St. Lewis, Newfoundland and Labrador--(Newsfile Corp. - March 19, 2026) - Search Minerals Inc. (TSXV: SMY) (OTC Pink: SHCMF) ("Search Minerals" or the "Company") is pleased to report the results of the 2025 channel sampling program at the Fox Run and three additional Critical Rare Earth Element ("CREE") prospects in southeastern Labrador.
The program consisted of sampling both outcrop and excavator-trenched channels in exposed bedrock at the Fox Run, Foxy Lady, Krazy Fox and Silver Fox prospects near St. Lewis, Labrador. Channel assay grades and widths from new channels at Fox Run are comparable to those reported for the Foxtrot Open Pit Indicated Mineral Resource.
Importantly, the Fox Run and Foxy Lady prospects occur along the same mineralized belt between the Company's Foxtrot and Deep Fox deposits, two of the most advanced rare earth deposits in the emerging Port Hope Simpson-St. Lewis CREE district. The Krazy Fox and Silver Fox prospects occur up to 2 km west of the Foxtrot Deposit along the same regional trend. The proximity of these prospects to the Foxtrot and Deep Fox resources highlights the potential for additional mineralized zones to be defined within a short distance of the Company's existing deposits and potential future mining infrastructure (see Figure 1).
HIGHLIGHTS OF 2025 EXPLORATION PROGRAM
- Fox Run Prospect - Three channel samples ranging from 6.18m to 18.18m in width returned CREE values comparable to those reported for the Foxtrot Open Pit Indicated Mineral Resource (Table 1);
- Channel sample assay highlights include:
- FRC-25-01 (channel): 164 ppm Dy, 1200 ppm Nd, 321 ppm Pr, 28.0 ppm Tb over 18.18m;
- FRC-25-03 (channel): 200 ppm Dy, 1476 ppm Nd, 402 ppm Pr, 33.7 ppm Tb over 7.08m;
- FLC-25-05 (channel): 194 ppm Dy, 1307 ppm Nd, 344 ppm Pr, 33.4 ppm Tb over 4.24m;
- Fox Run remains open along strike, and additional, excavator-supported, channel sampling is planned to further delineate the mineralized zone and advance the prospect toward "drill-ready" status;
- Foxy Lady Prospect - channel sampling confirms the presence of two mineralized bands about 4m wide, with assay results comparable to those reported for the Foxtrot Open Pit Indicated Mineral Resource;
- The Krazy Fox and Silver Fox Prospects - Occur within a continuous mineralized zone that contains Zr-Hf-LREE-enriched mineralization relative to the Foxtrot deposits.
Jason Macintosh, Interim CEO, comments: "Search Minerals is evaluating these very prospective mineralized zones to explore for additional resources for a Foxtrot-Deep Fox CREE mining operation. The discovery of additional deposits within 10 km of the Foxtrot and Deep Fox resources would provide material to extend the life of the mining operation in the St. Lewis area."
Figure 1 - St. Lewis Area, Labrador - Location of Fox Run, Foxy Lady, Krazy Fox and Silver Fox Prospects Relative to the Deep Fox and Foxtrot Deposits.
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Fox Run Prospect: It is located approximately 2.5 km east of the Foxtrot Deposit and occurs in the same CREE-enriched felsic peralkaline unit as this deposit (see Figure 1). The 2025 program consisted of 7 hand-dug channels measuring a total of 128m.
Three Fox Run channels (see Table 1), containing intervals of 6.18m to 18.18m of REE mineralization, have similar values to the Foxtrot Open Pit Indicated Mineral Resource (Table 1; see Search Minerals News Release dated April 11, 2022). Channel FRC-25-01 is located approximately 640m west of Channels FRC-25-02 and FRC-25-03, and 1,800m east of the Foxtrot deposit.
The Fox Run Prospect occurs along strike from the Foxtrot deposit and is contained within the same CREE-enriched felsic peralkaline stratigraphic unit. Geological mapping and a continuous magnetic anomaly suggest the potential for mineralization between the three Fox Run channels reported here.
