Empire Metals Limited announced the analytical lab results from the recently completed Reverse Circulation ('RC') drilling programme at the Pitfield Project in Western Australia ('Pitfield' or the 'Project'), which has successfully identified extensive, shallow zones of high-grade, bedded sandstone-hosted TiO2 mineralisation. Empire holds a 70% interest in Pitfield which is comprised of fourgranted Exploration Licences (E70/5465, E70/5876, E70/6320 and E70/6323)covering 1,042km2. Pitfield is located near Three Springs, a town 313km north of Perth, Western Australia on the Midlands Road, which until the opening of the Brand Highway in 1975 was the main road route from Perth to the state's north The analytical lab results from the second RC drilling campaign, a 40 RC drillhole programme totaling a combined 5,718m, have now been received and are summarised in Table 1: "Significant Drill Results".

The drilling was undertaken along the 30km length of the high-density gravity core identified within the regional magnetics anomaly, with particular focus being placed on the higher-grade mineralised areas identified through recent rock chip sampling, geological mapping and diamond drillholes. The RC drilling has shown that these shallower sandstone-rich beds, and the associated higher-grade TiO2 mineralisation, are continuous with the deeper high-grade diamond drillhole intersections drilled in Fourth Quarter 2023 (DD23TOM001 and DD23COS001; RNS dated 29 November 2023) and confirms that there is an abundance of thick, strongly mineralised beds that come to surface within broad areas of this giant mineral system. The RC drilling covered a strike length of over 25 kms and identified near-surface areas containing high-grade TiO2 mineralisation that had not previously been drill-tested.

The TiO2 mineralisation was intersected in every metre of every drillhole, starting from or near surface, and all drillholes ended in TiO2 mineralisation. The drilling confirmed that there is extensive, higher-grade TiO2 mineralisation in the thick sandstone-rich beds, which are returning consistently higher-grade TiO2 mineralisation than the adjacent conglomerate or siltstone-rich beds. As seen in the previous drilling campaigns, the bedded sedimentary rocks have undergone extensive hydrothermal alteration, displaying a basin-wide alteration assemblage of hematite-carbonate-epidote.

Cross-stratal carbonate-quartz veining is also common. The highest grade mineralisation intersected to date is within the central and southern parts of the regional magnetics anomaly, where drill intervals have averaged around 150m grading better than 5.0% TiO2. These holes were drilled into what appears to be coarser sandstones, which potentially had greater porosity and permeability allowing for more intense alteration and mineralisation.

There is evidence of increased carbonate, epidote and hematite alteration within these sandstones which correlates with increased TiO2 grade. The results from this RC drill programme continue to further define the giant scale of this titanium-rich mineral system, with all holes intersecting significant intervals of higher grade TiO2 mineralisation. In addition, these results help to improve geological understanding of the Yandanooka Basin, and in particular the place of higher grade TiO2 mineralisation within sandstone-rich beds within this basin.

The exploration focus has shifted from the original drilling targets at Mt Scratch to two extensive, high-grade zones which were previously identified by surface sampling and subsequently confirmed by recent diamond drilling. With the addition of these latest RC drilling results there is good evidence that these high-grade, sandstone-rich beds are continuous across several kms of strike length. There is also evidence that additional strike-extensive, thick, high-grade sandstone-rich beds are present and parallel the high-grade sandstone-rich bed intersected in this drill programme.

However, to accelerate the economic development of this project towards potential mine development, a focus has been placed upon further delineation, sampling, mineralogical study and metallurgical testing of this particular strike-extensive, thick high-grade mineralised bedded zone. A clustering of higher TiO2 values in rocks was evident from the geological mapping and rock chip sampling programme (announced 13 November 2023), which identified a high-grade area over 3km by 2km ('TOM') in the vicinity of diamond drillhole #2 (DD23TOM001), as well as a 3km by 1km area ('COS') close to diamond drillhole #3 (DD23COS001), where the geochemical analysis of half the rock chip samples exceeded 8% TiO2. The three diamond drillholes, completed in September-October 2023, intersected strong, sediment-hosted titanium mineralisation throughout the length of each hole, including thick, higher grade, bedded intervals, with the bottom of each hole stopped in mineralisation (announced 29 November 2023).

Sampling of the near-surface tops of the diamond drillholes was impractical due to weathering and the friable nature of the near surface sedimentary core samples. Therefore, one of the main objectives for the second RC drill programme was to drill-test this near-surface zone and demonstrate up-dip extensions of the high-grade mineralised sandstone dominant beds that were intersected by the diamond drilling. The RC programme included 10 drillholes in the TOM area, which is at the southern end of the overall giant mineral system.

All of the drill holes at TOM were strongly mineralised, with half of the drillholes having mineralisation grading over 5.0% TiO2. RC23TOM002, which intersected 168m @ 6.91% TiO2 from 12m depth, was drilled to target the shallow up-dip interval of the higher-grade bedded mineralisation previously reported in diamond drill hole DD23TOM001, which intersected 297.1m @ 6.10% TiO2 from 111.4m. The RC drill interval confirms that the higher-grade, broad, sandstone-bedded mineralisation comes to surface at an interpreted 65 degree dip angle.

The RC programme also included 13 drillholes into the COS area, which is located in the central western portion of the giant mineral system. All of the drill holes at COS were strongly mineralised, with several of the drillholes intersecting intervals of mineralisation grading over 4% TiO2. RC23COS011, which intersected 154m @ 4.53% TiO2 from 0m, was drilled to target the shallow up-dip interval of the higher-grade bedded mineralisation previously reported in diamond drill holeDD23COS001 which intersected 173.2m @ 5.76% TiO2from 18.6m.