in effect. The Lyman Lease has an initial term of 20 years but shall be extended while Donlin Gold conducts operations on the property.

Additional estimated costs associated with various landowner and lease agreements, not already covered in initial capital or G&A operating costs, average approximately $8.6 million per year during the six pre-production years and $2.5 million per year during the 27 operating years. Annual rent, labor expenditures and filings are required to maintain Alaska State mining claims on state land. Mining license tax payments may also apply.

Accessibility and Climate

The Kuskokwim River is a regional transportation route and is serviced by commercial barge lines. A 25-kilometer winter road, designated as an Alaska State Highway route and transportation corridor, accesses the property from the barge landing at the village of Crooked Creek. The Donlin Gold project currently has an all-season, soft-sided camp. An adjacent 1,500-meter airstrip is capable of handling aircraft as large as C-130 Hercules (with a payload of 18,000 kg), allowing efficient shipment of personnel, some heavy equipment, and supplies. The Donlin Gold project can be reached directly by charter air facilities out of Anchorage and Aniak, 80 kilometers to the west.

The project area is one of low topographic relief on the western flank of the Kuskokwim Mountains. Elevations range from 150 meters to 640 meters. Ridges are well rounded and easily accessible by all-terrain vehicle. Hillsides are forested with black spruce, tamarack, alder, birch and larch. Soft muskeg and discontinuous permafrost are common in poorly drained areas at lower elevations. The area has a relatively dry interior continental climate with typically less than 500 millimeters total annual precipitation. Summer temperatures are relatively warm and may exceed 30°C. Minimum temperatures may fall to well below -42°C during the cold winter months. Permafrost is sporadic, typically confined to valley bottom and mid-slope, with thickness ranging from 1.5 m to over 15 m (average ~4 m). The site is in a seismically active region of Alaska, influenced by the collision of the Pacific and North American plates.

Exploration History

A total of 1,737 core (456,450 m) and 387 RC (37,457 m) holes conducted since 1995, were used to inform the resource estimate. Results from the 2025 drilling were compared to the geologic model and resource model and were found to support the interpretation of geology and estimation.

A total of 2,145 core and RC holes of 516,779 m were completed from 1995 through 2025 as summarized below. Holes drilled by previous operators between 1995 and 2000 include 347 core holes (86,298 m) and 77 RC holes (16,338 m). Holes drilled by Donlin Gold LLC include 491 core holes (121,383 m) and more recently 10 dual rotary holes (630 m).

Geology

Regional Geology

The Kuskokwim region of southwestern Alaska is predominately underlain by rocks of the Upper Cretaceous Kuskokwim Group that filled a subsided northeast-trending strike-slip basin between a series of amalgamated terranes. Intermediate composition volcano-plutonic complexes intrude and overlie Kuskokwim Group rocks throughout the region.

Local Geology

The Donlin Gold deposits lie between two regional, northeast-trending, right lateral fault systems: the Denali-Farewell fault system to the south and the Iditarod-Nixon Fork fault system to the north. Undivided Kuskokwim Group sedimentary rocks and granite porphyry complexes are the main rock units.

Property Geology

Greywacke is dominant in the northern part of the area (“northern resource area” comprising Lewis, Queen, Rochelieu, and Akivik), while shale-rich units are common in the southern part of the area (“southern resource area” comprising South Lewis and ACMA).

Gold deposits are associated with an extensive Late Cretaceous–Early Tertiary gold–arsenic–antimony–mercury hydrothermal system. Gold-bearing zones exhibit strong structural and host rock control along north–northeast-trending fracture zones and are best developed where those zones intersect relatively competent host rocks. Mineralized material is most abundant in intrusive dikes and sills, but sedimentary rocks are also mineralized within strong fracture zones.

Geotechnical and Hydrology

A number of geotechnical and hydrological studies have been completed in support of at least pre-feasibility and environmental reports for Donlin Gold, including geotechnical assessments for the engineering to support design of the port site, airstrip, plant site and interconnecting roads. BGC, Inc (“BGC”). Performed geotechnical analyses for the design of the pit, waste rock facility (“WRF”), and Tailings Storage Facility (“TSF”).

