The Santa Cruz Copper Project is Located on 100%-owned Private Land in the Heart of America’s Copper State

The Santa Cruz Copper Project is located in Casa Grande, approximately 40 miles southeast of Phoenix, Arizona, within a rapidly growing industrial corridor between Phoenix and Tucson. The Project spans approximately 6,000 acres of wholly-owned private land, including surface, mineral and associated water rights. Its compact surface footprint of under 2,600 acres provides ample room for future expansion, and includes approximately 900 acres designated for a planned solar facility and battery storage.  The Project also benefits from access to established power and transportation infrastructure, as well as a skilled local workforce.

Santa Cruz Copper Project Location

Santa Cruz Copper Planned Site Layout

High-Grade Oxide and Chalcocite Mineral Reserves Amenable to Heap Leaching Support a 23-Year Mine Life

The Project includes Probable Mineral Reserves totaling 136 million tonnes of ore at 1.08% total copper, containing 1.5 million tonnes of copper in high-grade oxide and chalcocite domains of the Santa Cruz and East Ridge Deposits. These Reserves underpin a 23-year mine life. In addition, Indicated Resources, exclusive of Reserves, contain a further 1.5 million tonnes of copper, of which 1 million tonnes are amenable to the heap leaching flowsheet in the Preliminary Feasibility Study. Inferred Resources across the Santa Cruz, East Ridge and Texaco Deposits add a further 3.3 million tonnes of copper, providing significant future expansion potential.

Santa Cruz Copper Project Initial Mineral Reserve Estimate

Santa Cruz Copper Project Indicated Resources, Inclusive of Reserves

Santa Cruz Copper Project Indicated and Inferred Resources

Santa Cruz Copper Project Mineral Reserves Summary

Notes

1. The mineral reserves in this estimate are current to June 23, 2025 and were independently prepared,
   including estimation and classification, by BBA USA Inc. They are reported in accordance with the definitions for mineral reserves in S-K 1300.
2. The point of reference for the estimate is the point of delivery to the process facilities.
3. The mineral reserves for the Santa Cruz and East Ridge Deposits were completed using Deswik mining software. Mineral reserves are defined within stope designs that are prescribed by rock mechanics, considering the specific characteristics of deposits, mineral domains, mining methods, and the mining sequence. Transverse longhole stoping is the optimal mining method with uppers and cut & fill methods used where appropriate. Mining will occur in blocks, extracting ore from the bottom upwards, with paste backfill providing ground support to sustain a production rate of 20,000 tonnes per day for the first 15 years of operation.
4. Mineral reserves are estimated at an NSR cutoff value of $43.95/t for longhole stoping and $60/t for longitudinal retreat stopes and drift and fill. The NSR values reflect the discrete metallurgical responses for each mineral reserve block using metallurgical recoveries for heap leach of 96% for acid soluble copper, 83% for cyanide soluble copper, 22% for residual copper. Underground mineable
   shapes optimization parameters include a long-term copper price of US$4.00/lb.
5. Mineral reserves account for mining loss and dilution.
6. Mineral reserves are a subset of the indicated mineral resource and do not include the inferred mineral resource.
7. Rounding, as required by the guidelines, may result in apparent summation differences between tonnes, grade, and contained metal content.

Santa Cruz Copper Project Mineral Resource Estimate (Inclusive of Mineral Reserves)

Notes on Mineral Resources

1. The mineral resources in this estimate were independently prepared, including estimation and classification, by BBA USA Inc. and are reported in accordance with the definition for mineral resources in S-K 1300.
2. Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. 
3. Mineral resources are reported in situ, inclusive of mineral reserves. 
4. The mineral resources for Santa Cruz, East Ridge and Texaco deposit were completed using Datamine Studio RM software. 
5. The mineral resources are current at June 23, 2025. 
6. Mineral resources constrained assuming underground mining methods for the Santa Cruz deposit are reported at an NSR cutoff of US$32.00 for heap leach and US$34.00 for concentrator; Texaco deposit is reported at a NSR cutoff of US$32.00 for heap leach and US$34.00 for concentrator; and East Ridge deposit is reported at a NSR cutoff of US$40.00 for longhole stoping and US$50.00 for drift and fill. The cutoff reflects the total operating costs to define reasonable prospects for economic extraction by conventional underground mining methods. Material from within mineable shape-optimized wireframes has been included in the mineral resource. Underground mineable shapes optimization parameters include a long-term copper price of US$4.00/lb, gold price of US$1,900/oz and silver price of US$24.00/oz. Process costs of US$7.00 to US$9.00 per processed tonne; direct mining costs between US$22.00 to US$40.00 per processed tonne reflecting various mining method costs (leach, long hole or drift and fill), mining general and administration costs of US$2.63 per processed tonne, onsite processing costs between US$31.63 to US$49.63 per processed tonne, along with variable royalties between 5.01% to 6.96% NSR and a mining recovery of 100%.
7. Mineral resources are estimated using metallurgical recoveries for heap leach of 96% for acid soluble copper, 83% for cyanide soluble copper, 22% for residual copper, 0% for gold and 0% for silver. Recoveries for concentrator are 0% for acid soluble copper, 90% for cyanide soluble copper, 90% for residual copper, 59% for gold and 69% for silver.
8. Density was applied using weighted averages by deposit subdomain.
9. Rounding as required by reporting guidelines may result in apparent summation differences between tonnes, grade and contained metal content.

