Transition Metals (TSXV:XTM) is a Canada-based, multi-commodity exploration company laser-focused on discovering the next generation of critical and precious metals in the country’s most prospective and mining-friendly jurisdictions.

With a diversified portfolio spanning platinum group metals, nickel, copper, gold, silver, and uranium, the company offers broad exposure to the metals powering electrification, decarbonization, and long-term resource security.

Operating under a disciplined project generator model, Transition advances early-stage assets through rigorous, geoscience-driven exploration before strategically bringing in partners to help fund drilling and development. This approach preserves capital, limits shareholder dilution, and retains meaningful upside through royalties, milestone payments, and equity interests — while maintaining operatorship and technical control during critical exploration stages.

Company Highlights

• Multi-commodity exploration company with a portfolio of projects and royalties, covering gold, nickel, copper, platinum group metals (PGM), cobalt, tungsten and more located in mining-friendly jurisdictions across Canada
• Flagship PGM exposure at the Saturday Night/Sunday Lake projects in the Thunder Bay region
• Discovery-focused project generator model designed to minimize shareholder dilution while maximizing exploration leverage
• Strong treasury position complemented by marketable securities, milestone payments and royalty interests
• Proven management team with multiple industry discovery awards and a long track record of value creation
• Exposure to critical metals themes supported by government funding, flow-through incentives and secure jurisdictions

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1. Talon Metals (TSX:TLO)

Yearly gain: 629.41 percent
Market cap: C$725.17 million
Share price: C$0.62

Talon Metals is a base metals company advancing the Tamarack nickel-copper-cobalt project in Central Minnesota, US, through a joint venture with Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO,NYSE:RIO,LSE:RIO). Talon currently holds a 51 percent stake in the project and can earn up to 60 percent. The company also owns the Boulderdash nickel-copper discovery in Michigan, US.

In late March, Talon Metals announced a massive sulfide discovery at its Tamarack project, with an intercept measuring 8.25 meters containing 95 percent sulfide content located deeper than the current Tamarack resource.

In May, a further massive sulfide discovery in the same zone, the thickest discovery yet at the site, drove the company’s share price up significantly, and another in early August did the same.

In the August announcement, Talon shared that it named the discovery zone the Vault zone. At the start of Q4, Talon announced an expanded winter drilling and exploration program at Vault. Shares of Talon rallied to C$0.54 on October 14 following the winter drill news and alongside rising cobalt prices.

On October 20, Talon received a 12 month extension from Rio Tinto subsidiary Kennecott Exploration to submit a feasibility study and a US$10 million payment required to increase its ownership stake in the Tamarack project to 60 percent.

To start 2026, Talon Metals completed its previously announced deal with Lundin Mining (TSX:LUN,OTCPL:LUNMF), acquiring Lundin’s producing Eagle nickel-copper mine and Humboldt mill in Michigan.

The deal combines the assets with Talon’s nearby Boulderdash discovery, allowing the company to process ore from Boulderdash at the Humboldt mill. Additionally, Eagle will provide cash flow to help Talon advance Tamarack.

Under the transaction, Lundin Mining received 275.2 million Talon shares and a royalty of US$1 per metric ton of non-Eagle ore processed at the Humboldt Mill, capped at US$20 million. Lundin now holds a 19.99 percent interest in Talon and it will be able to elect two members to the board.

Between the announcement and closing of the deal, shares of Talon rallied to a one year high of C$0.69 on January 6, 2025.

2. Leading Edge Materials (TSXV:LEM)

Yearly gain: 183.33 percent
Market cap: C$63.74 million
Share price: C$0.25

Leading Edge Materials is developing critical materials projects in Europe. The company’s projects include its wholly owned Woxna graphite mine and Norra Kärr heavy rare earths project, both in Sweden, as well as its 51 percent owned Bihor Sud nickel-cobalt exploration alliance in Romania.

According to its June 2025 presentation, exploration work planned for 2025 at Bihor Sud’s G2 gallery includes mapping and sampling of cobalt-nickel and zinc-lead-silver mineralized zones detected visually and by hand-held XRF. Drilling targeting polymetallic mineralization at the gallery is underway.

On the financial side, Leading Edge announced a C$400,000 non-brokered private placement in June.

According to a June 22 activities update, Leading Edge’s Romanian subsidiary was granted ownership and operational permits for the Avram Iancu mine at Bihor Sud, and the team had begun preliminary investigations of the site.

In its quarterly report released September 19, Leading Edge Materials said it is reassessing its prospects after being granted those permits. The Avram Iancu site has extensive historic underground workings and data indicating copper-rich massive sulfide zones, the statement notes.

A competent person report is in progress to consolidate past exploration and outline next steps, while the company evaluates financing options to advance development.

Shares of Leading Edge registered a one year high of C$0.44 on October 14.

In December, Leading Edge Materials cleared a regulatory milestone at its Norra Kärr rare earths project in Sweden, securing county-level endorsements that advance its 25 year mining lease application to a final decision by the Mining Inspectorate.

The company closed the year by joining EIT Raw Materials as a project partner, strengthening its access to Europe’s leading critical minerals innovation network and potential funding channels.

3. FPX Nickel (TSXV:FPX)

Yearly gain: 161.7 percent
Market cap: C$193.52 million
Share price: C$0.62

FPX Nickel is currently advancing its Decar nickel district in British Columbia, Canada.

The property comprises four key targets, with the Baptiste deposit being the primary focus, alongside the Van target. The company also has three other nickel projects in BC and one in the Yukon, Canada.

In February, FPX released a scoping study for the development of a refinery that would refine awaruite concentrate from Baptiste into battery-grade nickel sulfate and by-products of cobalt carbonate, copper and ammonium sulfate. Annual output is anticipated at 32,000 metric tons of contained nickel and 570 metric tons of contained cobalt.

