New Frontier Minerals Announces Binding Option to Acquire 90% of Advanced Pomme Rare Earth Elements Project in Quebec from Metallium Ltd.

Metallium to Serve as Processing and Technology Partner

PERTH, Australia, Feb. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- New Frontier Minerals Ltd. (ASX: NFM; OTCQB: NFMXF; LSE: NFM) announced it has entered into a binding option and earn-in agreement with the right to acquire a majority (90%) interest in the Pomme REE Project from Metallium Ltd. (ASX: MTM; OTCQX: MTMCF and MTMLY). The project is located approximately 310 miles northwest of Montreal in Quebec and consists of 43 mineral claims, covering approximately nine square miles. New Frontier holds the exclusive and binding option to acquire 90% of the project. More information can be found here: 2924-03055753-6A1311626&v=undefined.

The acquisition provides New Frontier with a strategic foothold in the North American critical minerals supply chain and complements the Company's heavy rare earth portfolio in Australia.

"This transaction materially advances our critical minerals strategy," said Gerrard Hall, chairman of New Frontier Minerals. "Pomme is a large, carbonatite-hosted REE system in a proven Quebec district, with historical drilling that has confirmed scale and continuity. The earn-in structure of this agreement provides a capital-efficient pathway for growth, while early integration of Metallium as processing and technology partner further enhances the opportunity. New Frontier's board believes Pomme's scale, location and upside strongly position New Frontier to deliver meaningful shareholder value and brings us a presence in the all-important North American critical minerals market."

Initial activities will target conventional metallurgical studies and work and Metallium's Flash Joule Heating (FJH) test work on existing drill samples to produce an upgraded REE concentrate. Canadian Government support and existing arrangements with local Cree First Nations of Waswanipi are already in place.

MTM completed a 13-hole diamond drilling program totaling approximately 3.5 miles at its Pomme Rare Earth Element and Niobium Project. Carbonatite-hosted REE-Nb mineralization was intersected in every drill hole, confirming the presence of a large, laterally extensive mineralized system exceeding 2km that remains open at depth. The historic work program has significantly advanced the geological understanding of the complex, with early interpretations indicating higher-grade mineralization occurring within a ring structure surrounding a magnetic ultramafic carbonatite core. Large portions of this prospective ring structure remain untested due to the broad drill spacing, presenting clear potential for further discovery through follow-up drilling.

New Frontier Minerals Limited is an Australian-based focused explorer working to develop multi-commodity assets that demonstrate future potential as economic mining operations. Through application of disciplined and structured exploration, New Frontier has identified assets deemed core and is actively progressing these interests. The Company's current focus is on advancing exploration activity at the Harts Range Niobium, Uranium and Heavy Rare Earths Project in the Northern Territory of Australia. Other assets include the NWQ Copper Project, situated on the copper belt district north of Mt. Isa in Queensland.

SOURCE New Frontier Minerals