Two Anisininew Nations Put Signature Resources Ltd. and the Province of Ontario on Formal Notice – Exploration Activities Proceeding Without Consent, Agreement, or Adequate Consultation

ANISININEW TERRITORY / NORTHERN ONTARIO — Red Sucker Lake Anisininew Nation (“RSLAN”) and Sachigo Lake Anisininew Nation (“SLAN”) — two sister Anisininew Nations located approximately sixty miles apart in the remote north, with kinship ties and shared governance traditions stretching back since time immemorial, are jointly issuing this public statement to place Signature Resources Ltd. (“Signature Resources”), the Province of Ontario, and the global investment community on notice regarding mineral exploration activities being conducted within our traditional territories without our consent.

Background
Signature Resources Ltd. (TSX-V: SGU) has been conducting mineral exploration activities within the traditional territories of RSLAN and SLAN under provincial permits issued by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. These permits were issued and have been renewed despite formal objections from both Nations and in the absence of any written agreement, consent protocol, or meaningful accommodation of our Nations’ concerns.

Signature Resources has refused to negotiate a standard exploration agreement with our Nations. For clarity: exploration agreements are routine across Ontario and Canada. Companies that seek to operate responsibly on Indigenous lands enter into such agreements as a matter of course. Signature Resources has chosen not to do so. We are deeply disappointed that neither Signature Resources nor the Government of Ontario has chosen to hear and accommodate our concerns.

Our Concerns
Our Nations have raised serious and persistent concerns, including:
• Inadequate and procedurally flawed consultation that fails to meet the constitutional standard required by section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982;
• Environmental risk from drilling, fuel storage, site disturbance, and legacy contamination from past mining operations, including reports of significant fuel spills and un-reclaimed lands;
• Direct impacts to traplines, hunting and fishing grounds, travel routes, and water systems that sustain our communities and our way of life;
• Deeply troubling reports of unsafe working conditions and disrespectful treatment of Indigenous workers employed by exploration contractors; and
• The Province’s reliance on a unilateral “low impact” classification to avoid meaningful engagement with our governments.

Despite repeated correspondence and engagement efforts, these concerns remain unresolved.

Legislative Context
Our concerns are further compounded by the enactment of Ontario’s Bill 5, the Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, 2025, and the federal Bill C-5, the One Canadian Economy Act. Both legislative regimes fast-track resource development at the expense of environmental protections, species-at-risk safeguards, and meaningful Indigenous consultation. Our Nations reject any application of these laws that circumvents our constitutional rights or treats our consent as optional. We expect that meaningful, constitutionally required, Nation-to-Nation engagement will continue under any legislative regime.

Joint Action
RSLAN and SLAN have issued a formal Joint Statement to the Premier of Ontario, the Minister of Natural Resources, the Minister of Energy and Mines, and the Minister of Indigenous Affairs and First Nations Economic Reconciliation, placing the Province on notice of our unified position and our expectations for Nation-to-Nation engagement.

Our Nations have retained legal counsel and are actively assessing all available remedies, including regulatory challenges, judicial review, and public disclosure. We are coordinating with other First Nations organizations and rights holders who share our concerns.

A Message to the Investment Community
As the global mining and investment community gathers at PDAC 2026 in Toronto, we remind all proponents, investors, and governments of a fundamental truth: Indigenous Nations are not stakeholders; we are rights holders.

Investors considering exposure to Signature Resources Ltd. should be aware that the company is operating within the traditional territories of two Anisininew Nations without their consent and without a written agreement. This represents a material risk with legal, regulatory, reputational, and operational implications that we believe are not adequately disclosed.

Respectful engagement with Indigenous Nations is not a barrier to development. It is the foundation of legitimate and sustainable resource development in Canada.

Companies that choose to operate without Indigenous consent operate at their own risk. Our Nations will exercise every lawful means at our disposal to protect our lands, our people, and our rights.

Our Position
Our lands are governed by our laws.
Our consent is fundamental.
Our Nations stand united.
Signature Resources Ltd. and the Province of Ontario are on notice.

Issued jointly by:

Chief Samuel Knott
Red Sucker Lake Anisininew Nation

Chief Robert Beardy
Sachigo Lake Anisininew Nation

For more information please contact:
Michael Heintzman,
Director of Communications
Cell: (807) 621-2790
mheintzman@nan.ca