The results show that the process would result in operating and all-in production costs near the bottom of nickel sulfate cost curve, in part due to by-product credits. Additionally, the carbon intensity of the awaruite refinery would be significantly lower than that of currently used production methods.

On September 4, FPX completed a large-scale mineral processing pilot campaign for its Baptiste nickel project, following three prior successful campaigns. The production run generated bulk samples of awaruite concentrate, which will be provided to prospective partners, including pre-cursor cathode active materials, battery producers and automakers, to assess its suitability as feedstock.

Later in the month, FPX secured an option to earn up to 100 percent of the Advocate nickel property in Newfoundland, which was also named the first designated asset under its generative alliance with the Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security, supporting a planned exploration program.

At the start of Q4, FPX Nickel signed an exploration agreement with the Takla Nation covering its Klow property in Central British Columbia, establishing a collaborative framework for early-stage work and protocols for environmental protection, employment and more.

Later in the quarter, the company received UL Solutions’ ECOLOGO certification, which verifies sustainable practices in the mineral exploration sector. FPX is the first company in Canada operating outside Québec to do so, according to the release.

FPX opened 2026 by qualifying for an upgrade to the OTCQX Best Market, with its shares now trading under the ticker FPOCF.

Two days later, FPX shares reached a one year high of C$0.69 on January 7, 2026.

4. Battery Mineral Resources (TSXV:BMR)

Yearly gain: 125 percent
Market cap: C$22.15 million
Share price: C$0.18

Battery Mineral Resources is focused on developing into a mid-tier copper producer, and recently restarted mine and mill operations at the Punitaqui Mining Complex in Chile.

In Canada, the company holds the largest land position in Ontario’s historic Cobalt district, where it is exploring high-grade primary cobalt deposits at McAra, Gowganda and Elk Lake. Its portfolio also includes energy services and mineral exploration assets in North America, along with graphite projects in South Korea.

In late October, Battery Mineral Resources said it was evaluating strategic options for its Gowganda silver tailings project, located northeast of Sudbury, Ontario. The project lies in one of the country’s most productive past silver-cobalt districts, and the Gowganda mining camp produced 60 million ounces of silver and 1.3 million pounds of cobalt between 1910 and 1969. Gowganda hosts four former mines and associated tailings historically estimated to contain 2.96 million ounces of silver.

On October 16, Battery Mineral Resources reported strong operational performance at its Punitaqui copper project in Chile, driven by improved underground production and plant optimization. Battery Mineral Resources is also advancing development of additional underground operations at Cinabrio Norte and Dalmacia to support further growth from Punitaqui.

At the start of 2026, Battery Mineral Resources unveiled the decision to sell 100 percent of its interest in the Gowganda silver-cobalt tailings project mining leases to Nord Precious Metals (TSXV:NTH,OTCQB:CCWOF).

“We are pleased to enter into this transaction for our shareholders, providing approximately $6.0 million of value along with a 3.0 percent NSR Royalty,” said Laz Nikeas, CEO of Battery Mineral Resources.

Days later, on January 7 the company launched a non-brokered private placement to raise C$34.89 million. The news items helped push shares of Battery Mineral Resources to a one year high of C$0.20 on January 12.

5. Wheaton Precious Metals (TSX:WPM)

Yearly gain: 122.77 percent
Market cap: C$82.43 billion
Share price: C$181.56

Wheaton Precious Metals is one of the largest gold and silver royalty and streaming companies.

It has investments in 18 operating mines and 28 development projects across four continents, including a cobalt streaming agreement for Vale’s (NYSE:VALE) Voisey’s Bay nickel mine in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.

Voisey’s Bay is currently in a transitional phase, shifting from the depleted Ovoid open pit to full underground production.

According to Wheaton’s Q3 release, Voisey’s Bay produced 604,000 pounds of attributable cobalt, a year-over-year increase of 52 percent. This came as the underground mine at Voisey’s Bay continued to ramp up, with full production expected in 2026’s second half.

In November, Wheaton closed its gold stream deal with Carcetti, now Hemlo Mining (TSXV:HMMC), providing US$300 million in upfront funding tied to the Hemlo mine transaction. The deal delivers immediate production and cash flow to Wheaton while anchoring a broader recapitalization that supports the asset’s transition under new ownership.

Wheaton shares hit a one year high of C$182.07 on January 13, 2026, as silver and gold continued to hold at historically high price levels.

Cobalt chokepoints: DRC dominance, China and the Lobito Corridor

With the concentration of cobalt output stemming from two nations, supply chain security has come into focus. An issue Roman Aubry, nickel and cobalt analyst at Benchmark Mineral Intelligence expects to last through 2026.

“2025 has demonstrated the risks associated with having a single country being

He added: “Looking ahead to 2026 it’s clear that the market has to anticipate continued uncertainty from the DRC. While they’ve announced a detailed quota system for the next two years, the DRC reserves the right to adjust it as it sees fit. Given the current ex-DRC cobalt stocks, Benchmark expects there to be significant risk of demand destruction as we approach the end of the year, therefore it is likely the DRC will need to adjust the export quota.”

Concern over China’s control of battery and critical metal supply chains is also likely to carry over through the year, as tensions between Washington and Beijing oscillate and the US looks to fortify its access to the metals.

Aubry pointed to the Lobito Corridor as a key factor in the US securing ex-China supply.

The major rail and port project linking the mineral-rich Copperbelt of the DRC and Zambia to Angola’s Atlantic coast, could reshape the global cobalt supply chain by lowering export costs, speeding transit times and diversifying routes away from China‑dominated infrastructure.

The US International Development Finance Corporation has committed hundreds of millions of dollars in funding to modernize the corridor’s rail and port facilities, potentially boosting annual transport capacity by an order of magnitude and cutting costs by as much as 30 percent compared with existing routes.

