Emergent Metals Corp. announces that Kennecott Exploration Company ("KEX"), a subsidiary of Rio Tinto Group, has elected to terminate the Option to Earn-in Agreement (the "Agreement") with Emergent on the New York Canyon Property, NV with effect as of June 29, 2023. Pursuant to the exit terms in the Agreement KEX will be providing Emergent with exploration results from the 2023 drill program on the Property.

New York Canyon is located 30 mi (48 km) east of Hawthorne, Nevada and directly south of and abutting Lahontan's Santa Fe Mine. The Property consists of 21 patented claims and 152 unpatented claims owned by Emergent and 265 unpatented claims owned by KEX., for a total of 21 patented claims and 417 unpatented claims (8,700 ac or 3,500 ha in size). The claims are located in two blocks, North and South (the "North Block " and "South Block").

The North Block, subject to the Agreement, consists of 27 unpatented claims. The South Block, subject to the Agreement, consists of 21 patented claims and 390 unpatented claims. As part of its 2023 exploration program, KEX planned to drill two diamond drill holes. One is located on the South Block of claims testing a potential extension of the Copper Queen prospect based on a geophysical anomaly identified in 2022. KEX also planned to drill a second diamond drill hole in the North Block of claims, targeting the Emma prospect, based on soil and rock chip sampling completed in 2022.

KEX completed in 2023 a total of four diamond drill holes totaling 4,359.02 ft (1,238.63 m). In the South Block of claims, Hole NYCN0011 was drilled to a depth of 772.01 ft (235.31 m) and Hole NYCN0012 was drilled to a depth of 1,404.00 ft (427.94 m). In the North Block of claims, Hole EMMA0001 was drilled to a depth of 171.00 ft (52.12 m) and Hole EMMA0002 was drilled to a depth of 2,012.01 ft (613.26 m).

Note EMMA0001, planned at a dip of 77 degrees was terminated by geologists in the field and replaced by EMMA0002, which as drilled at a shallower dip of 60 degrees to better intercept the Emma target. Drill core was quick logged in the field and sent to KEX's core logging facility in Salt Lake City. Core is now being logged in detail and processed, after which samples will be sent to an independent laboratory for assaying.

Additional details on the drill program, assay results, and QA/QC procedures will be provided in future press releases, likely within 60-90 days. Since optioning the Property in February 2020, KEX completed: Geological mapping, Re-assaying of selected intervals of 10 historic core holes, Surface rock chip sampling, UAV magnetic geophysics survey and DEM survey, Passive seismic geophysics survey, Carbon-oxygen isotope analysis, and 5,809.1 m of core drilling in 14 holes. KEX will be transferring exploration data in its possession to Emergent in the near future in accordance with the exit terms of the Agreement.