The Albany Gazette - American Critical Minerals Provides Update on Process and Timelines to Launch Confirmation Drill Program Planned for its Green River Potash & Lithium Project

Highlights:

• After recently closing a Bought Deal Offering (including Full Exercise of the Underwriter's Option) and Concurrent Non-Brokered Offering for aggregate gross proceeds of approximately $7,451,000, the Company is capitalized to pay final bonding and launch drilling;

• With the appointment of Dean Pekeski and with the existing Technical and Advisory Team, the Company now has the inhouse expertise and technical capability to drill and develop this Project;

• TheCompany has 3 Drill Holes within its State of Utah Potash Mineral Leases ("SITLA Leases") which are fully permitted and bonded for drilling.

• The Company has 4 drill holes, within its recently granted BLM Potash Exploration Licenses, which are authorized, subject to Bonding, under its approved Plan of Operations (With the US Government Shut Down now concluded, the final bonding process is underway and should be completed shortly);

• Drill Target selection is complete based on recommendations from the Company's Technical Team and the Company's recently filed NI 43-101 Technical Report prepared by Agapito Associates;

• Initial Drill Program (2-3 holes targeted) is designed to validate historic drill data and test, through coring and brine sampling, key Potash Horizons as well as Clastic Zones for Lithium and Bromine in the Paradox & Leadville Formations;

• Initial Drill Program is also designed to position the Company to complete Maiden Resource Estimates ("MREs") and Pre-Feasibility Studies ("PFS") or Preliminary Economic Assessments ("PEA") for Potash, Lithium and Bromine;

• Drill Contractor evaluation and selection process is advancing to ensure execution of the appropriate and optimal drill program for validating historic oil and gas well data across the Project's 32,530 acre land package; and

• The Company is targeting Q1, 2026 for mobilization of site preparation and drilling.

Simon Clarke, President and CEO, stated: "With our recent financing closed and Dean Pekeski now on board as Senior Advisor, we are driving forward with our Phase 1 Drill Program. The detailed approach outlined in our recently filed 43-101 Technical Report provides a clear roadmap for confirming the historic data from 22 oil and gas wells within and adjacent to our Project. This will enable Maiden Resource Estimates and Pre-Feasibility Studies / Preliminary Economic Assessments for Potash, Lithium and Bromine, thereby confirming that nearby potash production and lithium pilot operations are indeed evidence of the potential of our Project.

We are taking the time to ensure that we have the right contractors, equipment specifications, and operational plans in place to execute this key program as efficiently and safely as possible while optimizing results. Our focus is on delivering high-quality confirmation drilling that will validate historic data and enable us to drive the Project through development and beyond."

Market Awareness Program

The Company also announces that it has amended its existing engagement with Machai Capital Inc. ("Machai"), to further expand its digital marketing and market awareness initiatives as the Company moves to launch its Phase 1 Drill Program. Under the amended terms, the budget allocated to Machai has been increased by an additional $500,000. Machai will continue to provide comprehensive digital marketing services, including the development and execution of in-depth campaigns focused on corporate branding, investor education, market awareness, and social media and e-mail outreach, all as agreed by the Company.

Machai remains an arm's-length marketing, advertising, and public awareness firm based in Vancouver, B.C. The engagement is for a term of up to 12 months, ending September 18, 2026, and the Company does not intend to issue any securities to Machai as consideration for their services. For further information regarding the engagement of Machai, readers are encouraged to review the news release issued by the Company on September 23, 2025.

About American Critical Minerals' Green River Potash and Lithium Project

The Green River Potash and Lithium Project is situated within Utah's highly productive Paradox Basin, located 20 miles northwest of Moab, Utah. It has significant logistical advantages including close proximity to major rail hubs, airport, roads, water, towns and labour markets. It also benefits from close proximity to the agricultural and industrial heartland of America and numerous potential end-users for its products.

The history of oil and gas production across the Paradox Basin provides geologic data from historic wells across the Project, and the wider Basin, validating and de-risking the potential for high grade potash and large amounts of contained lithium. Wells in and around the project reported lithium up to 500 ppm, bromine up to 6,100 ppm and boron up to 1,260 ppm (Gilbride & Santos, 2012). This data is reinforced by nearby potash production and the advanced stage of neighbouring lithium projects. The Paradox Basin is believed to contain up to 56 billion tonnes of lithium brines, potentially the largest such resource in US (Source:AnsonFastmarketsPresentation- https://wcsecure.weblink.com.au/pdf/ASN/02823465.pdf ).