Due to limited outcrop exposure in the area, an excavator-supported channel program is planned to establish a link and evaluate the continuity of mineralization between the existing Fox Run channels. This work is intended to advance the Fox Run Prospect toward "drill-ready" status.
Table 1 - Comparison of the Foxtrot Indicated Open Pit Resource to selected assay results from the 2025 Channel Programs at Fox Run, Foxy Lady and Silver Fox prospects

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Foxy Lady Prospect: The Foxy Lady Prospect is located approximately 3.7 km west of and along strike from the Deep Fox deposit and contains CREE-enriched felsic peralkaline volcanic rocks comparable to those that host the Deep Fox mineralization.
A total of 8 channel samples, totaling 61m, were completed during the 2025 program. Channel sampling confirmed the presence of two east-west trending mineralized units approximately 40m apart, averaging approximately 4m in width and extending for about 370m along strike. Additional excavator-supported trenching is planned to extend the existing channels and expose bedrock in nearby covered areas to further evaluate the continuity and extent of mineralization.
Krazy Fox Prospect: The Krazy Fox Prospect is located less than 1 km west of the Foxtrot deposit, along the same mineralized trend. Mineralization at Krazy Fox occurs within the same CREE-enriched peralkaline system that hosts the Foxtrot deposit, but at a slightly different stratigraphic level. Assay results indicate higher values of Zr, Hf and LREE, and lower HREE values (see Table 1) when compared to the Foxtrot mineralization.
The Krazy Fox mineralization is comparable to that observed at the nearby Silver Fox Prospect and may represent an eastward extension of the Silver Fox mineralized zone. The 2025 program at Krazy Fox consisted of excavator trenching to extend four hand-dug channels completed in 2024, totaling 85.25 m of channel sampling.
Silver Fox Prospect: The Silver Fox Prospect now extends for more than 1.6 km along strike and is interpreted to link up with the Krazy Fox Prospect, suggesting the presence of a continuous mineralized trend.
Exploration work at the Silver Fox Prospect in 2025 consisted of 9 channel samples and channel extensions, totaling 83.8m. Trenching, to expose bedrock, was also carried out by excavator. Assay results indicate similar Zr, Hf and LREE values to those reported at Krazy Fox (see Table 1), representing Zr-Hf-LREE-enriched and relatively HREE-depleted mineralization compared with the Foxtrot deposit.
Conclusion: The results from the 2025 Fox Run channel sampling program indicate that CREE mineralization at the Fox Run Prospect, with channel widths ranging from 6m to 18m, is comparable in thickness to mineralized zone which host the Foxtrot deposit, where the open pit indicated mineral resource averages approximately 15 m in thickness.
The Fox Run Prospect occurs along strike from the Foxtrot deposit and within the same CREE-enriched peralkaline volcanic unit. An expanded excavator-supported channel sampling program is planned to expose bedrock in areas of deeper overburden and to further evaluate the continuity of mineralization in preparation for a potential exploration drill program.
Quality Assurance / Quality Control (QA/QC):
Channel samples, 10cm deep and 8cm wide, are cut by gas-powered diamond-bladed saw from cleaned outcrops to provide samples for assay and logging/reference. Each channel is cut into two vertical sections, similar to drill core, with a 6 cm thick section (weathering removed) being sent for assay to Activation Laboratories Ltd (ActLabs). A 2 cm thick section is stored in channel boxes for reference and to provide due diligence/verification samples. The channels are cut perpendicular to strike, pieced together, logged and photographed to produce geological and geochemical sections. These channel samples, or horizontal drill holes, produce the same data as vertical diamond drill holes, except the data is from horizontal geological sections and the collected sample is 6 to 8 times bigger than NQ drill core. Additional 8 cm wide cuts from a channel interval make excellent preliminary metallurgical samples (1m of channel yields approximately 30kg of sample).