“In regards to Western-China relations, we’ve seen the US become increasingly conscious of its reliance on China refining for critical minerals, taking steps to improve ties with the DRC,” said Aubry. “This has mainly come in the form of a strategic agreement to develop the Lobito rail corridor, which would allow the DRC to export cobalt directly to the Atlantic, as well as the establishment of a coordinated Strategic Minerals Reserve within the DRC.”

Is cobalt substitution in the cards?

Before the DRC levied export controls over cobalt exports human rights and child labour concerns around artisinal cobalt extraction plagued the sector.

Paired with the supply chain challenges, battery manufacturers began shifting chemistry away from cobalt-rich formulas, like nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) and lithium-iron-phiosphate (LFP) began growing in market share.

In 2025, demand for nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) battery cells remained strong in markets focused on longer driving range and performance, particularly in North America and Europe, but lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cells continued their rapid ascent, driven by cost advantages and growing adoption in China and entry-level electric vehicles (EVs).

Industry forecasts project LFP’s share of global battery cell capacity to exceed 60 percent in 2025, reflecting broader shifts toward lower-cost chemistry amid affordability pressures, while NCM and lithium nickel cobalt aluminum oxide (NCA) cells continue to dominate premium segments where energy density remains critical.

Amid a shrinking EV market share, Aubry pointed to overall growth in the EV segment, as well as cobalt’s other end uses as factors likely to support demand.

“While battery chemistries are expected to shift towards lower-cobalt or cobalt- free chemistries, the volume of EV batteries is expected to more than offset this,” he explained.

“From all applications, cobalt demand is expected to grow almost 80 percent in the next decade,

He added: “Outside of the EV space, portables are an area of significant growth, particularly batteries for newer technologies like drones. Industrial applications also present a stable source of growth.”

Market volatility drives need for raw materials hedging

During a presentation at Benchmark Week 2025, Casper Rawles, COO at Benchmark Intelligence, highlighted the growing value of hedging for companies operating in the battery raw materials space.

According to Benchmark data, raw materials could account for 20 percent to 40 percent of battery costs by 2030, exceeding 50 percent for some chemistries.

For EV manufacturers such as BYD (OTCPL:BYDDF), annual spending on critical battery materials could exceed US$2 billion, leaving margins highly exposed to price swings.

Against that backdrop, Rawles underscored the need for more sophisticated hedging strategies, noting that shifts in sentiment, supply, demand and geopolitics can reprice these markets with little warning.

Hedging allows companies to manage commodity price volatility by offsetting exposure in the physical market with positions in the futures market.

Producers and consumers typically hedge either to lock in prices that protect margins or to secure fixed pricing tied to external contracts, buying or selling futures to counterbalance their underlying risk. In practice, firms can tailor these strategies to reduce price exposure partially or eliminate it altogether, depending on their risk tolerance.

As Rawles explained, cobalt’s 2025 price rebound emphasizes how exposed the market is to geopolitics, with the DRC’s export controls triggering a rapid reversal from oversupply to scarcity.

“Ultimately we saw an export quota being put in place. Now that quota is pretty limited,’ said Rawles.

‘When we think about the type of volumes we’re expecting to be needed by the market it’s really not going to be sufficient to fulfill market demand. That really shows how quickly the fortunes of these minerals can change,” he added, noting that the DRC’s dominance gives it outsized influence over global pricing.

Rawles stressed that cobalt volatility is no longer driven by supply and demand alone, but by sentiment and geopolitics, with major implications for battery makers and automakers, where raw materials account for a large share of costs.

“Even if you think you know the outlook at the start of the year, that can change in a heartbeat,” he said.

Graphite prices under pressure

Speaking at the Benchmark Week conference in November 2025, Adam Webb, head of energy raw materials at Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, explained why flake graphite prices — as well as the majority of the battery metals suite — saw weak prices through early 2025, despite a promising demand outlook.

“Essentially, what’s happened here is demand has grown very strongly, but supply growth has actually outpaced demand growth,” Webb said. “Therefore you’ve got the markets in a surplus, and that weighs on prices.”

As graphite prices sank in 2024, a ripple effect impacted supply, hitting the production side hard.

“With flake graphite, you’ll notice it’s actually supply has increased less than demand, and that is because prices were so low that in 2024 you had significant Chinese capacity come offline,’ Webb commented.

‘Also in flake graphite you have competition with synthetic graphite.”

Graphite anodes remain the dominant choice for lithium-ion batteries, but price divergence has sharpened competition between natural and synthetic materials.

Synthetic graphite is expected to retain the largest market share in the near term, thanks to its superior fast-charging performance, durability and electrolyte compatibility. However, natural graphite is gaining attention for its lower cost, higher capacity and lower energy intensity. This competition has divided the market as prices for flake graphite remain low, further pressured by weak demand in the industrial segment.

“Flake pricing on the other hand continues to feel the impact of lower steel demand in 2025 amid declines in Asian and European production in the first seven months of the year,” a September Fastmarkets report notes.

“Expectations among market participants are that production in China will continue to decline through the end of the year and continue to weigh on overall global production.”

Energy storage surge to underpin long-term graphite demand

Despite the market challenges noted by Benchmark’s Webb, the metals consultancy and price reporting agency forecasts 9 percent growth in graphite demand between 2025 and 2035.

This uptick will be strongly supported by a rise in the EV and battery energy storage system (BESS) segments.

“Flake graphite, you’ll see that that price is going up despite the oversupplied market, and that is because to meet that rising demand, there needs to be more supply coming online, and a lot of that supply coming online is high cost. So that’s going to push up the price support, basically, gradually through time,” Webb said.

The BESS market emerged as a major growth driver in 2025, reinforcing long-term demand for battery raw materials, including graphite. As Benchmark outlines, the market for BESS is expected to register roughly 44 percent growth for 2025, almost double the rate of overall lithium-ion battery demand.

As a result, energy storage is set to account for a quarter of total battery demand in 2025.

In North America, momentum has been uneven.

