Clean Air Metals Inc. (TSX-V: AIR) (FRA: CKU) (OTCQB: CLRMF) is pleased to announce new assay results from the 2022 drill campaign from both the Escape and Current PGE-Cu-Ni Deposits at the Company’s Thunder Bay North Project near Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada.

New assay highlights from the Escape deposit area includes (Table 1):

• Infill Hole ELR22-145 which intersected 19.0m grading 2.04g/t Platinum (Pt), 2.52g/t Palladium (Pd), 0.87% Copper (Cu) and 0.45% Nickel (Ni) from 516.0m-535.5m downhole, including 5.0m grading 2.56g/t Pt, 3.22g/t Pd, 1.17% Cu and 0.70% Ni from 518.0-523.0m downhole and increases the known dimensions of the Escape High Grade Zone (“HGZ”) (Figure 1).

New assay highlights from the Current deposit area includes (Table 1):

• Metallurgical bulk sample Hole CLM22-005 (HQ core) which intersected 12.0m grading 2.28g/t Platinum (Pt), 2.14g/t Palladium (Pd), 0.45% Copper (Cu) and 0.32% Nickel (Ni) from 142.0m-154.0m downhole including 2.0m grading 4.40g/t Platinum (Pt), 4.60g/t Palladium (Pd), 1.01% Copper (Cu) and 0.84% Nickel (Ni) from 144.0-146.0m downhole (Figure 1) which provides validation to the grade profile of the production area in Years 1-4 of the PEA mine plan;
• Metallurgical bulk sample Hole CLM22-006 (HQ core) which intersected 24.2m grading 1.85g/t Platinum (Pt), 1.84g/t Palladium (Pd), 0.46% Copper (Cu) and 0.27% Nickel (Ni) from 150.0m-174.2m downhole (Figure 2).

Mineral resource endowment and platinum-equivalents are quoted pursuant the Preliminary Economic Assessment (the “PEA”) set out in the technical report prepared by  Nordmin Engineering Ltd. and titled “NI 43-101 Technical Report and Preliminary Economic Assessment for the Thunder Bay North Project, Thunder Bay, Ontario”, effective December 1, 2021 and filed January 12, 2022. Nordmin as QP utilized 2-year trailing average metal price assumptions¹ for the updated mineral resource as a basis for the PEA.

DRA Selected as PFS Metallurgical Process Provider

The Company again states that DRA AMERICAS INC is the successful bid under a request for proposal (RFP) for Pre-feasibility Metallurgical Testing and Process Plant Design for the Thunder Bay North Project. The DRA team has reviewed the existing and historical metallurgical testing results and marketing studies culminating in the Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) by Nordmin Engineering, the technical report of which was filed on SEDAR on January 12, 2022. DRA will leverage existing knowledge on standard crush, grind, flotation process design and smelter payabilities into the next phase of testing and metallurgical optimization, including amenability to hydrometallurgical recoveries of the main platinum, palladium, copper, nickel commodity suite with rhodium, cobalt, gold and silver byproducts.

SLR Selected as PFS Mineral Resource Validation Service Provider

The Company has selected and contracted SLR Consulting through an RFP process to provide independent validation of an updated TBN Project resource estimate for the Pre-feasibility study. The updated resource estimate will include 53600 m of new drilling completed on Escape deposit since the release of the March 4, 2021 Technical report and 6500m of additional infill drilling on the Current deposit since the cutoff date for the PEA.

Preliminary Economic Assessment

The Company announced a comprehensive mine plan and cashflow model for both the Escape Deposit and Current Deposit as part of a PEA for the Current and Escape PGE-Cu-Ni Deposits of the Thunder Bay North Project on December 1, 2021. The related Technical Report was filed on SEDAR on January 12, 2022 https://cleanairmetals.ca/site/assets/files/5750/21015-01-pfs-0000_ni_43_101_pea_12jan2022.pdf

Table 1: New Insitu Assay Results Update – Escape HGZ and Current Metallurgical samples (Figure 1)

Abraham Drost, CEO of Clean Air Metals stated that “the Escape and Current deposits continue to perform. Potential peer leading mining head grades and proximity to infrastructure near the City of Thunder Bay and support of the affected First Nation and Metis communities for this sustainable green energy metal mix position the project well. These factors combined with DRA’s work targeted on improving ore payabilities are critical to success of the project.