Santa Cruz Copper Project Mineral Resource Estimate (Exclusive of Mineral Reserves)

Notes on Mineral Resources

1. The mineral resources in this estimate were independently prepared, including estimation and classification, by BBA USA Inc., and are reported in accordance with the definition for mineral resources in S-K 1300.
2. Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability.
3. Mineral resources are reported in situ, exclusive of mineral reserves.
4. The mineral resources for Santa Cruz, East Ridge, and Texaco Deposit were completed using Datamine Studio RM software.
5. The mineral resources are current at June 23, 2025.
6. Mineral resources constrained assuming underground mining methods for the Santa Cruz deposit are reported at an NSR cutoff of US$32.00 for heap leach and US$34.00 for concentrator; Texaco Deposit is reported at an NSR cutoff of US$32.00 for heap leach and US$34.00 for concentrator; and East Ridge Deposit is reported at an NSR cutoff of US$40.00 for longhole stoping and US$50.00 for drift and fill. The cutoff reflects the total operating costs to define reasonable prospects for economic extraction by conventional underground mining methods. Material from within mineable shape-optimized wireframes has been included in the mineral resource. Underground mineable shapes optimization parameters include a long-term copper price of US$4.00/lb, gold price of US$1,900/oz and silver price of US$24.00/oz. Process costs of US$7.00 to US$9.00 per processed tonne; direct mining costs between US$22.00 to US$40.00 per processed tonne reflecting various mining method costs (leach, long hole or drift and fill), mining general and administration costs of US$2.63 per processed tonne, onsite processing costs between US$31.63 to US$49.63 per processed tonne, along with variable royalties between 5.01% to 6.96% NSR and a mining recovery of 100%.
7. Mineral resources are estimated using metallurgical recoveries for heap leach of 96% for acid soluble copper, 83% for cyanide soluble copper, 22% for residual copper, 0% for gold and 0% for silver. Recoveries for concentrator are 0% for acid soluble copper, 90% for cyanide soluble copper, 90% for residual copper, 59% for gold and 69% for silver.
8. Density was applied using weighted averages by deposit subdomain.
9. Rounding as required by reporting guidelines may result in apparent summation differences between tonnes, grade and contained metal content.

Bulk-Tonnage Underground Copper Mine Leveraging Modern Technologies for Efficient Mining Operations

The Santa Cruz Copper Project is designed as a bulk-tonnage, longhole stoping operation accessed via twin declines. The underground mine will utilize the latest mining equipment, including a teleremote-operated electric fleet, mine telemetry and grade control technologies.

Mineral Reserves will be accessed by conventional twin decline ramps measuring approximately 8 kilometers in combined length and advanced using roadheaders. Underground mining will primarily use longhole stoping and local drift-and-fill, totaling approximately 201 kilometers of stope cuts completed across 16 main levels

Hydrogeological mitigation strategies during decline development and mining include grouting, hydrostatic lining and silica gel injection. Groundwater modelling and mitigation result in residual passive inflow rates ranging from approximately 6,000 to 8,000 gallons per minute during peak mining periods.

Throughput will steadily increase from the start of production onward to achieve an average of 20,000 tonnes per day and an annual average of 72,000 tonnes of copper cathode over the first 15 years of the mine life.

Santa Cruz Copper Project Underground Mine Design (orthogonal view)

Santa Cruz Copper Project Mine Sequence

Santa Cruz Copper Project Production Profile

Simple Heap Leaching Flowsheet Efficiently Extracts Copper with High Recoveries and Produces Pure Copper Cathode

Mined ore will be brought to the surface and processed through a conventional chloride-assisted on/off-heap leach process to produce copper cathode through solvent extraction and electrowinning. The high-grade nature of the Santa Cruz and East Ridge orebodies enables high copper recoveries averaging 92.2% over the life of mine, with low net sulfuric acid consumption of 6 kilograms per tonne of treated ore. Up to 50% of the spent ore will be converted into paste and used as backfill underground.

Other benefits include:

• Reduces processing ramp-up complexities
• Simple processing flowsheet and operations
• Enhances ability to balance mine feed
• Lowers initial and sustaining capital costs
• Lowers operating costs and enhances mineral reserves
• Eliminates tailings and necessity for tailings storage facilities
• Produces 100% copper cathode

Santa Cruz Copper Project Processing Flowsheet

Location on 100% Private Land Simplifies Permitting Process

To date, numerous permits and rights have been completed to support exploration activities, land use conversion and land reclamation.  The Santa Cruz Copper Project requires permits primarily from the City of Casa Grande, Pinal County and the State of Arizona, with only one Federal permit required. Land use authorizations from the City of Casa Grande, including a General Plan Amendment and Major Amendment to a Planned Area Development Zone, have already been obtained and allow mining activities and infrastructure within the project site.