While interest in large-scale storage remains strong, BESS integrators faced mounting pressure in 2025 due to limited domestic battery cell supply, project delays and shrinking margins.

Several leading system providers reported weaker financial results, highlighting the risks of heavy reliance on imported cells and fragmented supply chains.

In Europe, deployed energy storage capacity surpassed 100 gigawatts by November, with batteries accounting for the vast majority of new installations. China, by contrast, saw a renewed surge in energy storage battery shipments. Policy reforms introduced under “Document No. 136” shifted renewable power toward market-based pricing and removed mandatory storage requirements, allowing battery projects to compete on commercial returns.

Together, these regional dynamics underline the growing importance of stationary storage in the global battery market. As BESS capacity expands alongside EVs, demand for graphite anodes is expected to remain structurally strong, even as supply chains and pricing face continued adjustment.

Establishing an ex-China anode supply chain

At Benchmark Week, industry insiders agreed graphite demand will continue to rise through the decade, but the anode supply chain remains constrained by China’s dominance and the high cost of building alternatives elsewhere.

Today, more than 90 percent of battery-grade anode material is sourced from China, a concentration that has become increasingly untenable for western automakers and cell manufacturers.

“Customers are actively looking for diversification,” said Michael O’Kronley, CEO of Novonix (ASX:NVX,OTCPL:NVNXF), noting that supply security has shifted from a long-term aspiration to an immediate priority.

Yet replacing Chinese supply is proving far from straightforward.

A panel featuring graphite executives highlighted that anode qualification can take years, requiring extensive testing to ensure materials perform consistently over a battery’s full lifespan.

“Battery materials aren’t qualified overnight,” O’Kronley said. “It takes years of co-development and patient capital.”

Cost remains the central obstacle. Building an anode plant in North America can cost three to 10 times more than in China, while customers remain reluctant to pay a premium. “A new supply chain has to be paid for somewhere,” O’Kronley warned, arguing that government support is essential if diversification is to scale.

Natural graphite producers face similar pressures.

Financing has become more difficult amid weak prices, even as long-term demand expectations remain strong.

“We expect demand growth closer to 2030,” said Patrice Boulanger, vice president of sales, marketing and business at Québec-focused Nouveau Monde Graphite (NYSE:NMG), adding that government offtake agreements are increasingly critical to unlocking private financing.

Despite growing interest in silicon, lithium metal and other next-generation anodes, the panelists were unanimous that graphite will remain dominant.

“Graphite is clearly here to stay,” said Viren Hira of Syrah Resources (ASX:SYR,OTCPL:SYAAF), with both natural and synthetic materials expected to underpin battery growth through at least the next decade.

Adding context during his own presentation at Benchmark Week, Webb outlined how cost dynamics are reshaping the anode market, particularly the balance between synthetic and natural graphite.

“On the anode side, we’ve seen a move towards synthetic graphite,” he said, noting that the shift has been driven less by performance and more by economics. Producers, he explained, have increasingly turned to lower-quality, lower-cost feedstocks, enabling them to reduce production costs.

As a result, prices for synthetic anode material have fallen, making it more competitive and supporting its growing share of battery anode demand.

Investor Insight

Transition Metals offers investors exposure to discovery-driven upside across critical and precious metals through a proven project generator model, a diversified Canadian asset portfolio, and a capital-efficient strategy designed to minimize dilution while retaining meaningful discovery and monetization leverage.

Overview

Transition Metals (TSXV:XTM) is a Canada-based, multi-commodity exploration company focused on the discovery of critical and precious metals exclusively within Canada’s most prospective and stable mining jurisdictions. The company has assembled a diversified portfolio of exploration projects spanning platinum group metals, nickel, copper, gold, silver and uranium, providing broad exposure to commodities central to electrification, decarbonization and long-term resource security.

Operating under a disciplined project generator model, Transition advances early-stage assets through geoscience-driven exploration before strategically bringing in partners to participate in funding drilling and development. This approach allows the company to preserve capital, limit shareholder dilution and retain upside through royalties, milestone payments and equity interests, while maintaining operatorship and technical control during key exploration phases.

Transition’s portfolio includes flagship assets such as the Saturday Night/Sunday Lake PGM projects near Thunder Bay, the Gowganda Gold project in Ontario and the Pike Warden polymetallic system in Yukon, alongside a pipeline of additional opportunities across Ontario, British Columbia, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories. Led by an award-winning technical team with a proven discovery record, the company is positioned to create shareholder value through discovery, disciplined capital management and strategic asset monetization within a secure, Canada-focused footprint.

Company Highlights

• Multi-commodity exploration company with a portfolio of projects and royalties, covering gold, nickel, copper, platinum group metals (PGM), cobalt, tungsten and more located in mining-friendly jurisdictions across Canada
• Flagship PGM exposure at the Saturday Night/Sunday Lake projects in the Thunder Bay region
• Discovery-focused project generator model designed to minimize shareholder dilution while maximizing exploration leverage
• Strong treasury position complemented by marketable securities, milestone payments and royalty interests
• Proven management team with multiple industry discovery awards and a long track record of value creation
• Exposure to critical metals themes supported by government funding, flow-through incentives and secure jurisdictions

Key Projects

Saturday Night / Sunday Lake (Ontario)

The Saturday Night and adjacent Sunday Lake projects form one of the most compelling emerging PGM exploration stories in the Thunder Bay region. The properties are associated with early-stage Midcontinent Rift-related mafic-ultramafic intrusions, analogous in age and style to major North American PGM-Ni-Cu deposits such as Eagle (Michigan), Tamarack (Minnesota) and Thunder Bay North (Ontario). Sunday Lake hosts thick, laterally extensive zones of PGM mineralization, while drilling at Saturday Night has confirmed a large rift-related intrusion with basal PGM-Ni-Cu mineralization. Ongoing and planned drilling is focused on expanding the mineralized footprint and testing the basal contact geometry, positioning the project as a potential district-scale PGM system.

