Mr. Mark Tory reports

DEFENSE METALS ANNOUNCES PILOT-SCALE FLOTATION TEST PROGRAM FOR WICHEEDA RARE EARTH PROJECT

Defense Metals Corp. has appointed SGS Canada Inc. to undertake a comprehensive 30-tonne pilot-scale flotation testing program on two newly prepared drill core composite samples from the Wicheeda deposit.

The company's metallurgical program is designed to further advance process flow sheet development and support future engineering studies for the Wicheeda project. The program includes the preparation and testing of two composite samples, consisting of representative drill core material for years one through five of the proposed operation and year six onward. Importantly, the pilot plant operation will generate about 1.5 tonnes of flotation concentrate, which will be used in a hydrometallurgical pilot plant to be undertaken later this year. The total estimated cost of the pilot flotation program is approximately $1-million.

"We have been steadily releasing work packages, which form the foundation for progressing our 2025 prefeasibility study (refer to company news release dated April 7, 2025) to a feasibility stage," said Mark Tory, chief executive officer of Defense Metals. "Having already accelerated our fieldwork and environmental baseline programs, we are pleased to announce this comprehensive pilot-scale flotation testing program as the next major step towards the development of the Wicheeda project as Canada's first large-scale REE critical minerals producer."

SGS was selected based on its experience and reputation as the benchmark for quality and integrity in the collaborative design and execution of a pilot plant of this type. The program will be managed on behalf of Defense Metals by chief metallurgical consultant John Goode, PEng. Mr. Goode has an extensive career in the design, monitoring and interpretation of beneficiation and hydrometallurgical testwork, and has over 60 years of experience as a metallurgist working on numerous rare earth projects located in Canada, Brazil, United States, China, Australia, Russia and elsewhere.

"This program represents a significant step toward the derisking and optimization of the metallurgical processing route for the Wicheeda project," noted Mr. Goode. "It will generate additional data required for the feasibility study and produce the high-grade flotation concentrate feed for the planned hydrometallurgical pilot plant."

The company will provide further updates as the test program is finalized and progresses.

Grant of incentive stock options

The company also announces the grant of 7,375,000 incentive stock options to directors, officers and consultants of the company, subject to TSX Venture Exchange approval. Options are exercisable for the purchase of one common share of the company for three years at a price of 28 cents per common share.

About Defense Metals Corp.

Defense Metals is an advanced rare earth element exploration and development company focused on delivering strategically critical metals to Western defence, high-technology and clean energy supply chains. The company's primary asset is its 100-per-cent-owned Wicheeda rare earth element project, located near Prince George, B.C., Canada.

The Wicheeda project is one of the most advanced undeveloped rare earth deposits in North America or Europe, featuring a robust mineral resource and mining reserve, as detailed in the company's 2025 prefeasibility study (refer to company news release dated April 7, 2025) prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 (Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects). The PFS showed the economic potential of the deposit, supporting future project development.

Defense Metals is committed to advancing the Wicheeda project through the feasibility study stage, permitting and eventually into production positioning the company to become a reliable supplier of critical rare earths that are essential to modern defence systems, advanced manufacturing and energy-efficient technologies.

The company's shares trade on the TSX Venture Exchange, the OTCQB Venture Market and the Frankfurt exchange.

The PFS for the Wicheeda rare earth element project, prepared in accordance with NI 43-101, is preliminary in nature, and includes numerous assumptions regarding metallurgy, capital and operating costs, and market conditions.

Mineral reserves and the economic outcomes projected in the PFS are subject to significant uncertainties, and there is no certainty that the results of the PFS will be realized. Additional studies, including a definitive feasibility study and permitting work, are required before a production decision can be made.

We seek Safe Harbor.