• Nak-East drilling intersects over 100 meters of copper mineralisation at its Flagship Matsitama Project
• Copper mineralisation confirmed along the same geological structure as Nak-Main, highlighting the potential for significant exploration upside
• Nak-West drilling, located 3 kilometres from Nak-Main, also intersects copper mineralisation, demonstrating the broader scale of the mineralised system

Eastport Critical Metals Corp. (TSX-V: EVI) (OTCQB: EVIIF) is pleased to announce the positive assay results from the step out drilling from the Phase 1 diamond drill program, completed as reported in the press release dated May 1, 2026 Link Here. The three holes drilled at Nak-East have identified a thick copper-rich mineralised zone approximately five kilometres east of the Nak-Main deposit, along key structural features which highlight the potential for substantial resource expansion. The two holes at Nak-West, approximately three kilometres west of Nak-Main are also mineralised, potentially representing a mineralised strike length of ten kilometres subject to future infill drilling.

Daniel Major, CEO, commented;

“These initial results from our recent drilling program are extremely encouraging. Historical exploration at the Matsitama Copper Project has indicated the potential for multiple exploration targets including the Nakalakwana (Main, East and West), Lepashe Copper Snake and Tholo areas. The three drill holes reported from Nak-East have long intersections of copper mineralisation while both holes drilled at Nak-West also report mineralised zones.

“The most exciting part of these excellent drilling results is the clear link between the copper mineralisation and key geological structures. This provides greater confidence in our geological model and enhances our ability to target future drilling across the broader project area.

“At Nakalakwana, we have now defined a mineralised trend potentially extending up to ten kilometres of strike, with multiple parallel structures identified for future exploration.”

The Company’s flagship Matsitama Copper Project in northeast Botswana, encompasses a contiguous block of six Prospecting Licenses covering approximately 1,845 km², located near the village of Matsitama, approximately 85 km west of Francistown.

Historical exploration at Matsitama, including soil sampling programs, has highlighted the widespread occurrence of copper mineralisation over the PLs. The Company considers that further exploration at the Matsitama Copper Project is likely to identify additional mineralised zones, a view supported by the presence of two copper mines (one operating and one historical) and a historical Mineral Resource at the Nak-Main deposit (see notes on the Nakalakwana Historical Mineral Resource and Table 1 below).

In the NI 43-101 Technical Report on the Matsitama Copper Project, Central District, Botswana, dated March 19, 2025, the authors identified over 20 copper prospects across the Property, including Nakalakwana Hill, Lepashe Copper Snake (Lepashe, Palamela, Tau) and Tholo and Tholo North.

On May 1, 2026, the Company announced the completion of its Phase 1 drilling program at the Matsitama Copper Project, with drilling focused on the three main targets associated with the Nakalakwana area, namely;

• Resource infill confirmation drilling on the know Nakalakwana deposit, and nearby expansion drilling, NAK-Main. The non-current SRK Consulting (South Africa) 2013 Nakalakwana Hill Mineral Resource estimate stated Indicated Mineral Resources of 6.8 Mt at 0.48% Cu and Inferred Mineral Resources of 3.1 Mt at 0.43% Cu within an open-pit shell at 0.3% Cu cut-off grade, in compliance with the South African Code for the Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves (the SAMREC Code, 2007 edition).¹These initial results were reported in the Company press release dated July 20, 2026.
• Step-Out Exploration on Strike: Targeted step-out and exploration drilling at NAK-West and NAK-East to chase extensions on both sides of the NAK Main zone resource. Historic holes within a few kilometres delivered thick, near-surface intervals of copper mineralisation occasionally. (Figure 2). This drilling has identified the potential for 10 km of mineralised strike length subject to follow-up infill drilling.

The results presented in this announcement are from Nak-East and Nak-West. The results for an additional three drill holes located at Nak-Main will be released as they are received.

The distribution of host sedimentary horizons, with pyrite and copper sulphide mineralisation, and iron rich alteration (predominately hematite) appear strongly influenced by folding and associated shearing and associated subordinate structures. This relationship is observed in drill core at Nakalakwana, Nak-East and Nak-West. Similar observations are found throughout the Matsitama Copper Project area offering exploration encouragement.