The site-wide surface water and groundwater models developed by BGC, are based on extensive drill data and climatic information for the area. The groundwater model is currently being updated based on the field work completed in 2023. BGC, CEMI, Hatch Ltd., and SRK, Inc. provided hydrologic studies, design criteria and associated test work for the water treatment plant requirements during construction, operations, and closure. Lorax Environmental performed water quality modeling for the post closure pit lake.

Exploration Potential

Exploration potential in the vicinity of the Project open pit designs include extensions to the south and west of ACMA and to the north and east of Lewis. Mineralization remains open at depth under the current pit limits. Mineralization also remains open to the north of the planned pit and has been tested by shallow trenching and soil sampling, with limited drilling undertaken to date.

Exploration potential also extends outside the areas that have been the subject of the mine design. Gold mineralization is associated with an overall north–northeasterly trending high level dike/sill complex and includes the Ophir, Dome, Far Side, Quartz/Duqum, and Snow prospects.

Mineralization

Southeast-dipping north-northeast-oriented fracture zones are the primary control on gold-bearing vein distribution within the north-northeast mineralized corridors. Composite vein zones or mineralized corridors range up to 30 meters in width and extend for hundreds of meters along strike. Intrusive rocks and to a lesser extent competent massive greywacke are the most favored host rocks, and act as a secondary control on the mineralization. Gold distribution in the deposit closely mimics the intrusive rocks. The more steeply dipping sills in the ACMA sill sequence host the highest-grade and most continuous igneous-hosted mineralized zones, particularly where intersected by northeast-striking “feeder” dikes and faults. Gold grade is directly proportional to vein density and intensity of overlapping disseminated sulfide vein aureoles. The dike-dominant Lewis deposit areas consist of sheeted veins with limited disseminated sulfide in the wall rocks and are characterized by lower-grade and less continuous mineralized zones.

Gold-bearing sulfides occur in both veins and disseminated zones in mafic igneous bodies, rhyodacite dikes and sills, and sedimentary rocks. Quartz-carbonate-sulfide (pyrite, stibnite, and arsenopyrite) veins are the primary mineralized features, but gold also occurs in thin, discontinuous sulfide fracture fillings.

Minor Elements and Deleterious Materials

The most abundant minor elements associated with gold-bearing material are iron, arsenic, antimony, and sulfur. They are contained primarily in the mineral suite associated with hydrothermal deposition of gold, including pyrite, arsenopyrite, realgar, native arsenic, and stibnite. Minor hydrothermal pyrrhotite, marcasite and syngenetic or sedimentary pyrite, also account for some of the iron and sulfur.

Three elements that have processing significance are mercury, chlorine, and fluorine. Graphitic carbon and carbonate minerals would also negatively affect the metallurgical process.

Metallurgy

Sufficient metallurgical test work was completed under the direction of Barrick personnel to support the S-K 1300 Report. Gold is mainly carried by arsenopyrite. Variation is observed in processing behavior between intrusive rocks and sedimentary rocks, but less so between the geographical sources.

Process testing generated development of the following conceptual flowsheet:

This processing concept incorporates proven commercial unit operations.

Mineral Resource and Mineral Reserve Estimates

The mineral resources and mineral reserves for the Donlin Gold project were classified using criteria appropriate under the mining disclosure definitions and standards of NI 43-101 and S-K 1300 with an effective date of November 30, 2025.

The Mineral Resource model is based on 1,737 core holes (456,450 m) and 387 RC holes (37,457 m) drilled between 1995 and 2022. Trenches, auger holes, and water wells were not used for estimation. A total of 47 holes (18,056 m) were completed in 2025 within the resource area; however, they were not used in the development of the geologic or Mineral Resource model. All 2025 drilling results were checked against the geologic and Mineral Resource model with good correlation.

Mineral Resources exclusive of Mineral Reserves are summarized in the table below.

Notes:

Mineral Resources inclusive of Mineral Reserves are summarized in the table below.

Notes:

Mineral Reserve Statement

Mineral Reserves are summarized in the table below. Using the proposed open pit mining method, modifying factors identified have been applied to the Measured and Indicated Mineral Resources to determine Proven and Probable Mineral Reserves, in accordance with the S-K 1300 definitions. Inferred Mineral Resources contained within the pit design are classified as waste with zero grade.

Notes:

Financial model parameters

The proposed Project will be a conventional, large-tonnage, open-pit operation designed to provide for a nominal process throughput of 53,500 t/d. The operating mine life is estimated at 24 years with an additional three years of stockpile reclaim based on the planned processing rate.

