Mr. Troy Nazarewicz reports

FORTUNE MINERALS ANNOUNCES GOVERNMENT FUNDING TO ADVANCE THE NICO CRITICAL MINERALS ASSET IN CANADA

Fortune Minerals Ltd. has secured government funding of up to $887,170 to support metallurgical testwork for its 100-per-cent-owned vertically integrated Nico cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper project in Canada. The Nico project is an advanced-development-stage critical minerals asset comprising a planned open-pit and underground mine and concentrator in the Northwest Territories and related hydrometallurgical refinery in Alberta. The proposed Alberta refinery would process concentrates from a future mine at the Nico project and other sources to produce cobalt sulphate, gold dore, bismuth ingots and copper. Development of the Nico project would provide a vertically integrated Canadian supply for three critical minerals needed for the energy transition with North American supply chain transparency and environmental, social and governance (ESG) values, as well as compliance with the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act.

The government of Canada has agreed to provide funding contributions of up to $714,500 against the costs of Fortune's planned cobalt sulphate process pilot and other metallurgical testwork through the federal government's critical minerals research, development and demonstration program. The government of Alberta, through Alberta Innovates, has also conditionally approved additional funding contributions of up to $172,670 toward the budgeted program costs pursuant to its clean resources continuous intake program. The funds will be used to support a mini-pilot at SGS Canada Ltd. to confirm certain process design criteria and improvements to the Nico project metallurgical processes. The program will also provide samples of concentrate that could be used in future tests with material sourced under the previously announced Rio Tinto process collaboration (see the company's news release dated Sept. 29, 2023).

Loan extensions

Fortune is also pleased to announce that it has entered into agreements with the holders of its outstanding debentures originally issued in 2015, a term loan received in 2021 and a bridge loan of $110,000 advanced in October, 2023, extending the respective maturity dates of the debt until Dec. 31, 2024. The aggregate amount of debt being extended is $9,396,399.18 and carries interest rates of 10 per cent compounding monthly and 9 per cent compounding annually for the debenture and term loans, respectively.

Change of auditor

Fortune has appointed McGovern Hurley LLP, chartered professional accountants and licensed public accountants, as the auditor of the company for the Dec. 31, 2023, fiscal year. A reporting package with respect to the change of auditor has been filed on SEDAR+ and will be included in the management materials sent to shareholders for the next annual general meeting of the company.

About Fortune Minerals Ltd.

Fortune is a Canadian mining company focused on developing the Nico cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper critical minerals project in the Northwest Territories and Alberta. Fortune also owns the satellite Sue-Dianne copper-silver-gold deposit, located 25 kilometres north of the Nico deposit, and is a potential future source of incremental mill feed to extend the life of the Nico mill and concentrator.

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