Gowganda (Ontario)

Gowganda is a 100-percent-owned, 87 sq km gold project in the historic Gowganda silver-cobalt camp, where Transition reports it made a gold discovery in 2010 less than 1 km from a paved highway. The company describes a widespread gold mineralized system over ~1.25 km of strike, with “visible gold at surface” and highlights including 97 grams per ton (g/t) gold over 40 cm (channel sample) and drill highlights including 2.4 g/t gold over 7.1 m and 82.5 g/t gold over 0.4 m (within 35 m of surface).

Dessert Lake (Northwest Territories)

Dessert Lake is a strategic uranium exploration opportunity in a large, underexplored basin that shares geological similarities with the Athabasca Basin, which hosts a significant portion of the world’s high-grade uranium deposits. Transition holds the exclusive right to stake claims and is seeking a partner to advance the district-scale opportunity, noting prospective settings along the Wopmay fault and along the basal unconformity/crustal fault intersections.

Pike Warden (Yukon)

Pike Warden is a large polymetallic project situated on the northern margin of the Bennett Lake Caldera, one of the largest collapsed caldera complexes in Canada. Pike Warden is an emerging epithermal gold-silver/porphyry copper system near the Yukon–BC border, ~70 km southwest of Whitehorse, where Transition retains the option to earn 100% of the 41 sq km property. Transition reports 25+ zones of gold-silver-copper-molybdenum-lead mineralization identified to date and sampling highlights up to 48.1 g/t gold, 11,270 g/t silver, 7.49 percent copper, 2.37 percent molybdenum and 59.6 percent lead, with recent work and targeting supported by geophysics and systematic sampling.

Jolly (Ontario)

Jolly Gold is a large, 100-percent-owned and optioned land package covering the western extension of the Beardmore–Geraldton greenstone belt, with multiple undrilled occurrences of high-grade gold mineralization. The company highlights major and splay structures intersecting favourable stratigraphy, describing the target as a camp-scale exploration opportunity.

Cryderman (Ontario)

Cryderman is a gold project in the Shining Tree West camp located along the Ridout Deformation Zone and sits 55 km east of IAMGOLS’s Côté gold project and 16 km west of Aris Gold’s Juby gold project. It is a gold-mineralized system over ~500 m of strike hosted in N–S trending, multi-phase quartz-carbonate veins. The company reports channel sample highlights including 9.15 g/t gold over 1.07 m (with additional high-grade sub-intervals).

Maude Lake (Ontario)

The Maud Lake project is a high-tenor nickel-copper-cobalt-PGM magmatic sulphide system located ~10 km north of Schreiber, Ontario. Transition reports surface sampling up to 6.23 percent nickel, 0.719 percent copper, 0.085 percent cobalt, and 1.042 g/t PGM (platinum+palladium+gold), and notes drilling that intersected a semi-continuous zone of magmatic sulphides near the base of a gabbroic intrusion including 20.01 m averaging 0.33 percent nickel and 0.28 percent copper (including 4 m averaging 0.61 percent nickel and 0.52 percent copper).

Homathko (British Columbia)

Homathko is a high-grade, drill-ready gold prospect exposed by receding glaciers in British Columbia, with an interpreted lode gold system traced along ~1.5 km of strike and grab sample highlights up to 87 g/t gold.

Island Copper (Ontario)

Island Copper is an IOCG (iron oxide copper-gold) opportunity north of Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, with Transition reporting two separate mineralized showings along Highway 556. Recent samples and historical drill holes returned values up to 9 percent copper.

Wollaston (Saskatchewan)

Wollaston Copper is a >30 sq km property in north-central Saskatchewan south of the Athabasca Basin, where Transition describes two sediment-hosted base metal target opportunities. The company cites historic drilling by Noranda (1990) including 10.82 m grading 0.25 percent copper and 7.4 m grading 0.49 percent copper (both within 40 m of surface), and a separate zinc showing with 17.0 m grading 2.52 percent zinc and 4.0 m grading 7.18 percent zinc, within the Wollaston Supergroup.

Pipestone (Ontario)

Pipestone is a 33 sq km gold project in the Porcupine camp ~25 km north of Timmins, covering ~13 km of interpreted strike extension of the Pipestone structure (one of two main structural breaks recognized in the Timmins camp). The property is subject to a participating joint venture with Gowest Gold, with provisions for dilution to a 2 percent NSR (with a 1 percent buyback for $1 million).

Bancroft (Ontario)

Bancroft is a southern Ontario nickel-coper-cobalt-PGM greenfield land package that has benefited from ~$5 million in exploration expenditures and includes drilling intersections of 5.05 m averaging 1.98 g/t PGM and 60 m of 1.34 g/t PGM. It comprises 2,789 hectares of mining claims and is located less than a 2-hour drive from Toronto.

Management Team

Scott McLean – President, CEO and Co-founder

Scott McLean has over 30 years of experience in mineral exploration and corporate leadership. He spent 23 years with Falconbridge Limited where he was involved in the discovery of the Nickel Rim South deposit in Sudbury, Ontario. For this work, he was named Prospector of the Year (2004) by the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada. McLean is responsible for corporate vision, capital structure, governance and investor relations, and also serves as an executive director of SPC Nickel Corp.

Greg Collins – Chief Operating Officer and Co-founder

Greg Collins is a professional geologist with more than 25 years of experience across gold and base metals exploration, resource estimation, mine planning, operations and management. His career spans Canada and international jurisdictions. Collins is a founding partner and COO of Transition Metals and is also CEO of Canadian Gold Miner.

Carmelo Marrelli – Chief Financial Officer

Carmelo Marrelli is a chartered professional accountant and principal of The Marrelli Group of Companies. He acts as CFO for a number of public issuers on the TSX, TSX Venture Exchange and CSE, bringing financial, governance and regulatory expertise. Marrelli holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Toronto and is a member of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators.