Base Case Project Sensitivity to Gold Price

Based on the economic evaluation, the Project generates positive before and after-tax economic results. After tax NPV is $5,058 million at a 5% discount rate, an IRR of 10.3% and payback of 6.5 years from the start of production. The following table provides a summary of key evaluation metrics.

Summary of Key Evaluation Metrics

Operating Cost Estimates**1

The operating cost estimates were updated to fourth quarter 2025 pricing by updating key cost drivers like energy, labor, consumables, and freight. Mining costs have been updated to align with the new design and schedule. The level of accuracy for the estimate is ±25% of estimated final costs. The updated estimated LOM operating costs are $48.54/t processed.

Notes:

Capital Cost Estimates

The capital cost estimate is based on updated, fourth quarter 2025 pricing applied to the engineering designs and material take-offs (“MTOs”) from the 2011 Mining Study. The level of accuracy for the estimate is ±25% of estimated final costs, with a blended 13.8% contingency.

The total initial capital cost estimate is $9,233 million and total sustaining capital is $2,325 million.

Economic Analysis

The overall economic viability of the Project has been assessed using both undiscounted and discounted cash flow techniques. Undiscounted techniques include total net cash flow and payback period (measured from start of production). Discounted cash flow techniques include net present value (“NPV”) and internal rate of return (“IRR”). Discounted values are calculated using a 5% discount rate and a discrete end-of-year convention relative to Year-6, the start of basic and detailed engineering.

Based on the economic evaluation using a forecast long-term gold price of $2,100/oz, the Project generates positive before and after tax economic results. After tax NPV5 is $5,058 million and the after tax IRR is 10.3%. After tax payback is achieved 6.5 years following the start of production.

Sensitivity analyses performed on gold price, gold grade, operating costs, and capital costs showed the Project is most sensitive to changes in the gold price and gold grade.

Planned Mining Operations

The Donlin Gold project will be mined by a conventional truck-and-shovel operation. Initial pioneering and pit development will be undertaken to remove overburden, develop mine access roads suitable for large mining equipment, and “face-up” the initial pit for the large shovel and mining equipment.

Primary loading units for both bulk and selective mining in ore and waste will be large electric-hydraulic shovels, with large front-end loaders as secondary units. Large 363 tonne capacity haul trucks will be used for transporting both ore and waste out of the pit.

Blast hole drilling will be performed by medium-sized rotary and down-the-hole hammer drills with various hole diameters depending on bench height and desired mining selectivity. Reverse circulation (“RC”) drilling is planned for detailed geologic definition and grade control.

Support equipment will be used for road, bench, dump maintenance, and miscellaneous projects.

Planned Processing Operations

The Donlin Gold project ore will be processed by crushing and grinding, sulfide flotation concentration, concentrate treatment by pressure oxidation (“POX”) in an autoclave, CIL cyanide leaching of the oxidized concentrate, electrowinning, and refining to produce doré bars on site.

Due to gold being associated with sulfide mineralization, primarily arsenopyrite and pyrite, the ore is considered refractory and requires POX pre-treatment to liberate the gold prior to CIL leaching. Sulfide flotation concentration is required prior to POX to concentrate the sulfide content to a level sufficient to fuel the POX operation.

Concentrate is recovered from the primary rougher flotation followed by regrinding of the tailings prior to secondary rougher flotation. The secondary rougher concentrate is processed through a cleaner scavenger circuit producing a concentrate which is combined with the primary rougher concentrate for treatment by POX. The final tailings from the secondary rougher flotation tailings is thickened, and due to their neutralizing potential, is then utilized to modify the pH of the excess POX discharge solution prior to being transported to the TSF.

The oxidized concentrate from the POX operation would then be cyanide leached in a conventional CIL circuit to produce a pregnant (gold-bearing) solution. Gold from the solution is absorbed onto activated carbon, which is later stripped (gold desorbed from carbon) in an elution circuit. The pregnant solution after elution is fed through electrowinning (“EW”) cells, where cathodes are plated with gold-bearing materials, which are periodically removed, dried in a retort, and melted in an induction furnace to produce doré bars.

