Drilling Commences at Arau Project, Papua New Guinea

Great Pacific Gold Corp. ("Great Pacific Gold,” “GPAC,” or the "Company") (TSXV: GPAC) (OTCQX: FSXLF) (Germany: 4TU) is pleased to announce that the company has commenced drilling at its Arau Project in Papua New Guinea (PNG).

Since acquiring Arau, the GPAC team has completed the rehabilitation of road access to the project and constructed nine drill pads. With access to exploration target areas complete, a reverse circulation (RC) drill rig was mobilized to site last week and, after a welcoming ceremony in the community to mark the start of exploration, drilling has commenced.

This is the first drilling by the Company on its PNG projects. While the drill is turning at the Arau Project, the Company is concurrently readying the Kesar Creek Project (contiguous with and northwest of the highly prolific K92 Mining Inc. tenements) for a drilling program. An ongoing phase 2 soil program at the Kesar Creek Project is slated to complete this week and will further define targets for the upcoming drill program. Additional to the drilling now underway at the Arau Project and the Phase 2 soil program at the Kesar Creek Project, the Company has started road rehabilitation work at the formerly producing Wild Dog Project, located in East New Britain Province, in preparation for exploration activity there.

Arau Project

The Arau Project consists of two exploration licenses, located in the Kainantu region, and includes the Mt. Victor Prospect, where previous drilling found a multiple phase intrusion complex hosting copper and gold mineralization.

Drilling will seek to confirm copper-gold porphyry mineralization underneath the skarn mineralization at the project. Previous drilling at Mt. Victor was aimed at establishing the gold resource associated with the outcropping skarn mineralization. A program of around 2000 meters of drilling is expected.

As part of the Arau project, in the southern exploration licence, EL2715, an initial extensive soil sampling program of 377 samples has recently been completed, which followed up on previously generated copper-gold geochemical data of stream sediment anomalous drainages and ridge and spur soil sampling programs. The area is underlain by the highly prospective Elandora porphyry unit, which is known to host copper porphyry and epithermal gold mineralization. Assays for this program will be received in the coming weeks.

In addition to the two exploration licenses that currently make up the Arau Project, the Company has also recently applied for further prospective ground contiguous with the existing land package and to the north, via Exploration License Application 2834.

Figure 1. Map of Arau Project

About GPAC

Great Pacific Gold has a portfolio of high-grade gold projects in Papua New Guinea (“PNG”) and Australia.

In PNG, Great Pacific Gold recently assembled a 2500 sq. km mineral exploration land package in PNG. The land package comprises of exploration licenses (EL). It includes both early-stage and advanced-stage exploration targets with high-grade epithermal vein and porphyry-style mineralization present.

The Arau Project consists of two exploration licenses, located in the Kainantu region, and includes the Mt. Victor Prospect, where previous drilling found a multiple phase intrusion complex hosting copper and gold mineralization.

The Wild Dog Project consists of two granted exploration licenses, EL 2761 and 2516, located on the island of New Britain and about 50 km southwest of Rabaul and Kokopo, PNG.

The Kesar Creek Project consists of one exploration license, EL 2711, and is contiguous with the K92 Mining Inc. tenements. Initial work by Great Pacific Gold at Kesar has returned multiple high-grade samples from outcrop and underground workings coincident with high grade soils and aeromagnetic geophysical highs.

The Tinga Valley Project consists of one exploration license, EL 2720. The OK Tedi Copper Gold Mine is 140km to the northwest along the same belt is a superb geological comparison to the Tinga Valley Property.

In Australia, Great Pacific Gold began with two, 100% owned, high-grade gold projects called the Lauriston and Golden Mountain Projects, and has since acquired a large area of granted and application tenements containing further epizonal (low-temperature) high-grade gold mineralization and associated intrusion-related gold mineralization all in the state of Victoria, Australia. The Great Pacific Gold land package, assembled over a multi-year period, notably includes the Lauriston Project which is a 535 sq. km property immediately to the south of and within the same geological framework that hosts Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd’s Fosterville Gold Mine and associated exploration tenements. The Golden Mountain Project is an intrusion-related gold project on the edge of the Strathbogie granite and occurs at the northern end of the Walhalla Gold Belt. The acquired projects include the epizonal gold Providence Project containing the Reedy Creek goldfield which adjoins the Southern Cross Gold’s Sunday Creek exploration project and a large group of recently consolidated granted tenements called the Walhalla Gold Belt Project, which contain a variety of epizonal and intrusion related style gold mineralization. Additionally, Great Pacific Gold has another gold-focused project called the Moormbool Project which has epizonal style gold mineralization and associated potential intrusion-related gold mineralization, as well as the Beechworth Project occurs in the northeast of the state and contains intrusion related and mesozonal gold mineralization.

All GPAC’s properties in Australia are 100% owned and have had historical gold production from hard rock sources despite limited modern exploration and drilling.

Qualified Person

The technical content of this news release has been reviewed, verified and approved by Rex Motton, AusIMM (CP), COO of GPAC, a Qualified Person under the meaning of National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Mr. Motton is responsible for the technical content of this news release.

On behalf of GPACRex MottonChief Operating Officer and Director

ReferenceSibson and Scott, 1998, Stress/fault controls on the containment and release of over-pressured fluids: Examples from gold-quartz vein systems in Juneau, Alaska; Victoria, Australia and Otago, New Zealand. Ore Geology reviews, Vol13, pp 293-306.

Forward-Looking Statements

Information set forth in this news release contains forward-looking statements that are based on assumptions as of the date of this news release. These statements reflect management's current estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations. They are not guarantees of future performance. Great Pacific Gold cautions that all forward looking statements are inherently uncertain and that actual performance may be affected by many material factors, many of which are beyond their respective control. Such factors include, among other things: risks and uncertainties relating to Great Pacific Gold's limited operating history, its exploration and development activities on its mineral properties and the need to comply with environmental and governmental regulations. Accordingly, actual and future events, conditions and results may differ materially from the estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations expressed or implied in the forward looking information. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, Great Pacific Gold does not undertake to publicly update or revise forward-looking information.

Neither 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.

For further information: Adam Ross, Investor Relations, Direct: [phone], Toll Free: 1(833) 923-3334, Email: [e-mail]

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/4e69c508-84df-48b8-bbb7-86eb3fc49813