Mr. James Walker reports

ARES STRATEGIC MINING COMMENCES LUMPS PLANT COMMISSIONING AND ANNOUNCES PRODUCTION DATE

Commissioning of Ares Strategic Mining Inc.'s metallurgical lumps plant has officially commenced at the company's processing facility in Delta, Utah.

For the first time, the entire processing plant has been powered up and is operating as one fully integrated system, marking the beginning of the company's four-week commissioning program.

The Lumps plant has been designed to process ore from the company's Lost Sheep mine into metallurgical-grade fluorspar lumps (metspar), a product primarily supplied to U.S. steel industries.

Commissioning testing under way

Over the coming weeks, the company will undertake comprehensive integrated testing across all plant systems to verify performance, optimize operations and prepare the facility for commercial production.

Testing activities include:

• Verifying complete process flows from ore feed through to finished product;
• Testing PLC (programmable logic controller) control systems and HMIs (human-machine interfaces);
• Monitoring and optimizing operating parameters, including temperatures, pressures and material flows;
• Validating alarm systems, diagnostics and automated start-up and shutdown sequences;
• Assessing crushing, drying and product quality to ensure metallurgical-grade fluorspar meets customer specifications.

James Walker, president and chief executive officer of Ares Strategic Mining, commented: "It's incredibly rewarding to see the entire lumps plant operating together for the first time. This is an exciting milestone for everyone involved with Ares and reflects years of planning, engineering and construction. Our focus now is on completing commissioning successfully and beginning production."

Advancing toward production

As commissioning progresses, fluorspar ore stockpiled at the Lost Sheep mine will be transported to the Delta processing facility to support testing and initial ramp-up production runs.

The company expects ramp-up production to begin on Aug. 15, 2026. Ramp-up refers to ramping up the feed to the full plant production potential.

As per the company's press release of March 27, 2024, commercial offtake agreements are already in place covering the company's expected initial metspar production for the first five years

The lumps plant has a designed processing capacity of approximately 150,000 tonnes per annum, providing capacity to support increased mine output and expansion across the Lost Sheep project and the wider Spor Mountain Range.

Mr. Walker added: "We've intentionally built infrastructure that extends well beyond our initial mining rate. As we continue developing additional fluorspar targets across our property, this processing capacity gives us a platform for future growth while supporting our objective of establishing a secure U.S. supply of this critical mineral."

About Ares Strategic Mining Inc.

Ares Strategic Mining is a mining company focused on the development of its fluorspar projects in the United States. The company aims to become a significant supplier of high-grade fluorspar to North American markets, supporting industries vital to modern technology and infrastructure.

Lost Sheep fluorspar project -- Delta, Utah:

• 100 per cent owned; 5,982 acres (353 claims);
• Located in the Spor Mountain area, Juab county, Utah, approximately 214 kilometres southwest of Salt Lake City;
• Fully permitted, including mining permits;
• National Instrument 43-101 technical report identified high-grade fluorspar with low levels of impurities;
• Mining plan approved by BLM (Bureau of Land Management):
  • First approved by Rex Rowley, area manager, Bureau of Land Management (Aug. 24, 1992);
  • Renewed by Paul B. Baker, minerals program manager, Bureau of Land Management (Dec. 12, 2016).

We seek Safe Harbor.