This infill drilling on the margins and extension of the Escape High Grade Zone (HGZ) and metallurgical bulk sampling (HQ core) initially on Years 1-4 of the PEA mine plan on the Current Deposit continues to deliver strong results. The Lower Current and Bridge Zones of the Current Deposit may be accessed 70m below surface and provide a strong start to mining at the Thunder Bay North Project, pursuant to the PEA mine plan. The Escape High Grade Zone (>5g/t Pt+Pd) is also identified as a high value potential mining area at the base of the Escape Deposit contributing feed to the mill at Year 4.5 of the PEA mine plan, pursuant to the recently delivered PEA technical report filed January 12, 2022.”

Figure 1: New Drill Hole Intercepts in the Escape Deposit Area

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Figure 2: New Drill Hole Intercepts in the Current Deposit Area

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COVID Policy

Clean Air Metals continued to apply COVID-19 avoidance and personal protection measures for its geological staff, drilling contractor and service suppliers. Personnel are required to self-monitor and self-isolate or elect to work from home. The Company closely follows Ontario Provincial Government COVID guidelines.

Qualified Person

Dr. Geoff Heggie, Ph.D., P.Geo., a Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101 and Vice President – Exploration for the Company, has reviewed and approved all technical information in this press release.

Quality Assurance/Quality Control

Clean Air Metals uses ALS Global, a well-established and recognized mineral assay and geochemical analytical services company. The Thunder Bay laboratory holds ISO-9000 accreditation; the Vancouver facility holds ISO-17025 registration.

All NQ-sized drill core is cut with a diamond-tipped saw blade with half of the core submitted to ALS for sample preparation and analysis.  Core samples from selected intervals are individually bagged and tagged, gathered up in larger sealed poly bags and shipped to the sample prep facility in Thunder Bay, ON under custody of Clean Air Metals’ personnel at all times. Sample preparation is completed at the ALS sample preparation facility located in Thunder Bay, ON and analysis is completed at the primary ALS assay laboratory located in Vancouver, B.C.

Clean Air Metals follows a documented quality control procedure for its core assay sampling program consisting of the insertion of blind blanks, duplicates, and certified Palladium-Platinum and Copper-Nickel standards into the sample stream.  The insertion procedure results in a minimum of 11% to 12% control sample frequency depending on the length of the sampled interval.

Gold, platinum, and palladium are analyzed using fire assay (FA) with an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) finish.  Samples with grades above the optimal ICP-MS detection limits are analyzed using an optical emission spectroscopy method (ICP-OES).

Also, thirty-three elements of each sample, including copper, nickel, silver, chromium, cobalt, and sulphur, are analyzed by a multi-element analytical method using the atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES) technique following four-acid digestion of the sample. When samples have grades above the optimal detection limits for this analytical method, they are re-analyzed using a high-grade method consisting of either ICP-AES or atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) techniques.

Indigenous Community Social and Economic Engagement

Clean Air Metals Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiary Panoramic PGMs (Canada) Ltd. acknowledge that the Thunder Bay North Project is on the traditional territories of the Fort William First Nation, Red Rock First Nation and Biinjitiwabik Zaaging Anishinabek. The parties together are the Cooperating Participants in a Memorandum of Agreement dated January 9, 2021 (press release January 11, 2021) and Exploration Agreement signed April 13, 2022 (press release April 14, 2022).

The Company appreciates the opportunity to work in these territories and remains committed to the recognition and respect of those who have lived, traveled, and gathered on the lands since time immemorial. Clean Air Metals is committed to stewarding Indigenous heritage and remains committed to building, fostering and encouraging a respectful relationship with First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples based upon principles of mutual trust, respect, reciprocity and collaboration in the spirit of reconciliation.

About Clean Air Metals Inc.

Clean Air Metals’ flagship asset is the 100% owned, high grade Thunder Bay North Project, a platinum, palladium, copper, nickel project located near the City of Thunder Bay, Ontario and the Lac des Iles Mine owned by Impala Platinum. The Thunder Bay North Project hosts the twin magma conduit bodies which host the Current and Escape deposits forming the basis for a robust preliminary economic assessment (PEA) filed January 12, 2002. The PEA of a ramp access underground mine and on-site 3600tpd milling complex and the 2-year trailing average price deck, features a pretax NPV5 of C$425m and an IRR of 31% on initial capital of $367m over a 10-year mine life.

Executive Chair Jim Gallagher and CEO Abraham Drost lead an experienced technical team who are using the Norilsk magma conduit stratigraphic and mineral deposit model to guide ongoing exploration and development prefeasibility studies for a low-carbon, all-electric sustainable mining operation at Thunder Bay North. As the former CEO of North American Palladium Ltd. which owned the Lac des Iles Mine prior to the sale to Impala Platinum in December 2019, Jim Gallagher and team are credited with the mine turnaround and creation of significant value for shareholders.