Bill Stormont – Business Development

Bill Stormont is a capital markets executive with experience in institutional equity (buy-side, sell-side and fund management), investor relations and stakeholder engagement. He has served in equity analyst and institutional sales roles, worked as a European equity fund manager, and supports business development, partnerships and strategic communications for Transition Metals. Stormont holds an MBA from the University of British Columbia.

Tom Hart – Chief Geologist

Tom Hart is an award-winning geologist with over 40 years of exploration experience across government and industry, including Inco and the Ontario Geological Survey. He specializes in lode gold and base metal systems and has expertise in soil, till and rock analytical methods. Hart was co-recipient of the Northwestern Ontario Prospectors Association’s Discovery of the Year Award (2004).

Benjamin Williams – Exploration Manager Geologist

Benjamin Williams has more than 10 years of geological experience and has been with Transition Metals since 2018. He obtained a BSc with Honours in Geology from Saint Mary;s University, Halifax, followed by Graduate work at Carleton University in Ottawa, where his work focused on igneous petrology and isotope geochemistry. Prior to joining Transition Metals, Mr. Williams worked in collaboration with the Northwest Territories Geological Survey, as a Senior Mapping and Research Assistant, where he conducted various value-added mapping and isotopic research programs on Neoarchean volcanic belts within the Slave Craton, with a focus on VMS-style mineralization.

Sarah Reese – Project Geologist

Sarah Reese is a geological engineer with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Geological Engineering from Queen’s University. She contributes to field programs and geological interpretation, while developing her professional expertise through ongoing education and field experience.

Investor Insight

Sun Summit Minerals is targeting the delineation of a multi-million-ounce gold-silver resource at its flagship JD project. With strategic positioning in an emerging consolidation hotspot, compelling valuation metrics, and a track record of discovery, Sun Summit is primed to deliver substantial value creation in the coming quarters.

Overview

Sun Summit Minerals (TSXV:SMN,OTCQB:SMREF) is a Canadian mineral exploration company focused on developing its district-scale gold and copper projects in British Columbia.

The company has completed its 2025 exploration programs at the flagship JD Project and its inaugural exploration program at the Theory Project, located in the Toodoggone District.

Complementing JD and Theory is the company’s Buck project, a large, bulk-tonnage gold-silver system near Houston, BC, with an initial NI 43-101 resource estimate and significant exploration upside.

With capital in hand, a five-year exploration permit secured, and a camp established at JD, Sun Summit is executing a focused strategy to build scale, unlock resource potential and drive shareholder value. Under the leadership of its new CEO, the company has re-focused its strategy with a sharpened vision, a strengthened technical and leadership team, and a portfolio of high-quality, strategically located assets positioned to drive long-term shareholder value.

Company Highlights

• Tiered Exploration Strategy: Sun Summit Minerals is advancing a focused portfolio in British Columbia with its flagship JD Project in the Toodoggone District as the primary discovery driver, supported by early-stage exploration at the nearby Theory Project, and complemented by the Buck Project in central BC, a strategic asset with a published mineral resource estimate.
• Strategic Location: Sun Summit’s assets are located in well-established and mining-friendly regions of British Columbia. The flagship JD project and early-stage Theory Project are situated in the prolific Toodoggone district—home to Thesis Gold and Centerra’s Kemess Mine, while Buck lies in Central BC near the Blackwater, Huckleberry, and Equity Silver mines.
• Potential for Multiple Expansion: Trading at approximately US$38/oz gold equivalent (EV/oz) based on Buck alone, with no value currently ascribed to the JD Project, the company represents a deep value opportunity compared to its next-door neighbour, Thesis Gold, which trades at approximately US$136/oz. Success at the drill bit from ongoing exploration at JD could support a higher valuation over time.
• Experienced, Capital Markets-Savvy Leadership: CEO Niel Marotta brings 30 years of capital markets acumen, including experience from Fidelity and Orezone. The broader team includes senior geologists and advisors with decades of success in gold discoveries and mine development in BC.
• Positioned for Consolidation: With majors like Freeport, Centerra, and Skeena investing heavily in adjacent properties, Sun Summit’s flagship JD Project is strategically located and advancing at the right time in the Lassonde Curve to benefit from industry-wide M&A and consolidation trends.

Key Projects

JD & Theory Projects

The JD & Theory projects span more than 25,000 hectares in the heart of the Toodoggone mining district in north-central BC, one of Canada’s most prospective belts for epithermal gold-silver and porphyry copper-gold systems. The district is home to Thesis Gold’s Ranch and Lawyers deposits (4.6 Moz gold equivalent, C$700 million market cap), Centerra’s Kemess underground development, and TDG Gold’s Shasta-Baker project. Infrastructure around the project includes hydroelectric grid access, the nearby Sturdee airstrip and all-season roads.

Results from the 2025 drill campaign at Creek Zone

The JD project hosts a 4.5 km mineralized corridor, known as Creek-Finn, with multiple underexplored targets showing evidence of both high-grade veins and broad disseminated gold systems. Historic and recent drill highlights include:

• 2.1 grams per ton (g/t) gold over 122.5 m including 121 g/t gold over 1.5 m (CZ-24-004)
• 11.7 g/t gold over 22 m including 61.2 g/t gold over 4 m (CZ97-008)
• 7.3 g/t gold over 35.7 m including 215.4 g/t gold over 1 m (JD95-0472)

The Creek Zone features high-grade epithermal veins within broader disseminated zones, supported by strong IP anomalies and gold-in-soil results up to 12.2 g/t gold. The Finn Zone hosts near-surface mineralization with extensive historical drilling (~270 holes) and is open in all directions. Other targets include McClair (porphyry copper), East McClair (copper-gold skarn) and Moosehorn.