Tailings from the CIL circuit would be treated in a cyanide detoxification process using SO2/air technology prior to being recombined with the flotation tailings and transported to the TSF.

Mercury naturally occurs in the Donlin Gold project ores and mercury abatement controls will be installed in six areas of the process facilities including POX, hot cure, EW, retort, refinery furnace, and carbon regeneration kiln. In these control systems, mercury will be collected for off-site shipment and management. Chemicals will be added to tailings to limit the potential for mercury releases from the TSF. Based on the process design which includes mercury removal and abatement measures, the presence of the deleterious elements will not significantly affect potential economic extraction.

Proposed Waste Rock Facility (WRF)

Waste rock from open pit mining will be placed in an ex-pit WRF in the American Creek Valley, east of the pit area, or in a backfill dump in the ACMA pit. Approximately 2,318 Mt of waste rock (including overburden) will be placed in the WRF. The top lift of the WRF will be at an elevation of approximately 610 m amsl, resulting in a maximum dump height of about 430 m. Most of the WRF will be constructed in 30 m lifts. The toe of each subsequent lift will be set back 47 m from the crest of the previous lift, resulting in an overall dump slope of 3H:1V.

The facility will be constructed in lifts and will be reclaimed as soon as practical after each lift or portion of the facility is complete. After active dumping ceases on each lift, the slopes will be regraded to an overall 3H:1V slope or flatter.

A series of channels is required to collect and convey runoff from the surface of the reclaimed WRF to the pit lake during the closure period. The LCWD and UCWD will be removed, and surface runoff and seepage from the WRF will be directed to the ACMA pit. The seepage flows rom the WRF will be isolated by constructing concrete containment structures at the outlet of the rock drains for American Creek and Rob’s Gulch and piped to the pit bottom to promote stratification.

Concurrent reclamation of the waste rock facility will be undertaken during operations.

Proposed Tailings Storage Facility (TSF)

Before the end of operations, the tailings deposition procedure will be modified so that the operating pond will be directed to the southeast corner of the TSF. The TSF will be reclaimed with a multilayer cover system: 0.35 m of peat/organic growth medium over 0.3 m of colluvium or terrace gravel, and 1.0 m of competent rockfill to provide a capillary break. The TSF surface will be contoured to direct runoff toward the southeast corner, where a lined collection pond will store runoff for testing before discharge. A spillway will be excavated in the ridge between Anaconda Creek and Crevice Creek catchments, with an invert elevation of 254 meters above mean sea level (“amsl”) and designed for a PMF of 380 m³/s. Discharge to Crevice Creek will occur only after water meets applicable standards, which is anticipated to be around 10 years post-closure.

During the first year of closure, TSF pond water will be pumped to the pit via the reclaim pipeline. Over 5 years, the tailings surface will be progressively covered, while pumping continues to prevent pond redevelopment. From years 6 to 52, water from tailings consolidation and infiltration will be collected via drain sumps in manholes and pumped to the pit. Approximately 16.28 mm³ of void water is expected during consolidation. The SRS downstream of the TSF will remain active, pumping seepage (estimated at 102 m³/h) to the pit lake until water quality meets standards.

Water Diversion Dams

Water dams are required during the construction period and initial years of operation to protect the lined upstream face of the tailings-starter dam from a significant flood event, to provide a reliable source of fresh water during operation of the process plant, and to minimize runoff into the TSF.

Current and Planned On-Site Infrastructure

Current site infrastructure comprises an all-season, soft-sided camp with facilities consisting of kitchen, living quarters, equipment shop, drill shack and other buildings required for support of year-round exploration activities.

There is sufficient area within the project area to host an open pit mining operation, including the proposed open pit, waste rock facility, TSF and process facilities (primary and pebble crushers, coarse ore conveyor and coarse ore stockpile, concentrator, flotation, water treatment plants, POX, oxygen plant, boiler house, utility corridors, leach, refinery, cyanide destruct, and access walkways). Other planned site infrastructure is comprised of access roads, airstrip, accommodation camp, fuel tank farm, dual-fueled power plant, truck shop, truck wash, workshops and vehicle repair facilities, assay laboratory, administration facilities and change rooms. Donlin Gold has secured the surface rights for the areas that may host these facilities.

In nearby villages, Crooked Creek has approximately 105 residents and Aniak has a population of approximately 500. The workforce for the project would be sourced from the local area, from Alaskan regional centers and from other sources as required.

