Capstone Mining Corp. announces it intends to advance the Cobalt Project at Santo Domingo in Region III, Chile, ("Santo Domingo" or the "Project") to Feasibility as described in the Santo Domingo Project, Region III, Chile NI 43-101 Technical Report and Preliminary Economic Assessment1 (the “Technical Report” or “PEA”). The production of battery-grade cobalt sulphate at Santo Domingo is expected to significantly add to the robust copper-iron-gold project and maximizes the recovery of future facing metals from this rich resource. Downstream cobalt users are actively seeking ethical supply to meet future demand needs and Chile is one of the best mining jurisdictions in the world. In 2020, an estimated 71% of the 133,000 tonnes of cobalt produced globally originated from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the majority of this was shipped to China, the leading importer of mined cobalt and exporter of refined cobalt. Global cobalt sulphate production in 2020 is estimated at 43,000 tonnes of cobalt contained. Of this, greater than 85% was produced in China and greater than 90% originated from DRC intermediates. By 2025, an estimated 140,000 tonnes of cobalt contained in cobalt sulphate will be required for lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries. Cobalt contained in sulphate currently sells at a premium over the cobalt metal benchmark price. The bulk of global cobalt sulphate production is dependent on refining third-party feedstock imported from other countries. The majority of cobalt sulphate producers are currently processing feed that is priced at around 93-94% of the cobalt metal benchmark price. Santo Domingo’s PEA estimated costs of -$4 per pound (net of by-products in cobalt operation) positions it to be a unique, fully integrated producer of battery-grade cobalt sulphate. Santo Domingo will be the only cobalt sulphate project in the Americas not dependent on third-party DRC feed. Santo Domingo’s cobalt processing capacity could supply enough battery-grade material for more than 500,000 electric vehicles (EV’s) annually. According to Darton’s recently published 2020-2021 Cobalt Market Review, Nickel Cobalt Manganese (NCM) is to remain the dominant cathode chemistry in EV batteries and cobalt sulphate is the prime ingredient for NCM precursor materials. By 2025, an estimated 184,000 tonnes of cobalt (or 76% of total cobalt demand) is needed in Li-ion batteries, of which 118,000 tonnes is required for various EV applications. Refer to Figure 1 for Darton’s Cobalt Demand forecast. The $20 million work program will consist of two phases and several stage gates. Following the Phase 1 work program in Q1-2022, Capstone will provide an update to the market on final met work, final process design and updated cobalt resources. The feasibility report is expected by Fourth Quarter 2022 with construction to start in 2023 or 2024 following permitting. The integration of the cobalt project with the copper-iron concentrator has been designed so that, if necessary, pyrite-cobalt concentrate can be safely stored in a lined, wet pond for two years, allowing for the cobalt plant to be built later than the mill. Capstone’s concept for cobalt recovery is based on its bond with pyrite, which is concentrated by preferential flotation on a tailings stream. Approximately 840,000 tonnes per year of pyrite containing 0.6% cobalt and 0.4% copper is expected to be recovered at this step. The concentrate is fed through a five-stage process consisting of roasting, leaching, copper precipitation, cobalt solvent extraction and crystallization to yield battery-grade cobalt sulfate heptahydrate. Recovery of cobalt from pyrite concentrate is expected to be approximately 90% at very low cost due to significant by-products from increased copper recovery, sulfuric acid production and energy generation. The flowsheets are simple and incorporate a series of conventional technologies that are used extensively in the mining industry. The Santo Domingo concentrator is expected to commence construction in late 2021, with first year of operation in 2024.