The Company's National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") Potash Exploration Target consists of 500 million to 950 million tonnes of sylvinite (the most important source for the production of potash in North America) grading from 12% to 18% potassium oxide based on elog (eK2O=19% to 29% potassium chloride based on elog (eKCl)). Its Exploration Targets for Lithium and Bromine are 2.1 billion cubic meters (brine volume) grading from 71.6 to 216.3 parts per million lithium; and 2.1 billion cubic meters (brine volume) grading from 3,656 to 4,741 parts per million bromine.**

The Company holds a 100% interest in eleven State of Utah ("SITLA") mineral and minerals salt leases covering approximately 7,050 acres, 1,094 federal lithium brine claims (BLM Placer Claims) covering 21,150 acres, and 11 federal (BLM) potash prospecting permits covering approximately 25,480 acres. Through these leases, permits and claims the Company has the ability to explore for potash, lithium and potential by-products across the entire Green River Project (approx. 32,530 acres). The Company is authorized to drill a total of 7 drill holes across the Project (pending bonding the recently approved 4 drill holes).

Intrepid Potash, Inc. is America's largest potash company and only U.S. domestic potash producer and currently produces potash from its nearby Moab Solution Mine, which the Company believes provides strong evidence of stratigraphic continuity within this part of the Paradox Basin (www.intrepidpotash.com). Anson Resources Ltd. has advanced lithium development projects contiguous to the northern boundary of our Green River Project and neighbouring to the south. Anson has a large initial resource, robust definitive feasibility study and has recently completed successful piloting operations through its partnership with Koch Technology Solutions, as well as an offtake agreement with LG Energy Solution. The Anson exploration targets encompass the combined Mississippian Leadville Formation and the Pennsylvanian Paradox Formation brine-bearing clastic layers, which also underlie American Critical Minerals' entire project area (www.ansonresources.com)*.

In 2022, the U.S. imported approx. 96.5% of its annual potash requirements with domestic producers receiving a higher sales price due to proximity to market (intrepidpotash.com/ August 15, 2024, Investor Presentation). In March 2024, the US Senate introduced a bill to include key fertilizers and potash on the US Department of Interior list of Critical Minerals which already includes lithium, and this process is well advanced with potash being added to the USGS Draft Critical Minerals List. In August 2025. Recent market estimates suggest that the global potash market is over US$50 billion annually and growing at a compound annual growth rate ("CAGR") of close to 5%. Annual lithium demand is now estimated to be over 1 million tonnes globally and continuing to grow rapidly***.

****Exploration Targets are conceptual in nature and there has been insufficient exploration to define them as Mineral Resources, and, while reasonable potential may exist, it is uncertain whether further exploration will result in the determination of a Mineral Resource under NI 43-101.

Qualified Person

The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Dean Besserer, P.Geo., the Chief Operations Officer of the Company and a qualified person for the purposes of NI 43-101.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

Simon Clarke, President & CEO
Contact: (604)-551-9665

*American Critical Minerals' management cautions that results or discoveries on properties in proximity to the American Critical Minerals' properties may not necessarily be indicative of the presence of mineralization on the Company's properties.

**A report titled "NI 43-101 Technical Report - Green River Potash and Lithium Project, Grand County, Utah, USA", prepared by Agapito Associates Inc., and dated October 27, 2025, quantifies the Green River Potash Project's potash, lithium and bromine exploration potential in the form of NI 43-101 Exploration Targets. The Exploration Target estimate was prepared in accordance with NI 43-101. It should be noted that Exploration Targets are conceptual in nature and there has been insufficient exploration to define them as Mineral Resources, and, while reasonable potential may exist, it is uncertain whether further exploration will result in the determination of a Mineral Resource under NI 43-101. Details of the basis on which the Exploration Targets have been determined is included in the Report. The Exploration Target stated in the Report is not being reported as part of any Mineral Resource or Mineral Reserve. A copy of the report can be accessed on both SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca) and the corporate website for the Company: www.acmineralscorp.com

***United States Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries, January 2024 (https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2024/mcs2024-potash.pdf).

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION

This news release contains forward-looking information or forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements and are based on expectations, estimates and projections as at the date of this news release. Any statement that involves discussion with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, future events or performance (often, but not always using phrases such as "plans", "expects", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", or "believes" or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases, or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking statements. In this news release, forward-looking statements relate, among other things, to: use of proceeds; statements about exploration targets; goals of the Company; magnitude or quality of mineral deposits; anticipated advancement of mineral properties or programs; and future exploration prospects.

Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurances that such expectations will prove to be correct. All such forward-looking statements are based on certain assumptions and analyses made by the Company in light of their experience and perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future developments, as well as other factors management believes are appropriate in the circumstances. Forward-looking statements also involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ from this forward-looking information include those described under the heading "Risks and Uncertainties" in the Company's most recently filed MD&A.

Forward-looking information contained herein are made as of the date of this news release and the Company does not intend, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or revise the forward-looking information contained in this news release, except as required by law. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: American Critical Minerals Corp.

View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire

(B.Smith--TAG)