Clean Air Metals PEA Delivers C$219.4 M pre-tax NPV, 39% IRR for the Thunder Bay North Project

THUNDER BAY, ON / ACCESS Newswire / October 9, 2025 / Clean Air Metals Inc. ("Clean Air Metals" or the "Company") (TSXV:AIR)(FRA:CKU)(OTCQB:CLRMF) is pleased to announce results from an independent Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) and updated resource that was completed for its Thunder Bay PGE-Cu-Ni Project near Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. The PEA outlines an 11-year mine life (+ 2 years of pre-production activities) producing 2,500 tonnes per day from a near-surface, ramp-access underground operation.

All figures are in Canadian Dollars, unless specified otherwise.

Highlights

• The project has a $219.4M¹ pre-tax NPV₈ against a project capital cost of $89.5M. After-tax NPV of $157.5M

• The pre-tax internal rate of return (IRR) is 39%, and the after-tax IRR is 32%

• At spot pricing¹, pre-tax NPV₈ totals $316M with pre-tax IRR of 52%

• The asset is designed from the ground up as a low-cost, high-margin producer with access to the first seven months from collaring the ramp portal. The project maximizes the use of temporary infrastructure and utilizes toll milling at a nearby facility

• The capital payback is 2.5 years from the start of production through healthy operating margins of 45%

• Baseline environmental studies are primarily completed to support future permitting of the project

• The Project is near the City of Thunder Bay, Canada, where key highway and electrical infrastructure and support are located

• The Company has positive relationships and is working closely with nearby Indigenous communities to allow full and meaningful participation in the project

• The resource has been updated with additional drilling and new pricing, highlighting a 14.9M tonne indicated resource grading 2.66 g/t 2PGE², 0.40% Cu and 0.24% Ni

• Additionally, there are 2.49M tonnes of inferred resource grading 1.62 g/t 2PGE^2, 0.31% Cu and 0.19% Ni. There are no reserves

Notes:

1. Study pricing and Spot pricing are outlined in Table 7

2. 2 PGE = Platinum + Palladium

3. Resource table which shows indicated and inferred material is outlined in Table 9

CEO Mike Garbutt P.Eng, MBA stated that "The PEA is a critical step in advancing the Thunder Bay North Project and more importantly, it adds to the list of significant critical mineral opportunities in this province and has the potential to provide long-term economic opportunities for Northwestern Ontario. We intend to move this project forward and continue exploration efforts on the Escape down-plunge through a follow-up to the successful resource expansion hole recently drilled within this area."

The PEA was independently prepared by Mr. Denis Decharte, P. Eng of SLR, Mr. Michael Selby, P. Eng of Technica Mining, Mr. Charlie Buck, P. Eng of XPS and Mrs. Maria Story of Story Environmental, who are considered independent "Qualified Persons" under National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. The technical disclosure in this news release is based upon the information in the PEA prepared by or under the supervision of Mr. Decharte, Mr. Selby, Mr. Buck, and Mrs. Story. The Company will file the complete PEA report on Sedar+ at www.sedarplus.ca within 45 days of this press release.

Table 1. PEA Summary of Key Project Metrics

Note: Values have been rounded

1. Pt..eq Platinum equivalent are calculated as follows: Pt.eq = (Pt grade/31.1035 x $1425 + Pd grade x 31.1035 x 86.0% x $1,225 + Cu grade x 2204 x 94% x $4.80 + Ni grade x 2204 x 57% x $6.60 + Au grade/31.1035 x 85% x $2,800 + Ag grade/31.1035 x 65% x $30) / $1225

The project cash flows were modelled using a simple discounted cash flow model, with an 8% discount rate. The project cash flow is scheduled annually and uses an exchange rate of 1.37 CAD to USD. Taxes were evaluated for federal and provincial corporate tax rates, as well as the Ontario Mining tax rates, subject to appropriate deductions for CEE, CDE, and depreciation allowances.

Strategic Intent
The Thunder Bay North project contains several critical minerals and therefore is ideally positioned to meet the priority goals of both the Federal and Provincial governments including advancing meaningful economic reconciliation with several Indigenous communities.

The toll milling scenario contemplated in the Thunder Bay North PEA looks to take advantage of the significant processing capability in the region, specifically the Lac-des-Iles (LDI) Mine and Mill situated 65 km north of the Thunder Bay North project. The recent announcement from Impala Canada about the pending closure of the LDI mine presents a potential new opportunity. Clean Air Metals has a significant interest in working through unexplored options to utilize infrastructure at LDI, up to and including the possible acquisition of the assets and continued operation LDI with supplementary higher-grade feed from Thunder Bay North. There can be no certainty that any business arrangement with Impala Canada can be reached for the processing of ores from the Thunder Bay North Project.

Path Forward for the Project
Based on the strong initial economics and the current dynamic metals market, the Board of Clean Air Metals has given management approval to fast-track the project towards a final production decision. The key steps to reaching this milestone are as follows:

• Advancing appropriate NI 43-101 studies, engineering, environmental and permitting activities

• Continued consultation with local Indigenous communities

• Exploring all available processing opportunities

• Raising capital to fund the above work

• Begin assembling the construction financing plan, including support from the federal and provincial governments as well as the private sector

Clean Air Metals Chair Jim Gallagher, P.Eng. stated: "The Board is quite pleased with the results of the study. The project features high-grade material very close to the surface with minimal infrastructure requirements, given its proximity to Thunder Bay. This results in a low-risk, quick-payback project. Recent drill results demonstrate the continuation of the mineral zones at depth, suggesting the potential for a significantly longer mine life. Given the very strong government support for critical mineral projects and the recent improvement in metal prices, there has never been a better time to move this project forward."

Capital and Operating Costs Summary
The initial project capital cost is estimated at $89.5M, including a 25% contingency allowance for all capital items. The duration of the construction phase of the project is estimated at 24 months. The capital cost estimates are detailed in Table 2. Operating costs average $100.40 per tonne, driven by maximizing stope size and efficient operating development designs for near-surface, underground bulk mining. The operating cost summary is shown in Table 3.

Table 2: Project and Sustaining Capital Cost Estimates

Note: Values have been rounded

Table 3: Operating Cost Summary

Note: values have been rounded

Sensitivity
The sensitivity analysis identified that project economics are most sensitive to changes in operating costs and metal pricing. Results are shown in Tables 4 through 6.

Table 4: Cost Sensitivities for Post-Tax NPV₈

Note: Values have been rounded

Table 5: Metal Price Sensitivities for Pre-Tax NPV₈

Note: Values have been rounded

Table 6: Metal Payable Sensitivities for Pre-Tax NPV₈