Westhaven Announces Leadership Changes; Appoints Armstrong President & CEO

/EIN News/ -- VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 31, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Westhaven Gold Corp. (TSX-V:WHN) today announced that Gareth Thomas will step down as President and Chief Executive Officer, effective April 30, 2025 with the Board of Directors appointing Ken Armstrong as the new President and CEO, effective May 1, 2025. Thomas, who has served in an executive capacity with Westhaven since 2010 and CEO since 2018, will remain as a director and advisor to the Board.

Eira Thomas, Chairperson commented: “Gareth led Westhaven from an early-stage, grass roots gold exploration concept, through multiple high-grade gold drilling discoveries and most recently, the completion of a PEA outlining a robust development opportunity at Shovelnose, the Company’s flagship project in southern BC. We are indebted to Gareth for his commitment and leadership during this critical phase in the Company’s development.” She further stated that: “This planned transition represents a strategic renewal of leadership as we work to rapidly advance the Shovelnose project towards feasibility in parallel with ongoing gold exploration efforts across our highly prospective Spences Bridge portfolio of properties. We are delighted to be welcoming industry veteran Ken Armstrong as CEO to lead this effort.”

Gareth Thomas, stated, “I am very proud of what we’ve accomplished on the Spences Bridge Gold Belt since Westhaven’s inception in 2010. This transition marks a new chapter for the Company, as we advance towards development at Shovelnose, and I am excited for what the future holds under Ken’s leadership. The relationships that we have established within the Nlaka’pamux Nation are particularly important to me. These relationships are founded on respect, trust and collaboration, and I remain fully committed to continuing to work with the Nlaka’pamux Nation in my role as a director and advisor to Westhaven.”

Ken Armstrong is a seasoned exploration and mining professional with over thirty years of experience, including twenty years as a corporate executive for publicly listed exploration and mining companies covering a range of commodities including diamonds, gold, nickel, and tin. Ken has a distinguished track record in mineral exploration, corporate leadership, and strategic project development and has also received recognition for excellence in community and government engagement. His diverse leadership roles include serving most recently as CEO and director of North Arrow Minerals, Director and Interim CEO of Cornish Metals Inc., Executive Director of the NWT and Nunavut Chamber of Mines, and previously leading Strongbow Exploration Inc. (now Cornish Metals Inc.). He is a registered Professional Geoscientist in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and the Province of Ontario.

Westhaven has granted 1,000,000 incentive stock options to Mr. Armstrong pursuant to the terms of its 10% Rolling Equity Incentive Plan which was approved by Shareholders at the Annual General Meeting held on June 24, 2024. The stock options have an exercise price of $0.15 per share, a 5-year term, and will vest in thirds over a period of 18 months from the date of grant. Following this grant of stock options, there are 16,555,000 stock options outstanding, representing 8.8% of the Company’s issued and outstanding common shares.

On behalf of the Board of Directors
WESTHAVEN GOLD CORP.

"Eira Thomas”

Eira Thomas, Chairperson & Director

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

About Westhaven Gold Corp.

Westhaven is a gold-focused exploration company advancing the high-grade discovery on the Shovelnose project in Canada’s newest gold district, the Spences Bridge Gold Belt. Westhaven controls ~61,512 hectares (~615 square kilometres) with four gold properties spread along this underexplored belt. The Shovelnose property is situated off a major highway, near power, rail, large producing mines, and within commuting distance from the city of Merritt, which translates into low-cost exploration. Westhaven trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the ticker symbol WHN. For further information, please call 604-681-5558 or visit Westhaven’s website at www.westhavengold.com