Mr. Kirby Renton reports

NIOBIUMX MINING INC. COMMENCES TRADING ON THE CANADIAN SECURITIES EXCHANGE UNDER THE SYMBOL "NIOX", COMPLETING ITS TRANSITION TO A NIOBIUM AND RARE EARTH EXPLORATION COMPANY FOCUSED ON QUEBEC'S SAGUENAY REGION

The common shares of Niobiumx Mining Inc., formerly Arctic Fox Lithium Corp., commenced trading on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the company's new name and the ticker symbol NIOX at the opening of markets on July 17, 2026. The company has entered into marketing services agreements with Altura Media Co. Inc. and Connect 4 Marketing Ltd., and has granted restricted share units to certain consultants.

The name change completes the company's strategic repositioning from lithium exploration in the James Bay region to niobium and rare earth element (REE) exploration in the Saguenay region of Quebec, following the company's acquisition of the Shipshaw property earlier this year.

The company's shares continue to trade on the OTCQB Venture Market under the symbol AFXLF and on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under the symbol O5K.

Key highlights:

• New symbol live on the CSE: Common shares trade under NIOX, effective July 17, 2026, completing the company's repositioning from lithium to niobium and rare earth elements.
• District-scale land position: The company's activity is now directed at the Shipshaw property, a 48-claim, 2,686-hectare niobium and rare earth property in Quebec's Saint-Honore carbonatite district.
• Immediately adjacent to a producing district: The property's nearest claim boundary lies less than two kilometres from the producing Niobec mine, North America's only operating niobium producer.
• A concentrated global supply picture: Niobium is a designated critical mineral in Canada, the United States, the European Union and Australia, and the substantial majority of world supply is produced in a single country.
• Government of Quebec characterization: The Shipshaw carbonatite is one of only five niobium-rare earth carbonatite systems characterized by Geologie Quebec in metallogenic bulletin BM 2024-02.
• Marketing services agreements: The company has engaged Altura Media and Connect 4 Marketing to provide digital marketing and investor awareness services under six-month agreements.

"The new name states plainly where we are putting our capital," said Kirby Renton, president and chief executive officer. "Shipshaw sits in one of very few districts in North America with a demonstrated niobium endowment, next to the only producing niobium mine on the continent. Our near-term priority is to get modern geophysics over ground that has not been properly surveyed in 15 years."

Why now: a critical minerals story

Niobium is a designated critical mineral in Canada, the United States, the European Union and Australia, valued for the strength it adds to steel and the superalloys used in pipelines, transport, energy and defence. Global supply is among the most concentrated of any strategic metal: The substantial majority of the world's niobium is produced in a single country, Brazil, and the Niobec mine in Quebec is the only significant primary niobium producer outside it. That is the backdrop against which Niobiumx is advancing Shipshaw.

The Niobec mine has been in commercial production since 1976 and was acquired by a consortium led by Magris Resources Inc. from Iamgold Corp. in January, 2015, for total consideration of approximately $530-million (U.S.).

The Shipshaw property

The Shipshaw property, which the company acquired under an asset purchase agreement that closed on Feb. 19, 2026, comprises 48 mineral claims totalling 2,685.73 hectares in the Saguenay region of Quebec, in the Saint-Honore carbonatite district that also hosts the producing Niobec mine. The Shipshaw carbonatite was recently selected by the government of Quebec, in metallogenic bulletin BM 2024-02, as one of only five niobium-rare earth carbonatite systems characterized along the Waswanipi-Saguenay corridor. The property does not host a mineral resource or mineral reserve estimate. The company will provide a detailed overview of the property, the government of Quebec characterization and its planned exploration program in a series of forthcoming news releases.

Marketing services agreements

The company has entered into a digital marketing services agreement with Altura Media.

Under the agreement, Altura will provide comprehensive digital marketing and investor awareness services, including onboarding and campaign set-up, the establishment and management of digital advertising accounts and channels, interactive article-based landing pages hosted on Altura's owned financial media websites, custom video and graphic creative, video and media content produced with selected finance-focused content creators on a defined posting schedule, and targeted digital advertising campaigns directed to those landing pages and content.