Figure 1: Nakalakwana Area Drilling highlighting Geology Structures 

The drill hole assay results, obtained using ALS-Chemex South Africa’s ICP-AES analytical technique (method code ME-ICP61), recognize a thick copper-rich mineralised zone approximately five kilometres east and three kilometres west of the Nakalakwana deposit respectively (Figure 1). Mineralisation was intersected in all five drill holes, as summarized below, and in Figures 2 and 3 which provide downhole cross-sections of the holes drilled at Nak-East and Nak-West respectively. The drill holes reported in this release are NEDD25-001, -002 and NED26-003 at Nak-East and NWDD25-009, and -010 at Nak-West.

Holes drilled at Nak-East which are positioned where an EW fault appears to connect to Nak-Main, show a southerly dipping mineralised zone commencing near-surface and reaching an apparent thickness of over 100 metres, which is similar to the setting of Nak-Main. These drill holes are close to historical exploration trenches that contain malachite (a secondary copper carbonate mineral that results from the alteration of underlying primary copper sulphide mineralisation).

The results observed to date confirm that copper mineralisation is structurally controlled, so the mapped faulting provides confidence for the future exploration.

Figure 2: Section Diamond Drilling Results Nak-East 

Significant downhole depth intersections from the Phase 1 Nak-East drilling results are provided below.

Drill Hole NEDD25-001

• 18.1 m @ 1,350 ppm Cu from 109.0 m downhole, including:
  • 3.0 m @ 2,146 ppm Cu from 109.0 m,
  • 5.0 m @ 2,027 ppm Cu from 122.0 m.
• 30.9 m @ 1,039 ppm Cu from 141.0 m downhole, including:
  • 12.7 m @ 1,484 ppm Cu from 141.0 m.

Drill Hole NEDD25-002

• 97.4 m @ 1,185 ppm Cu from 64.9m downhole, including:
  • 27.0 m @ 2,269 ppm Cu from 86.0 m, including:
    • 10.8 m @ 3,544 ppm Cu from 86.0 m,
  • 9.9 m @ 1,975 ppm Cu from 151.4 m, including:
    • 4.0 m @ 3,456 ppm Cu from 151.4 m.

Drill Hole NEDD26-003

• 122.4 m @ 1,118 ppm Cu from 85.0 m downhole, including:
  • 35.0 m @ 2,1230 ppm Cu from 138.1 m, including;
    • 12.0 m @ 3,501 ppm Cu from 152.1 m.

Figure 3: Section Diamond Drilling Results Nak-West

Similar to Nak-East the mineralisation observed at Nak-West appears to be structurally controlled, which strongly enhances the prospectivity of the circa 3 km long faulted zone located between Nak-West and the Nak-Main deposit.

Significant downhole depth intersections from the Phase 1 Nak-West drilling results are provide below.

Drill Hole NWDD25-009

• 10.7 m @ 1,527 ppm Cu from 148.0 m downhole, including:
  • 3.1 m @ 3,326 ppm Cu from 155.6 m,
• 10.6 m @ 1,284 ppm Cu from 215.6 m.

Drill Hole NWDD25-010

• 5.5 m @ 2,429 ppm Cu from 96.6 m downhole,
• 3.0 m @ 2,047 ppm Cu from 106.1 m,
• 3.0 m @ 1,161 ppm Cu from 171.0 m.

Nakalakwana Historical Mineral Resource

Eastport does not consider the 2013 SRK Consulting (South Africa) Pty Limited mineral resource as current. SRK was contracted by Matsitama Minerals (Pty) Ltd to undertake the update of the Mineral Resources for the Nakalakwana Hill copper deposit on the basis of data from 30 drillholes completed during 2012. Mineral Resources classified as Indicated and Inferred in accordance with the definitions and guidelines of the SAMREC Code 2007 edition were reported from the optimistic pit as shown in Table 1.

