Mr. Martin Kostuik reports

BATTERY MINERAL RESOURCES CORP. ANNOUNCES FINANCIAL ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE RESTART OF PRODUCTION AT PUNITAQUI

Battery Mineral Resources Corp.'s wholly owned subsidiary, ESI Energy Services Inc., has entered into an $8-million credit agreement with Fiera Enhanced Private Debt Fund. ESI has drawn a first advance of $5-million under the credit agreement and may, subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, draw a second advance of up to $3-million before May 15, 2024.

The net proceeds of the credit agreement will be primarily distributed by ESI to the company for use toward the restart of copper concentrate production at its Punitaqui project in Chile.

In this regard, personnel hiring for the resumption of full operations at Punitaqui remains on schedule. Mine maintenance at the San Andres mine is nearly complete with mine maintenance at the Cinabrio mine, the original mine which served to supply the Punitaqui plant with copper mineralized material for the 10-plus years of prior operations is well under way. All activities in the mines and the plant which are aimed at full operational commissioning of the plant in the near term and plant start-up in Q2 of 2024 are also progressing well.

Credit agreement terms

The loans advanced under the credit agreement bear interest at a floating prime rate plus an applicable margin and will mature on the third anniversary of the credit agreement. ESI is required to make monthly principal repayments based on a seven-year amortization schedule. ESI anticipates servicing its payment obligations under the credit agreement out of operating cash flows, including from operations of its wholly owned subsidiary, Ozzie's Inc.

The obligations of ESI under the credit agreement have been guaranteed by Ozzie's, and secured by all of the assets of ESI and Ozzie's. In addition, ESI's direct parent, BMR Holdings Ltd. has provided a pledge of its shares in ESI. ESI and Ozzie's hold nil per cent of the company's mineral assets, operations or real property in Canada, the United States, South Korea or Chile, meaning that the security granted by ESI and Ozzie's does not encumber the company's mineral assets and operations, including the Punitaqui project.

The credit agreement contains customary representations and warranties, covenants and events of default, including requirements that ESI maintain a minimum working capital ratio, a minimum fixed coverage charge ratio and a minimum quarterly revenue level. A copy of the credit agreement will be available on the company's SEDAR+ profile.

Fiera is an arm's-length party from the company and ESI, and does not currently hold any equity interest in the company or any of its subsidiaries. The loans advanced under the credit agreement are non-convertible into equity of the company and no bonus securities were issued in connection with the credit agreement.

Draw on Javelin facility

In addition, the company announces that it has drawn $5-million (U.S.) (approximately $6,764,000) under its copper concentrate prepay facility with Javelin Global Commodities. The facility was previously announced in the company's news release dated Feb. 12, 2024.

Debenture offering

The company is also pleased to announce a private placement offering of unsecured convertible debentures for total gross proceeds of up to $400,000 (U.S.) (approximately $541,120). The proceeds from the debentures will be applied toward the restart of production at the Punitaqui project and for working capital.

The terms of the debentures will be the same as the debentures which were issued pursuant to the private placement previously announced by the company in its news releases dated Oct. 17, 2023, Oct. 19, 2023, Nov. 3, 2023, Dec. 19, 2023, Feb. 2, 2024, and Feb. 16, 2024.

Specifically, the debentures will mature on Sept. 30, 2026, and will bear interest at 10 per cent per annum, compounding annually on Sept. 30 of each year, not in advance. Interest accrued from the date of issuance and up to and including March 30, 2025, will be paid by way of issuance of common shares of the company. Interest accrued following March 30, 2025, will be, at the option of the holder, paid either in cash or by way of issuance of common shares of the company. The issuance of common shares as payment of interest will be at the then-current market price of the company's common shares at the date the interest becomes payable, and will be subject to the prior acceptance of the TSX Venture Exchange and applicable securities laws.

The holder of a debenture may, at their option, at any time from the date that is four months and one day following the issuance of such debenture, and prior to the close of business on the business day immediately preceding the maturity date, convert all, but not less than all, of the principal amount of such debenture into common shares of the company at the conversion price of 22 U.S. cents per share.

Weston Energy LLC II, a fund operated by Yorktown Partners LLC, and an existing shareholder of the company, has subscribed for $300,000 (U.S.) (approximately $405,840) in principal amount of debentures in the private placement. The debenture financing is anticipated to close in two or more tranches.

Max Satel, chief financial officer, commented: "With the credit agreement, the draw on the Javelin facility and the private placement, we're pleased to have secured the balance of the financing required to bring the Punitaqui project back into production, which we anticipate will occur in Q2 of 2024. We wish to extend our gratitude to our stakeholders for their continued support of company."

Finder's fees pursuant to first offering

Pursuant to the first offering, the company paid finder's fees in the aggregate amount of $36,000 (U.S.) (approximately $48,701) to Odeon Capital Group LLC.

Resignation of Derek White

Mr. White has resigned as director of the company effective as of March 11, 2024. The company wishes to thank Mr. White for his guidance and support of the company during his tenure as a director.

Exchange rates

All United States dollar amounts for which Canadian-equivalent amounts are given in this news release were calculated at a Canadian/U.S. exchange rate of 1.3528, the exchange rate published by the Bank of Canada on March 6, 2024.

About Battery Mineral Resources Corp.

Battery Mineral Resources is a battery minerals company providing shareholders exposure to the global megatrend of electrification while being focused on growth through cash flow, exploration and acquisitions in favourable mining jurisdictions. Battery Mineral Resources' mission is the discovery, acquisition and development of battery metals (namely cobalt, lithium, graphite and copper) in North America, South America and South Korea and to become a premier and responsible supplier of battery minerals to the electrification marketplace. Battery Mineral Resources is currently pursuing a near-term resumption of operations of the Punitaqui mining complex, a past copper-gold-silver producer in the Coquimbo region of Chile. Battery Mineral Resources is the largest mineral claimholder in the historic Gowganda cobalt-silver camp in Ontario, Canada, and continues to pursue a focused program to build on the recently announced, more-than-one-million-pound high-grade cobalt resource at McAra. In addition, Battery Mineral owns 100 per cent of ESI Energy Services Inc. (including ESI's wholly owned U.S. operating subsidiary, Ozzie's Inc.), a profitable mainline pipeline and renewable energy equipment rental and sales company with operations in Alberta, Canada, and Arizona, United States. Battery Mineral Resources is based in Canada and its shares are listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol BMR and on the OTCQB under the symbol BTRMF.

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