The agreement has a term of six months commencing July 24, 2026, and may be extended by mutual agreement of the parties, subject to applicable regulatory approvals. As consideration for the services, the company will pay Altura a one-time fee of $250,000 (Canadian) plus applicable GST, payable upon execution. The agreement remains subject to CSE approval.

To the knowledge of the company, Altura does not own any securities of the company. Altura and its principal are arm's length to the company.

Altura Media is located at 1055 West Georgia St., Suite 1500, Vancouver, B.C., V6E 4N7. Altura may be contacted by e-mail at contact@alturamedia.co or by telephone at 1-778-988-5503. The principal of Altura is Luis Matthias Campos.

The company has also entered into a digital marketing services agreement with Connect 4 Marketing.

Under the agreement, Connect 4 will provide comprehensive digital marketing services, including onboarding and campaign set-up, the establishment of the required advertising accounts and channels, influencer marketing, and a fully builtout interactive landing page to host advertising traffic.

The agreement has a term of six months commencing July 28, 2026, and may be extended by mutual agreement of the parties, subject to applicable regulatory approvals. As consideration for the services, the company has committed to a marketing budget of $75,000 (Canadian) plus applicable GST, payable upon execution, inclusive of a 20-per-cent service fee for campaign management, optimization, reporting and content creation. The agreement remains subject to CSE approval.

Connect 4 currently owns 62,000 common shares and 42,000 common share purchase warrants of the company. Connect 4 and its principal are arm's length to the company.

Connect 4 Marketing is located at 702 5505 Boulevard du Quartier, Brossard, Que., J4Z 0R9. Connect 4 may be contacted by e-mail at Carlos@connect4marketing.ca or by telephone at 1-514-970-1316. The principal of Connect 4 is Louis-Carlos Vargas Rocheleau.

No securities of the company are issuable as compensation under either agreement. Both engagements are non-exclusive.

Grant of restricted share units

The company has granted an aggregate of 955,000 restricted share units (RSUs) to certain consultants of the company. Each RSU entitles the holder to receive one common share of the company upon vesting, for no additional consideration. The RSUs were granted on July 28, 2026, and vest in full on the later of: (i) the date that is four months and one day from the date of grant; and (ii) the date on which certain objective business milestones described in the RSU certificates are achieved. No RSUs were granted to insiders of the company. The grant of the RSUs is subject to the terms of the company's equity incentive plan and the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange.

About Niobiumx Mining Inc.

Niobiumx Mining is a Canadian mineral exploration company focused on niobium and rare earth elements. The company's principal asset is the Shipshaw property, a package of 48 mineral claims totalling approximately 2,686 hectares in the Saguenay region of Quebec, situated within the Saguenay graben of the Grenville geological province and characterized by a swarm of carbonatite and lamprophyre dikes. The Shipshaw carbonatite is one of five niobium-rare earth carbonatite systems characterized by Geologie Quebec in metallogenic bulletin BM 2024-02.

Niobium is designated a critical mineral by Canada, the United States, the European Union and Australia.

Qualified person

The scientific and technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Babak V. Azar, MSc, PGeo (OGQ No. 10876), a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Azar is independent of the company.

The current technical report on the Shipshaw property, with an effective date of Feb. 17, 2026, was prepared by Bertrand Brassard, MSc, PGeo (OGQ No. 1067), an independent qualified person, and is available under the company's profile on SEDAR+. That report covers nine of the company's claims, totalling approximately 513 hectares; the company has since expanded its footprint to the current 48-claim package. The Shipshaw property does not host a mineral resource or mineral reserve estimate.

This news release contains information concerning neighbouring properties in which the company has no interest. Such information was obtained from public disclosure by the owners or operators of those properties. The company's qualified person has not verified that information and readers are cautioned that mineralization on a neighbouring property is not necessarily indicative of mineralization on the company's property.

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