Table 1: Historical Mineral Resources for Nakalakwana based on the optimistic pit and a cut-off grade of 3000 ppm, SRK 2013

Table Note: Historical Resource stated in compliance with SAMREC 2007

In classifying the Mineral resources for Nakalakwana, SRK reviewed the drillhole data distribution, the consistency in the grade distributions, the QA/QC, the spatial continuity observed in the variograms and the quality of the estimates concomitant with the quantity of composites informing the estimates. SRK considered the relatively well informed areas with drillhole intersections within 50 m spacing and with demonstrated consistency in the grade distribution as Indicated Mineral Resources. The block estimates informed by data spaced more than 50 m apart were classified as Inferred Mineral Resources. The classification was consistent with the guidelines and definitions of The SAMREC Code (2007 edition), which has since been superseded.

For Cut-off grade optimisation SRK obtained realistic costs based on the Mowana pit operations from African Copper PLC and applied an escalation factor of 30% to the revenue factors and reduced the mining costs by 30% for the optimistic scenario for reporting resources. The pit optimisation run based on this scenario indicated a cut-off grade of about 3,000 ppm Cu and a pit shell within which total mineral resources of 9.9 Mt at 4,640 ppm Cu were reported at the 3,000 ppm cut-off grade (Table 1).

The Qualified Person considers the historical estimate to be relevant as an indication of the potential scale and grade of mineralisation at Nakalakwana and as a basis for guiding future exploration and resource delineation programs. The estimate was prepared by a reputable independent consulting firm using industry-standard methodologies applicable at the time. However, its reliability is limited by the age of the data (2012 drilling), the relatively wide drill spacing in portions of the deposit, and the absence of verification work by the current QP. In addition, key economic and technical assumptions, including costs, recoveries, and metallurgical performance, have not been independently validated by the Company.

The Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resource categories reported under the SAMREC Code (2007) are broadly comparable to the Indicated and Inferred Mineral Resource categories as defined in the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum Definition Standards adopted under NI 43-101, in that both classification systems are based on geological confidence and data quality. However, the historical estimate has not been prepared in accordance with CIM Definition Standards, including the explicit requirement to demonstrate reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction, and therefore should not be relied upon as a current mineral resource.

Significant work is required to verify and upgrade the historical estimate to a current mineral resource compliant with NI 43-101. The Company would need to validate historical data and QA/QC, complete additional drilling, update geological modelling, undertake metallurgical work, and establish economic parameters supporting RPEEE.

The SRK 2013 Mineral Resource estimate is considered to be historical as it was reported in line with the 2007 Edition of the SAMREC Code which has subsequently been superseded by the 2016 Edition of the SAMREC Code. The SAMREC Code (2016) adopted the CRIRSCO (Committee for Mineral Reserves International Reporting Standards) standard definitions, bringing SAMREC 2016 into full alignment with the International Reporting Code Template and as an acceptable foreign code under NI 43-101. The Company intends to complete a CIM-compliant mineral resource estimate incorporating additional drilling and updated technical and economic assumptions. Neither the QP, the Company, nor its consultants have undertaken sufficient work to classify the historical estimate as current, and the Company is not treating the historical estimate as a current mineral resource.

Qualified Person

The technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Nicholas O’Reilly MIMMM (QMR) MAusIMM MSc DIC, an independent consultant and Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

Eastport Critical Metals Corp: Project Location Map

About Eastport Critical Metals Corp.

Eastport is a critical minerals development company advancing five projects in Botswana, with cumulative historical and current expenditures approaching CAD$20 million. The Company’s most advanced asset is the Matsitama Copper Project, which hosts multiple sizeable targets across the Matsitama copper district.

The Company’s additional projects include Selebi East, a nickel-copper-cobalt project located seven kilometres east of the historic Selebi Mines; the Semarule Rare Earth Elements Project, positioned within the Gaborone-Molepolole corridor; the Foley Uranium Project, adjoining the Letlhakane uranium deposit; and the Keng Project, which targets nickel, copper and PGEs on the northern margin of the Molopo Farms Complex.

Botswana is widely regarded as one of Africa’s strongest mining jurisdictions, combining the continent’s highest GDP per capita with a 50-year track record of large-scale mineral development since the Orapa diamond discovery in 1967. The country ranks among the top performers globally on the Fraser Institute’s Investment Attractiveness Index and is the highest-rated jurisdiction in Africa on the Policy Perception Index. These rankings reflect Botswana’s stable regulatory environment, consistent rule of law, and long-standing support for responsible mineral development – factors that have underpinned significant investment and major M&A activity in the natural resources sector in recent years.