Benton Notified That St. Anthony Gold Corp Will Exercise the Second Option on the Panama Lake Project; Rio Tinto Terminates Bark Lake Option

Benton Resources Inc. (TSXV: BEX) ("Benton") would like to announce that St. Anthony Gold Corp. ("St. Anthony" or the "Company") (CSE: STAG) (FSE: M1N) (OTC Pink: MTEHF) has notified Benton they will make a CAD$100,000 (cash or shares) payment to earn a 50% interest in the Panama Lake property (the "Property").

The Panama Lake option agreement (the "Option Agreement") between Benton and St. Anthony was signed in October 2019. In order to earn a 50% interest, St. Anthony was required to issue two million shares, complete CAD$450,000 of qualified expenditures on the Property and make two annual cash payments of CAD$100,000 or issue the equivalent value in common shares, all within 24 months from the date of the Option Agreement.

Additionally, St. Anthony intends to earn a 70% interest in the Property by paying CAD$100,000 in cash- or shares-equivalent on the third anniversary and complete CAD$250,000 in exploration expenditures on the Project. The Company has the option to own 100% of the Property by paying Benton CAD$300,000 in cash- or shares-equivalent on the fourth anniversary and complete CAD$300,000 in exploration expenditures. The Option Agreement contains a 2 km-area-of-influence clause that covers the Project's claim boundary. Benton will retain a 2% Net Smelter Return (NSR) royalty on the Project with St. Anthony having the option to buy-back 1% for CAD$1M. In addition, St. Anthony will issue to Benton an additional 1,000,000 common shares upon completion of its initial NI 43-101 compliant resource calculation as defined in the Option Agreement.

Interest in Panama Lake is being reinforced by leading gold companies and joint ventures that are moving to secure nearby and adjacent properties. Most recently, Kenorland Minerals Ltd. optioned its project, immediately adjacent to the Panama project, to Barrick Gold Corp. As one of the major gold developers in the world, participation by this group is evidence of a renewed focus on this mining district.

In addition, Benton has been notified by Rio Tinto Exploration Canada Inc. ("RTEC") that it has elected to terminate the Bark Lake option dated October 20^th, 2016, with Benton. RTEC will provide Benton with all data collected on the project to-date. Benton believes the project has tremendous exploration potential as the property is host to several platinum (Pt), palladium (Pd), gold (Au), copper (Cu) and nickel (Ni) showings contained in mineralized ultramafic rock. The mineralized occurrences are situated along the Quetico Fault, a major crustal-scale east-west oriented structure where RTEC has intersected high-grade Nickel sulfides just 4 km to the west. Grab samples on the Bark Lake project have returned grades up to 4.35 g/pt Pd, 2.64 g/pt Pt, 0.74 g/pt Au, 1.2% Cu, and 0.5% Ni. Subsequent drilling completed by RTEC in 2018 on the Bark Lake project encountered mineralization of 0.31% Cu and 0.72 g/pt Pt + Pd over 19.2 m. This was the last drill program completed at Bark Lake. To date, RTEC has kept the Baril Lake option in good standing which is located 7 km west of Bark Lake.

About Benton Resources Inc.

Benton Resources Inc. is a well-funded mineral exploration company listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol BEX. Following a project-generation business model, Benton has a diversified, highly-prospective property portfolio in Gold, Silver, Nickel, Copper, and Platinum Group Elements and currently holds large equity positions in other mining companies that are advancing high-quality assets. Whenever possible, BEX retains Net Smelter Return (NSR) royalties for potential long-term cash flow. Benton has also recently entered into a 50/50 strategic alliance with Sokoman Minerals Corp. (TSXV: SIC) through three large-scale joint venture properties including Grey River, Golden Hope and Kepenkeck in Newfoundland that are now being explored.

For further information, please contact:

CHF Capital Markets
Cathy Hume, CEO
Phone: 416-868-1079 x251
Email: cathy@chfir.com

Benton Resources
Stephen Stares, President & CEO
Phone: 807-475-7474
Email: sstares@bentonresources.ca 

Website: www.bentonresources.ca,
Twitter: @BentonResources
Facebook: @BentonResourcesBEX
LinkedIn: @BentonResources

THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE HAS NOT REVIEWED AND DOES NOT ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.

The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements relate to information that is based on assumptions of management, forecasts of future results, and estimates of amounts not yet determinable. Any statements that express predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are not statements of historical fact and may be "forward-looking statements."

Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual events or results to differ from those reflected in the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: risks related to failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis and on acceptable terms; risks related to the outcome of legal proceedings; political and regulatory risks associated with mining and exploration; risks related to the maintenance of stock exchange listings; risks related to environmental regulation and liability; the potential for delays in exploration or development activities or the completion of feasibility studies; the uncertainty of profitability; risks and uncertainties relating to the interpretation of drill results, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; risks related to the inherent uncertainty of production and cost estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses; results of prefeasibility and feasibility studies, and the possibility that future exploration, development or mining results will not be consistent with the Company's expectations; risks related to gold price and other commodity price fluctuations; and other risks and uncertainties related to the Company's prospects, properties and business detailed elsewhere in the Company's disclosure record. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date hereof and the Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances. Actual events or results could differ materially from the Company's expectations or projections.

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