St. Lewis, Newfoundland and Labrador--(Newsfile Corp. - September 23, 2026) - Search Minerals Inc. (TSXV: SMY) (OTC Pink: SHCMF) ("Search Minerals" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that its Board of Directors has appointed Jonathan Beigle as Chief Executive Officer and as a Director of the Company, effective September 25, 2026.

Rohan Hazelton, Director of Search Minerals, commented:
"Jonathan brings a rare combination of executive leadership in the mining sector, capital markets expertise, and long-term strategic vision to Search Minerals. His experience investing across the global mining sector, coupled with his senior leadership in critical minerals, will be instrumental as we advance Foxtrot, Deep Fox, and the broader Port Hope Simpson - St. Lewis CREE District. The Board also wishes to acknowledge and thank Jason Macintosh for his leadership and steady execution as Interim CEO during this important transition period, and Matt Anderson for his role as Interim CFO."

Jonathan Beigle stated:
"I am excited to join Search Minerals at such a pivotal moment for the Company. The Foxtrot-Deep Fox district represents one of the most compelling rare earth opportunities in North America. I look forward to working with the Board, our partners, and the communities of Labrador to advance these projects with discipline, transparency, and a long-term commitment to value creation, while applying my investing experience to support disciplined capital allocation and compelling returns for shareholders."

Equity Incentive Grants
In connection with Mr. Beigle's appointment, the Company has granted 1,200,000 stock options pursuant to its equity incentive plan, consisting of:

• 800,000 options, vesting one-third on each of the first, second, and third anniversaries of the grant date; and
• 400,000 options, vesting in eight equal quarterly instalments beginning three months after the grant date.

The exercise price will be set at the fair market value of the Company's common shares on the grant date, being the second trading day following dissemination of this news release, subject to TSXV acceptance. The options expire five years from the grant date.

Background on Mr. Beigle
Mr. Beigle has spent the last six years as President and CEO of Ridgeline Royalties, a critical minerals royalty company he founded in 2020. Prior to Ridgeline, he was part of Newmont Corporation's award-winning investor relations program, which IR Magazine named "Best in Sector: Materials" in 2020 and Institutional Investor recognized as the #1 IR Team in metals and mining that same year. He previously spent 11 years at Manning & Napier Advisors, an institutional investment firm with up to $55 billion in assets under management.

Mr. Beigle also served as an independent director and audit committee member of Texas Mineral Resources Corporation (TMRC), where he helped lead the strategic process that culminated in TMRC's sale to USA Rare Earth in August 2026.

He holds a Master of Science degree in mining engineering & management from the South Dakota School of Mines and a Bachelor of Science degree in business (finance specialization) from Liberty University, and is a CFA® charterholder.

Ongoing Roles - Chief Financial Officer
With the appointment of Mr. Beigle effective September 25, 2026, Jason Macintosh will resume his role as Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary, continuing to support corporate development, capital markets activities, and strategic initiatives. Matt Anderson, the Company's current Interim Chief Financial Officer, will return to his role as the Company's corporate accountant.

ABOUT SEARCH MINERALS
Led by a proven management team and board of directors, Search is focused on finding and developing Critical Rare Earth Elements (CREE), Zirconium (Zr) and Hafnium (Hf) resources within the emerging Port Hope Simpson - St. Lewis CREE District of southeast Labrador. The Company controls a belt 64 km long and 2 km wide that is road accessible, on tidewater, and located near three local communities. The Company has completed a preliminary economic assessment report with resource estimates for Foxtrot and Deep Fox. It is also working on four exploration prospects along the belt: Fox Meadow, Silver Fox, Fox Run and Awesome Fox.

Search has continued to optimize its patented Direct Extraction Process technology with generous support from the Department of Energy and Mines, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, and the Atlantic Canada Opportunity Agency. The Company has completed two pilot plant operations and produced highly purified mixed rare earth carbonate concentrate and mixed REO concentrate for separation and refining.

All material information on the Company may be found on its website at www.searchminerals.ca and on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.

Forward-Looking Statements
Statements contained in this news release that are not historical facts are "forward-looking information" or "forward-looking statements" (collectively, "Forward-Looking Information") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. In certain cases, Forward-Looking Information can be identified by the use of words and phrases or variations of such words and phrases or statements such as "anticipate", "expect", "plan", "likely", "believe", "intend", "forecast", "project", "estimate", "potential", "could", "may", "will", "would" or "should". Forward-Looking Information in this news release is based on certain material assumptions and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Search Minerals to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the Forward-Looking Information. Such risks and other factors include those factors discussed in Search Minerals' public filings. Although Search Minerals has attempted to identify important factors that could affect Search Minerals and may cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in Forward-Looking Information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that Forward-Looking Information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on Forward-Looking Information. For further information on these and other risks and uncertainties that may affect the Company's business, see the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis filed with certain Canadian securities regulators, which are available at www.sedarplus.ca. Except as required by law, Search Minerals does not assume any obligation to release publicly any revisions to Forward-Looking Information contained in this news release to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

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.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/315526