Recent financing and federal funding advance Phase 3 of the Demonstration Facility as FEED, Feasibility Study, and offtake discussions progress in parallel

Company Website: https://www.e3lithium.ca/
CALGARY, Alberta -- (Business Wire)

E3 LITHIUM LTD. (TSXV: ETL) (FSE: OW3) (OTCQX: EEMMF), “E3”, “E3 Lithium” or the “Company”, a leader in Canadian lithium development, provides a status update on its Clearwater Project. The Company is also hosting an investor webinar today, September 29, 2026.

Investor Webinar

E3 will host a live investor webinar today, September 29, 2026, at 12:00 PM MT (2:00 PM ET). Participants can join the webinar here at the time of the event; no pre-registration is required. A recording will be available on the Company’s website following the event.

Chris Doornbos (CEO & Chair), Brian Newmarch (CFO), and Tom Gear (COO) will review recent progress across the Company’s technical, commercial, and financial workstreams, followed by a question-and-answer session.

Clearwater Project Status Update

Demonstration Facility
Phase 2 of the Company’s Demonstration Facility operations is nearing completion. With significant data collected through this process, E3 is finalizing gas composition testing that supports commercial facility design. Following Phase 2 completion, operations will focus on lithium carbonate production as the Company ramps up Phase 3. The team is also working through an expansion of the Direct Lithium Extraction (“DLE”) system to deploy a commercial-scaled column, similar to those in use by industry peers. Commercial-scaled column operations will provide operating and technical data to support financing and strategic partner negotiations, with operations expected to run through 2027, and potentially beyond, providing training to commercial facility operators.

Front-End Engineering Design (“FEED”) & Feasibility Study
E3’s objective for the completion of FEED and its Feasibility Study is to provide a robust, data-backed design for the commercial facility. To support this work, E3 continues to build out its engineering and technical capacity with support from engineering, procurement, and construction (“EPC”) contractors to manage detailed engineering to support ongoing project development and subsequent expansion phases. FEED will continue as data collected from the Demonstration Facility this fall is compiled, and engineering work advances toward completion in 2027.

Permitting
E3 has submitted the licence application for the Clearwater Central Processing Facility (“CPF”) that, once granted, would enable E3 to produce up to ~30,000 tonnes per year of battery-grade lithium carbonate. The Company continues to engage with local stakeholders and the Alberta Energy Regulator to ensure full transparency on its plans and operations to facilitate ongoing and open dialogue. E3 is committed to ongoing local stakeholder engagement with project updates, which are available in the Company’s quarterly Community Connection Newsletter and its stakeholder-focused video series published on the E3 website.

Commercial Progress
E3 continues to build relationships with prospective offtake partners as product qualification work progresses. The Company recently signed a non-binding Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) with India-based Epsilon CAM (“Epsilon”) that outlines a framework for potential long-term supply of battery-grade lithium carbonate from the Clearwater Project. E3 is also increasing optionality for access to the European hydroxide market, with a non-binding MOU signed with UK-based Tees Valley Lithium (“TVL”). Discussions with industry partners have accelerated in 2026 as E3 expands its relationships with international partners supported by Natural Resources Canada’s Global Partnerships Initiative (“GPI”).

Government Support
E3’s development program benefits from strong collaboration with Natural Resources Canada, whose GPI is supporting Phase 3 of the Demonstration Facility and FEED, with up to $36.5 million in non-repayable funding. This partnership reflects the federal government’s continued commitment to Canadian critical minerals development and supports a capital-efficient path to advancing the Clearwater Project toward final investment decision and commercial operation.

“Each of Clearwater’s key workstreams is moving forward: the Demonstration Facility is entering its final phase, engineering and FEED is advancing on the strength of Phase 2 results, and our offtake discussions continue to broaden,” said Chris Doornbos, CEO & Chair of E3 Lithium. “With federal funding supporting Phase 3 of the Demonstration Facility and FEED, we are de-risking the Clearwater Project as we advance towards our goal of first production.”

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Chris Doornbos, CEO & Chair
E3 Lithium Ltd.

About E3 Lithium

E3 Lithium is a development company with a total of 21.2 million tonnes (Mt) of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) Measured and Indicated mineral resources as well as 0.3 Mt LCE Inferred mineral resources in Alberta, comprised of (a) Measured and Indicated mineral resources of 16.2 Mt LCE at a lithium grade of 75.5 mg/L within its Clearwater Project¹ and (b) Measured and Indicated mineral resources of 5.0 Mt LCE at a lithium grade of 54.0 mg/L and Inferred mineral resources of 0.3 Mt LCE at a lithium grade of 42 mg/L within its Garrington District². The Clearwater Pre-Feasibility Study outlined a 1.13 Mt LCE proven and probable mineral reserve at a lithium grade of 75.5 mg/L, with a pre-tax NPV(8%) of USD 5.2 Billion with a 29.2% IRR and an after-tax NPV(8%) of USD 3.7 Billion with a 24.6% IRR¹.