Litho-geochemistry samples (drill core or channel), all from bedrock, are collected by Company personnel, bagged and described. Reference samples are also collected for each grab, litho-geochemistry and channel sample. The samples are shipped to Activation Laboratories Ltd. (ActLabs) sample prep facility in Ancaster, Ontario, where they are crushed to 80% -10 mesh and riffled to produce a representative sample. This sample is then pulverized to 95% -200 mesh with the pulverizing mills being cleaned between each sample with cleaning sand. A representative sample is treated by a lithium metaborate/tetraborate fusion and then analyzed by ICP and ICP/MS techniques. Mass balance is required as an additional quality control technique and elemental totals of the oxides should be between 98% and 101%. For QA/QC purposes Search requires one pulp duplicate and Search reproducibility standard inserted at the 15th sample, and each 20 samples after, and a coarse reject duplicate every 20 samples. In addition, pulp standards are inserted at random by Search Minerals personnel. ActLabs analyzes duplicates and splits approximately every 15 samples and also analyses 29 measured standards for QA/QC. To further enhance our QA/QC procedures Search has a program of checking analytical results with other labs to confirm the ActLabs results. ActLabs is an ISO/IEC 17025 accredited laboratory.
Qualified Person:
Dr. Randy Miller, Ph.D., P.Geo, is the Company's Vice President, Exploration, and Qualified Person (as defined by National Instrument 43-101) who has supervised the preparation of and approved the technical information reported herein. The Company will endeavor to meet high standards of integrity, transparency, and consistency in reporting technical content, including geological and assay (e.g., REE) data.
About Search Minerals
Led by a proven management team and board of directors, Search is focused on finding and developing Critical Rare Earth Elements (CREE), Zirconium (Zr) and Hafnium (Hf) resources within the emerging Port Hope Simpson - St. Lewis CREE District of South-east Labrador. The Company controls a belt 63 km long and 2 km wide and is road accessible, on tidewater, and located near 3 local communities. Search has completed a preliminary economic assessment report with resource estimates for FOXTROT and DEEP FOX. Search is also working on three exploration prospects along the belt which include: FOX MEADOW, SILVER FOX and AWESOME FOX.
Search has continued to optimize our patented Direct Extraction Process technology with the generous support from the Department of Tourism, Culture, Industry and Innovation, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, and from the Atlantic Canada Opportunity Agency. We have completed two pilot plant operations and produced highly purified mixed rare earth carbonate concentrate and mixed REO concentrate for separation and refining.
All material information on the Company may be found on its website at www.searchminerals.ca and on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
About neo-CREOs (Adamas Intelligence - November 2017)
We consider neodymium, praseodymium, and dysprosium to be neo-CREOs and they are vital to NdFeB magnets used widely in renewable power generation, electric mobility, and energy-efficient technologies. We consider terbium to be a neo-CREO because upon experiencing shortages of dysprosium, consumers in the magnet industry will rapidly consume available terbium supplies in its place for applications involving renewable power generation, electric mobility and energy efficient technologies. Lanthanum is considered a neo-CREO because it is widely used in catalytic converters and rechargeable batteries, and will be increasingly used as a thermal stabilizer by producers of poly-vinyl chloride (PVC) to minimize lead consumption and improve the energy efficiency of PVC and other processing equipment.
For further information about Search Minerals, please contact:
Jason Macintosh
Interim CEO
Telephone: 416-320-9296
Email: jason.macintosh@searchminerals.ca
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements contained in this news release that are not historical facts are "forward-looking information" or "forward-looking statements" (collectively, "Forward-Looking Information") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. In certain cases, Forward-Looking Information can be identified by the use of words and phrases or variations of such words and phrases or statements such as "anticipate", "expect" "plan", "likely", "believe", "intend", "forecast", "project", "estimate", "potential", "could", "may", "will", "would" or "should". Forward-Looking Information in this news release are based on certain material assumptions and involve, known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Search Minerals to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the Forward-Looking Information. Such risks and other factors include those factors discussed in Search Minerals' public filings. Although Search Minerals has attempted to identify important factors that could affect Search Minerals and may cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in Forward-Looking Information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that Forward-Looking Information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on Forward-Looking Information. For further information on these and other risks and uncertainties that may affect the Company's business, see the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis filed with certain Canadian securities regulators, which are available at www.sedarplus.ca. Except as required by law, Search Minerals does not assume any obligation to release publicly any revisions to Forward-Looking Information contained in this news release to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

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Source: Search Minerals Inc.