The project is a greenfield site. The on-site infrastructure for the project includes three main development sites in remote locations: the mine and plant site area (including the power plant), the permanent camp, and the airstrip. The plant site, power plant and fuel tank farm will be on a ridge above the proposed TSF. The layout of the plant site was designed to take maximum advantage of the natural topography. The layout also provides for efficient movement of equipment and material products around the site.

Planned Off-site Infrastructure

The off-site infrastructure for the project includes three main development sites in remote locations: the Jungjuk port site and mine access road, the natural gas pipeline, and the Bethel port facilities. The Jungjuk port site is situated upriver from Bethel on the Kuskokwim River near the mouth of Jungjuk creek. A port-to-mine access road, approximately 44 kilometers long, will traverse varied terrain from the Jungjuk port site to the mine site. A spur road, approximately 4.8 kilometers long, beginning at route km 8.7, will serve the proposed project airstrip. The mine permanent camp facilities will be located at 3.9 km from the mine site. There are 50 identified stream or drainage crossings along the road route, but only six of them are significant and will require bridging. Bridge lengths vary from 7.5-25 m.

The access road enables the transport of cargo, fuel, equipment, and personnel throughout both construction and operational phases. The road traverses remote upland terrain where no prior road connections or settlements exist. Short spur roads branch off to serve the airstrip, material borrow sites, and the permanent accommodation camp.

The natural gas pipeline is described under the “Power” heading below. The proposed Bethel port will be situated near the town of Bethel, a community of approximately 6,080 residents, that is the main existing port on the Kuskokwim River and is an administrative and transportation hub for the 56 villages in the Y-K region. The existing Bethel port is the northernmost medium-draft port in the United States and is served by ocean-going barges. The proposed port would serve as a trans-shipment point from ocean barges to river barges to supply the project during the summer ice-free period.

Power

Natural gas will be delivered to site by an approximately 507-kilometer, 356-millimeter diameter pipeline to supply an on-site power generation facility. The 2025 Technical Report Summary contemplates that the electric power for the site will be generated from a dual-fueled (natural gas and diesel), reciprocating engine power plant with a steam turbine utilizing waste heat recovery from the engines. The power plant consists of two equal halves, each consisting of six reciprocating engines, and a separate steam turbine. The total generation facility is nominally rated at 182 MW initially and will increase to 215 MW after four years with the addition of two more generators (one in each half) to allow for N+2 redundancy, thus allowing planned maintenance and predicted outages without cutting back production.

Operating costs are based on importing liquefied natural gas (“LNG”) by ship to Anchorage and total delivery cost to site which includes regasification of the LNG and delivery from Anchorage to the Donlin Gold project via the pipeline.

The pipeline would commence at the west end of the Beluga Gas Field, approximately 50 kilometers northwest of Anchorage at a tie-in near Beluga located in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough and would run to the mine site. The pipeline would receive booster compression supplied by one compressor station. No additional compression along the pipeline route would be required. The pipeline would have capacity to transport approximately 2 million cubic meters per day of natural gas.

Fuel sourced at refineries in the Pacific Northwest will be delivered by ocean barge to Dutch Harbor, where it will be stored in 49 ML fuel tanks to await onward transport to Bethel. The first shipments should leave the refineries in early May. Fuel will be shipped from Dutch Harbor to Bethel using an ocean barge with an 11 ML capacity. The barge will be loaded in a way to avoid the need to reduce draft before navigating the shallower sections downstream of Bethel. At Bethel, fuel will either be transferred to 38 ML storage tanks or loaded directly to a river barge for transport to Jungjuk. At Jungjuk, fuel will be offloaded into 9.5 ML storage tanks. From there, a fleet of tanker trucks with total capacity of 0.51 ML will deliver fuel to the mine site where it will be stored in fuel storage tanks with combined capacity of 142 ML. The fuel terminals at Dutch Harbor and Bethel, as well as the ocean and river barge fleets will be operated by third-party contractors.

Water

Water requirements for the proposed project have been summarized in a Water Resources Management Plan, which has been subject to review by state and federal agencies. Water primarily will be sourced from the two drainages (American and Anaconda Creeks) within the mine footprint and pit dewatering. In extremely dry years, the water supply from these sources may not be able to meet the makeup water requirements for the plant. In these circumstances, additional water will be obtained primarily from a proposed reservoir in Snow Gulch.