Sun Summit Minerals has completed its 2025 21-hole, 6,864 -meter drill program, successfully intersecting gold mineralization in all holes. The results have defined a northwest-trending, structurally controlled zone measuring approximately 750 meters by 300 meters and extending to a vertical depth of around 150 meters. The zone remains open both along strike and at depth, highlighting significant potential for further expansion. A five-year permit secured in April 2025 provides exploration continuity through 2030.

Sun Summit can earn 100 percent of the JD project by making staged cash/share payments and completing work commitments through 2029. Following the completion of its 2025 exploration program, the company closed an $11.5 million financing on December 23, 2025, fully funding the 2026 exploration program and strengthening its ability to advance the earn-in without near-term dilution.

Buck Project

The 100 percent owned Buck project spans 52,000 hectares and is located near key deposits, including Artemis Gold’s Blackwater (8 Moz gold), Imperial’s Huckleberry copper mine, and Newmont’s historic Equity Silver mine. Buck features near-surface bulk-tonnage gold-silver mineralization with porphyry copper-molybdenum potential at depth.

In February 2025, Sun Summit published its inaugural NI 43-101 mineral resource:

• Indicated: 1.15 Mt @ 0.519 g/t gold equivalent (19,100 oz)
• Inferred: 52.2 Mt @ 0.489 g/t gold equivalent (820,400 oz)

Mineralization remains open in all directions.

Buck is considered a strategic asset providing leverage to rising gold prices and future transaction potential, but currently receives minimal capital allocation as JD is prioritized.

Sun Summit can earn 100 percent of the JD project by making staged cash/share payments and completing work commitments through 2029. With ~C$6 million earmarked for the project this year alone, Sun Summit is expected to fulfill its 2025 and 2026 earn-in obligations without additional equity raises.

Management Team

Niel Marotta – Chief Executive Officer and Director

Niel Marotta has three decades of capital markets experience, including a successful tenure at Fidelity (FMRCo.), where he managed the top-performing Select Gold Fund and oversaw >$1 billion in AUM. He was previously VP at Orezone Resources, where he helped lead its C$350 million acquisition by IAMGOLD. Marotta has raised over $1 billion in financing and is driving Sun Summit’s transition from a legacy explorer to a discovery-focused value generator.

Brian Lock – Executive Chairman

A veteran of the mining industry with 40+ years of executive experience, Brian Lock has led multiple public companies, including Castle Peak Mining and Scorpio Gold. His expertise spans project development, M&A and corporate governance.

Waseem Javed – Chief Financial Officer

A seasoned mining CFO, Waseem Javed ensures disciplined capital deployment and financial controls. His experience spans junior explorers and mid-tier producers across Canada and the US.

Ken MacDonald – VP Exploration

Ken MacDonald is a registered professional geologist with over 30 years in mineral exploration and permitting in BC. Formerly with the BC Mines Branch and multiple juniors, he leads Sun Summit’s technical programs and NI 43-101 compliance.

Christopher Leslie – Technical Advisor

An expert in porphyry and epithermal systems, Christopher Leslie led the discovery of the 8 Moz Blackwater deposit while at Richfield Ventures, and later served as VP exploration for Tower Resources. He was instrumental in advancing the JD-Theory project during its prior ownership.

Robert D. Willis – Senior Advisor

Founder of several successful exploration companies, including Pioneer Metals and Manhattan Minerals, Robert Willis has 35+ years of technical and executive experience across North and South America.

Terry Salman – Strategic Advisor

Founder of Salman Partners and one of Canada’s most influential mining financiers, Terry Salman has backed dozens of successful juniors over a 40-year career in mining investment banking.

Investment Insight

Harvest Gold offers investors a compelling opportunity to participate in early-stage exploration within Quebec’s prolific Abitibi Greenstone Belt – home to some of Canada’s richest gold deposits – through three strategically located and 100 percent owned properties, with a flagship asset positioned for significant discovery upside.

Overview

Harvest Gold (TSXV:HVG)is a Canadian junior exploration company advancing a portfolio of three 100 percent owned gold projects – Mosseau, Urban Barry and LaBelle – located within Quebec’s world-renowned Abitibi Greenstone Belt. With more than 200 million ounces of historical gold production, the Abitibi is one of the most productive gold regions globally. Harvest Gold’s properties are strategically positioned within and adjacent to the Urban Barry Greenstone Belt, an emerging gold camp that has attracted sustained interest from major mining companies.

The Urban Barry Belt hosts several high-grade, multi-million-ounce deposits, including the Windfall deposit, developed by Osisko Mining and now owned by Gold Fields, as well as Bonterra’s Gladiator and Barry deposits. As consolidation by major producers continues across the belt, Harvest Gold controls three of the few remaining independent, district-scale land packages. With excellent road access, nearby infrastructure and newly exposed bedrock from recent forest fires, the company’s properties offer exceptional discovery potential.

Harvest Gold’s strategy is underpinned by a highly experienced management and technical team. CEO Rick Mark brings over 30 years of leadership in public resource companies, having guided his 2000’s group of four companies to peak valuations of approximately C$200 million. The technical team includes Louis Martin, a two-time AEMQ “Discovery of the Year” award winner, and Warren Bates, former VP exploration at Pelangio Exploration and part of the Blackwater discovery team. Together, the team brings deep expertise in structural geology, Abitibi-focused exploration, and discovery-driven value creation.

The company is supported by Crescat Capital, a respected institutional investor with a strong record of backing early-stage discoveries. Crescat’s involvement reflects the endorsement of its strategic advisor, Dr. Quinton Hennigh, who has highlighted the district-scale opportunity created by Harvest Gold’s land position along the Wilson Pluton–volcanic contact.

