Mr. David Watkinson reports

AMERIWEST COMPLETES 3D GEOLOGICAL MODEL DEFINING HIGH-GRADE COPPER SHELL ALONG WITH TWO ADDITIONAL ZONES AT THE BORNITE PROJECT

APEX Geoscience Ltd. has completed a preliminary 3-D geological model for Ameriwest Critical Metals Inc.'s 100-per-cent-owned Bornite copper-gold-silver project in Oregon. The project hosts a copper, gold and silver deposit located about 50 miles east of Salem, Ore. The deposit is contained within a roughly cylindrical, vertically standing, cigar-shaped breccia pipe. Copper minerals, principally bornite and chalcopyrite, were deposited as part of the breccia matrix, mainly along the pipe's margins. Higher-grade mineralization is found on the pipe's outer shell, with lower-grade mineralization within the pipe's interior.

Key highlights:

• APEX has completed a preliminary 3-D geological model for Ameriwest's 100-per-cent-owned Bornite copper-gold-silver project in Oregon, providing a modern framework for advancing the deposit using historical drilling and surface data.
• The model will be used to guide 2026 technical work, including historical core relogging, drilling, expansion targeting and future resource evaluation.
• Several mineralization domains identified: Modelling indicates that the Bornite system includes a higher-grade copper shell averaging approximately 2.4 per cent Cu, surrounding an interior pipe averaging approximately 0.60 per cent Cu, with an additional sheeted vein zone averaging approximately 0.9 per cent Cu.
• Ameriwest also plans to incorporate broader multielement geochemical analysis in future relogging, resampling and drilling to evaluate potential additional metals that may not have been systematically assessed in historical work.
• APEX has identified priority historical drill holes for relogging to strengthen the geological interpretation and support future resource work, including holes CC15, CC17, CC26, CC29, CC03, CC09 and CC16.
• Following validation of historical data through a limited confirmatory program, the company expects to prioritize expansion drilling over infill drilling, with target areas identified on the southeast and northwest portions of the modelled system.

The model integrates historical drill data and surface geological mapping along with cross-sectional interpretation. It will be combined with data from relogging of historical core to plan for future drilling, target resource generation and expansion, and other 2026 technical work at Bornite. "Completing this model is an important step in turning Bornite's historical data, based on drilling and mapping from the 1970s to the 1990s, into a modern exploration framework," stated David Watkinson, chief executive officer of Ameriwest. "The work completed by APEX helps us better understand the geometry of mineralization of the deposit, prioritize the historical drill holes that should be relogged first and focus future drilling on the areas most likely to generate resources and expand the mineralized footprint of the deposit. In our view, this is exactly the type of disciplined technical work required to systematically advance the project toward resource-stage evaluation."

In addition, because historical work at Bornite was focused primarily on copper, gold and silver, the company intends to incorporate broader multielement geochemical analysis as part of any relogging, resampling and future drilling programs. This is important because comparable breccia pipe and tourmaline-breccia copper systems have also yielded other metals, including molybdenum, tungsten and other trace elements, that may not have been systematically evaluated in the historical database. By testing for a wider suite of elements, Ameriwest aims to build a more complete understanding of the Bornite mineralization system, which could help identify additional byproduct or co-product opportunities and, if present, potentially enhance the overall economics of the project. There can be no assurance that any additional metals of economic significance will be identified.

APEX personnel modelled all lithological units identified in the historical plan maps and sections and interpreted several mineralization domains. Based on the historical data reviewed, the highest-grade copper (Cu) domain is interpreted as a high-grade shell located outside the interior pipe, with an average grade of approximately 2.4 per cent Cu. Surrounding that shell, APEX interpreted and modeled a sheeted vein domain with average grades of approximately 0.9 per cent Cu. The interior pipe domain averages 0.60 per cent Cu. APEX personnel also modeled two breccia types -- intrusive breccia and sericite-tourmaline breccia -- which returned similar average copper grades of approximately 0.3 per cent Cu and may be grouped as a single breccia-style domain for future work. At a broader scale, andesite and quartz biotite form a lower-grade mineralized envelope averaging approximately 0.15 per cent Cu and may likewise be grouped as a single low-grade domain. Additional low-grade mineralized shells were interpreted on the north side of the deposit, but APEX noted that these areas will require additional logging data, including relogging of historical core and additional drilling to confirm continuity. The grades of these domains are based on length-weighted average per cent Cu and do not take into account gold or silver byproducts at this stage of analysis.

APEX has also recommended a focused relogging program to strengthen the geological model and support future resource work. Priority holes -- CC03, CC09, CC15, CC16, CC17, CC26 and CC29 -- are considered critical for confirming and testing the high-grade shell, improving definition of the northern low-grade quartz diorite domain, enhancing the understanding of the deeper breccia continuity and alteration.

APEX has recommended that, once historical data are validated through a small number of confirmatory infill or twin holes, Ameriwest should prioritize expansion drilling over infill drilling. In particular, the company intends to evaluate targets on the southeast and northwest portions of the model where the contacts between andesite and quartz diorite remain uncertain. APEX noted that expanding the volume of lower-grade, higher-tonnage material could be important in supporting a deeper future pit shell and in capturing additional mineralization associated with the pipe-style system.

The model provides the foundation for a structured 2026 work program. Priority activities include:

• Relogging of priority historical drill holes CC03, CC09, CC15, CC16, CC17, CC26 and CC29;
• Confirmatory infill or twin drilling to validate historical data;
• Expansion drilling targeting the southeast and northwest flanks;
• Broad multielement geochemical sampling in all new programs;
• Future resource-stage evaluation, incorporating updated model data.

The company notes that the preliminary geological model is based on compilation and interpretation of historical data, and is intended to guide exploration planning. It does not constitute a current mineral resource estimate, mineral reserve estimate or economic study, and the interpreted domain grades described above should not be relied upon as such. Ameriwest intends to use the model to guide core retrieval, relogging, possible selective resampling of available historical material, and the design of confirmatory and expansion drilling programs at Bornite.

Qualified person statement

David Watkinson, PEng, a non-independent qualified person under National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information contained in this news release. Mr. Watkinson is the CEO and a director of Ameriwest.

About Ameriwest Critical Metals Inc.

Ameriwest is an exploration company focused on identifying and acquiring strategic critical mineral projects for exploration and resource development. The company is currently advancing its Bornite copper-gold-silver property in Oregon, its Xeno rare-earth property in British Columbia and its Thompson Valley lithium clay property in Arizona. Ameriwest also owns a lithium clay property in Clayton Valley, Nev., and is in the process of optioning its Railroad Valley lithium brine property in Nevada to Pure Energy Minerals Ltd.

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