The source of water supply for the construction camp and, later, the plant site potable water systems is an array of eight deep wells south of Omega Gulch, near Crooked Creek. Water supply will be pumped to freshwater storage tanks and will be treated prior to consumption.

Markets

NOVAGOLD’s portion of gold production is likely to be sold on the spot market, by marketing experts retained by or on behalf of NOVAGOLD. Gold can be readily sold on numerous markets throughout the world and it is not difficult to ascertain its market price at any time, therefore there is no need for a preliminary marketing study to support the assumed gold price or market for the gold production from this Project.

The long-term forecast gold price of $2,100/oz used for mine planning and cash flow analysis was based on a combination of information derived from a number of reputable banks as well as cash flow prices used in technical reports filed in Canada over the previous 12-month period and historical price averaging.

Taxation

The following taxation summary was provided by NOVAGOLD for the Project.

U.S. Federal Corporate Income Tax

In accordance with the TCJA enacted in December 2017 and largely effective January 1, 2018, and the OBBBA enacted in 2025, which extended or made permanent many TCJA provisions:

Alaska Corporate Income Tax

Alaska Mining License Tax

Financial results

The total initial capital cost estimate for the Donlin Gold project is approximately $9,233 million. The project’s estimated after-tax NPV at a 5% discount rate is $5,058 million with an IRR after-tax at 10.3% using the base case gold price of $2,100 per ounce. The undiscounted break-even gold price is $1,342 per ounce and at a 5% discount rate is $1,554 per ounce. In the 2025 Technical Report Summary, the overall economic viability of the project was evaluated by both discounted and undiscounted cash flow analyses, based on the engineering studies and cost estimates discussed in the 2025 Technical Report Summary.

Assumptions in the model comprised:

Current Activities

For information on current activities, see sectionItem 7, Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, below.

Change in Mineral Resources and Reserves from 2024 to 2025

The following table is the variance of the Donlin Gold project’s Mineral Resources Exclusive of Reserves from November 30, 2024 to November 30, 2025.

There was no material change to the mineral resources as increases in operating costs since the 2021 Technical Report Summary were generally offset by increases in the long-term gold price used in the study. Changes to the inputs and assumptions influencing the Mineral Resource estimate include: updated geologic model and resource model to include exploration drilling through December 31, 2024, gold price used in estimating Mineral Resources increased from $1,500/oz to $2,400/oz, operating costs escalated from 2021 to 2025, revised pit slope parameters.

The following table is the variance of the Donlin Gold project’s Mineral Reserves from November 30, 2024 to November 30, 2025.

There was no material change to the mineral reserves as increases in operating costs since the 2021 Technical Report Summary were generally offset by increases in the long-term gold price used in the study. Changes to the inputs and assumptions influencing the Mineral Reserve estimate include: updated geologic model and resource model to include exploration drilling through December 31, 2024, gold price used in estimating Mineral Reserves increased from $1,200/oz to $2,100/oz, operating costs escalated from 2021 to 2025, revised pit slope parameters, updated pit design and production schedule.

Mineral Resource and Reserve Internal Controls

The Company has internal controls for reviewing and documenting the information supporting the mineral resource and mineral reserve estimates, describing the methods used, and ensuring the validity of the estimates. These internal control processes were not materially impacted by the adoption of S-K 1300 in 2021. Information that is used in the mineral resource and mineral reserve estimation process was reviewed and approved by appropriate QPs that prepared the content of the NI 43-101 and S-K 1300 reports for the Donlin Gold project. The mineral resources and mineral reserves are subject to our internal review process on an annual basis, which includes review by NOVAGOLD’s QP based in our corporate office in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.

Sample collection, preparation, analysis and security for all Donlin Gold core drill programs are in line with industry-standard methods for gold deposits.

Modifications made to the 2025 quality control protocol include:

Mineral resources and mineral reserves are estimates that are imprecise and depend upon geologic interpretation and statistical inferences drawn from drilling and sampling analysis, which may prove to be unreliable. SeeRisk Factors–* *“The quantities for our mineral resources and mineral reserves are estimates based on interpretation and assumptions and may yield less mineral production under actual conditions than is currently estimated.”