Company Highlights

• Flagship Mousseau Project: Large-scale, advanced-stage exploration property with multiple confirmed gold-bearing shear zones.
• Tier-one address: All projects located in Quebec’s Urban Barry Greenstone Belt where Gold Fields recently acquired Osisko Mining’s world-class Windfall deposit and much of the rest of the Urban Barry belt.
• Institutional Backing: Crescat Capital, with renowned exploration geologist Dr. Quinton Hennigh, owns 19+ percent of Harvest Gold.
• Skilled Technical Team: Leadership includes seasoned geologists and executives with proven discovery and development track records.
• Favourable Jurisdiction: Operates in Quebec, a politically stable, mining-friendly province with excellent infrastructure and low exploration costs.
• Strategic Timing: Harvest Gold has commenced its maiden drill program at Mosseau during a period of historically strong gold prices.

Key Projects

Mousseau Gold Project

The Mosseau Gold Project is Harvest Gold’s flagship asset, comprising approximately 195 claims covering about 9,740 hectares in the northern Abitibi Greenstone Belt of Quebec. Located roughly 15 kilometres east of Lebel-sur-Quévillon, the project benefits from year-round road access and established regional infrastructure. The property is bordered to the north by Gold Fields and Cartier Resources and lies near a large claim block staked by noted prospector Shawn Ryan, placing Mosseau within an active and highly prospective exploration corridor.

Geologically, Mosseau straddles two major structural corridors: the Morono Shear Zone and the Kiask River Fault Zone. These structures host classic shear-related gold mineralization, characterized by multiple stacked quartz–sericite shear zones ranging from less than one metre to more than 30 metres in width, with demonstrated continuity along strike and at depth. To date, 49 significant surface gold showings have been identified, along with a historical, non–NI 43-101 compliant gold resource at the Morono Zone.

In 2024, Harvest Gold completed a high-resolution airborne magnetic survey over the entire Mosseau property. This modern dataset identified previously unrecognized structures and magnetic domains, significantly refining drill targeting. Follow-up mapping, prospecting, and soil geochemistry—greatly enhanced by new bedrock exposure from the 2023 forest fires—outlined multiple high-priority targets along both the Morono and Kiask River structural corridors.

In 2025, Harvest Gold commenced its maiden diamond drill program at Mosseau, targeting priority zones in the Northern and Central areas of the property. Results from the first six drill holes confirmed the discovery of a new, previously untested mineralized horizon approximately 100 metres east of the Trench 1B showing. This newly identified horizon is associated with a moderate induced polarization anomaly that can be traced for approximately 600 metres along strike and remains open.

Recent drilling highlights include:

• 1.90 g/t gold over 5.4 metres, including 8.67 g/t gold over 0.6 metres
• 1.10 g/t gold over 6.0 metres, including 2.02 g/t gold over 1.5 metres
• Higher-grade gold associated with semi-massive sulphides containing elevated silver and base metals (copper, zinc, lead)

Fourteen drill holes totaling 3,030 metres have now been completed, representing approximately 60 percent of the planned 5,000-metre program. Drilling is ongoing, with results continuing to demonstrate the scale, continuity, and polymetallic character of the Mosseau system.

With its district-scale footprint, proven gold endowment, improving geological model, and active drilling success, the Mosseau Project is well positioned to evolve into a significant discovery with strong potential to attract strategic partners or acquirers.

Urban Barry Property

Acquired from EGR Exploration, the Urban Barry property comprises 6,879 hectares located west of the Osisko/Gold Fields Windfall property. The project spans 20 km of favorable strike length and sits along the southern margin of the Urban Barry Greenstone Belt.

Key advantages:

• Analogous geological setting to Windfall and Gladiator
• Road-accessible with mapped deformation zones and quartz-vein hosted gold indicators
• 2024 magnetic surveys and fieldwork completed; drilling strategy is in development

LaBelle Project

Staked in 2024, LaBelle covers 3,394 hectares and represents a 9 km southeast extension of the Kiask River Fault. It mirrors the geological setting of Mousseau, with similar NW-SE oriented shear zones and structural contacts between the Wilson Pluton and volcanic sequences.

Though early-stage, LaBelle offers:

• District-scale exploration potential
• Proximity to Harvest’s other assets for operational synergy
• Favorable structural and lithological environment

Management Team

Rick Mark – President, CEO and Chair

With more than 40 years of leadership in public resource companies, Rick Mark previously helmed VMS Ventures, North American Nickel and Pancontinental Uranium, each achieving peak valuations of C$200 million.

Louis Martin – Senior Technical Advisor, Quebec Exploration

A Quebec-focused geological consultant with more than 40 years of experience, Louis Martin is the former VP of exploration at Clifton Star Mining, where he led the team developing the Duparquet deposit. He is a multiple-time recipient of the AEMQ “Discovery of the Year” award.

Pat Donnelly – Independent Director

Recently VP capital markets at Tutor Gold, Pat Donnelly is a former co-founder and president of First Mining Gold, where he executed eight M&A deals growing the company’s market cap from $30 million to $600 million.

Len Brownlie – Independent Director

Len Brownlie brings more than 30 years of executive leadership in mining exploration. He is the former president of Goldrush Resources and director of First Silver Reserve.

Christopher Cherry – CFO and Director

Christopher Cherry has more than 15 years of experience in corporate accounting and audit for public companies. He oversees Harvest Gold’s financial strategy and compliance.

Ed Zablotny – Independent Director

Ed Zablotny boasts over 35 years in venture capital markets with expertise in trading, credit and regulatory compliance.

Warren Bates – Geological Team

Warren Bates is a veteran geologist with 30+ years in gold and base metals exploration. He is the former VP of exploration at Pelangio Exploration and part of the Blackwater deposit discovery team.

Henry Awmack – Geological Team

Henry Awmack is the co-founder of Equity Exploration Consultants, with over 40 years of exploration experience. He was notably involved in early work on the Cobre Panama copper-gold deposit.

Neil Richardson – Geological Team

Neil Richardson is a geological consultant and the VP Explorations for Hudbay Minerals. He led the team behind the discovery and development of the Reed Mine while at VMS Ventures.