1: The technical report titled “Clearwater Project, NI 43-101 Technical Report on Pre-Feasibility Study, Bashaw District Mineral Property, Central Alberta, Canada”, with an effective date of June 20, 2024, is available on E3 Lithium’s website (www.e3lithium.ca/technical-reports/) and under E3 Lithium’s profile on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca).

2: The technical report titled “NI 43-101 Technical Report for the Garrington District Lithium Resource Estimate”, with an effective date of June 25, 2025, is available on E3 Lithium’s website (www.e3lithium.ca/technical-reports/) and under E3 Lithium’s profile on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca).

Unless otherwise indicated, Chris Doornbos, P. Geo., Chief Executive Officer and a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this news release.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking and Cautionary Statements

This news release includes certain forward-looking statements as well as management’s objectives, strategies, beliefs and intentions or forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements are frequently identified by such words as “believe”, “may”, “will”, “plan”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “estimate”, “intend”, “project”, “potential”, “possible” and similar words referring to future events and results. Forward-looking statements are based on the current opinions, expectations, estimates and assumptions of management in light of its experience, perception of historical trends, and results of the PFS, but such statements are not guarantees of future performance. In particular, this news release contains forward-looking information relating to: the amount of non-repayable funding available to the Company under Natural Resources Canada's Global Partnerships Initiative, the eligibility of program costs for reimbursement, the proportion of eligible costs expected to be reimbursed, the timing and amount of any claims and reimbursements, and the expectation that such funding supports a capital-efficient path to advancing the Clearwater Project; the negotiation and potential execution of definitive offtake agreements with Tees Valley Lithium and Epsilon CAM, the commercial terms contemplated by the respective Memoranda of Understanding, and the advancement of discussions with additional prospective offtake partners; the conclusion of Phase 2 of the Demonstration Facility program and the use of Phase 2 data in the design of the Clearwater Project commercial facility, including the front end of the facility; the commissioning of Phase 3 of the Demonstration Facility and the commencement of operations with the 30-column Direct Lithium Extraction array and integrated purification and carbonation equipment; the production of battery-grade lithium carbonate from brine gathered during Phase 2; the design, procurement, construction and operation of the commercial-scale DLE column and the expectation that operation at increased scale is a critical milestone for project financiers; the expected duration of Phase 3 operations and the determination of that duration by project finance requirements; the Company's continued engagement with project finance advisors, prospective strategic partners and its Strategic Advisory Group, and the anticipated contributions of the Strategic Advisory Group; the advancement and anticipated completion of the FEED program; the anticipated publication of the Clearwater Project Feasibility Study; the expectation that the Clearwater Project will be shovel-ready and the Company's plans to advance the Project toward a Final Investment Decision, project financing, construction and commercial operations; the availability of project financing on commercially reasonable terms; the receipt and timing of regulatory approvals and permits required for development; the holding of the webinar on the date and at the time indicated and the subsequent availability of a recording; and the estimates of mineral resources and mineral reserves at the Clearwater Project and the Garrington District, the assumptions underlying them, and the results of the Pre-Feasibility Study, including estimated NPV, IRR and other future-oriented financial information.

All forward-looking information (including future-oriented financial information) is inherently uncertain and subject to a variety of assumptions, risks and uncertainties, including the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development, fluctuating commodity prices, the effectiveness and feasibility of emerging lithium extraction technologies which have not yet been tested or proven on a commercial scale or on the Company’s brine, risks related to the availability of financing on commercially reasonable terms; operations and contractual obligations; changes in estimated mineral reserves or mineral resources; future prices of lithium and other metals; availability of third-party contractors; availability of equipment; failure of equipment to operate as anticipated; accidents, effects of weather and other natural phenomena and other risks associated with the mineral exploration industry; the Company’s lack of operating revenues; currency fluctuations; risks related to dependence on key personnel; estimates used in financial statements proving to be incorrect; competitive risks and the availability of financing, as described in more detail in our recent securities filings available under the Company’s profile on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca). Actual events or results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements and we caution against placing undue reliance thereon. We assume no obligation to revise or update these forward-looking statements except as required by applicable law.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260929683583/en/

Contacts:

E3 Lithium - Investor Relations
investor@e3lithium.ca
587-324-2775

E3 Lithium - Media Inquiries
communications@e3lithium.ca
587-324-2775

Source: E3 Lithium Ltd.