Automata Rare Earth Corp. has secured a Letter of Acceptance from the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador for Mineral Licence 039973M at its Burnt Pond Project, clearing the way for an upcoming fall exploration campaign.

The approval, which remains valid until August 20, 2028, follows exploration permit applications submitted by the company on August 14, 2026. The government clearance covers a broad suite of work including prospecting, geophysical and geochemical surveys, small-scale channel sampling, hand panning, and backpack drilling.

Automata has selected Trust Drilling Inc. of Springdale as its preferred drilling contractor. The company plans to use the approved work to refine 103 proposed drill locations—comprising 45 Priority 1 and 58 Priority 2 targets—ahead of a planned maiden diamond drill program of 2,500 to 5,000 metres in late fall 2026.

“Receiving this exploration approval is another important step toward putting boots on the ground and aggressively advancing Burnt Pond,” said Chris Huggins, Chief Executive Officer of Automata. “We only submitted our applications in late July, and we are extremely pleased with the progress made toward preparing the Project for a significant fall exploration campaign.”

— Chris Huggins, Chief Executive Officer

The 975-hectare, road-accessible project is located approximately 30 kilometres southwest of Grand Falls-Windsor in the Tally Pond volcanic belt of Central Newfoundland. Automata holds an option to acquire a 100-per-cent interest in the property.

The company filed an independent NI 43-101 technical report for the volcanogenic massive sulphide asset on June 2, 2026, outlining an approximate 500-metre-long by 150-metre-deep stringer zone. Historical exploration at the property returned a notable intercept of 0.37 metres grading 1.6 g/t gold, 791.1 g/t silver, 0.79% copper, 25.8% zinc, and 24.0% lead.

“Burnt Pond already hosts confirmed high-grade polymetallic VMS-style mineralization and sits within a proven mineralized belt that has delivered past production. With limited modern systematic exploration completed to date, we believe Burnt Pond represents a compelling underexplored opportunity in Central Newfoundland. Our upcoming work is designed to refine our highest-priority targets and position the Company for a high-impact maiden drill program.”

— Chris Huggins, Chief Executive Officer

The regional district has seen active exploration by other operators, with FireFly Metals Ltd having reported drilling intercepts including 11.5m at 13.2% CuEq at its Green Bay project within the surrounding area. Automata intends to roll out ground-based electromagnetic, VLF, magnetic and gravity surveys, alongside systematic geochemical sampling, to advance the target inventory before drilling begins.

Read the full announcement: Automata Rare Earth Corp. Secures Key Government Approval, Accelerating Burnt Pond Toward High-Impact Fall Exploration Program