Volta Metals Ltd. press release

Volta More than Doubles Springer Indicated Resource to 122.4 Mt, Ranks Among North America's Five Largest Rare Earth Deposits by M&I Tonnage*, and Delivers First Gallium Estimate

2026-10-19

CSE - Canadian National Stock Exchange · Rare Earth Elements · Gallium · Lithium · Tantalum · Cesium · Canada · Resource Estimate

| 5th largest rare earth deposit in North America by Measured & Indicated tonnage* | 122.4 Mt Indicated resource, up 116% since February 2026 | +140% at 1.00% TREO Indicated high-grade core, now 27.6 Mt | 1st supplementary gallium estimate at Springer |

HIGHLIGHTS

High-Grade Core Expands 140%.The Indicated High Grade domain grew 140% to 27.6 million tonnes ("Mt") grading 1.00% total rare earth oxides ("TREO"), with an estimated average net metal revenue ("NMR") of C$384/t. Inferred High Grade grew nearly nine-fold to 26.7 Mt at 0.94% TREO, with an estimated average NMR of C$333/t, and remains open. Indicated Mineral Resources More Than Double; Inferred Up 65%.Indicated Mineral Resources increased 116% to 122.4 Mt grading 0.59% TREO, up from 56.6 Mt in February 2026. Inferred Mineral Resources increased 65% to 197.5 Mt grading 0.53% TREO. Magnet-Rich: 22.4% of TREO is MREO. Magnet rare earth oxides ("MREO": Nd, Pr, Dy, Tb) with 63 g/t Dy₂O₃ and 14 g/t Tb₄O₇ in the Indicated high-grade core. Resource Remains Robust at Higher NMR Cut-offs. 68% of Indicated tonnage (83.7 Mt at 0.72% TREO) is retained at a C$150/t NMR sensitivity cut-off, 3.5 times the C$43/t reporting cut-off, within the same optimized pit shell.1 Initial Gallium Estimate: About 4,427 t of In Situ Gallium. The supplementary estimate averages 36 grams per tonne ("g/t") gallium ("Ga") across the 122.4 Mt Indicated Mineral Resource volume, including 14.8 Mt at 56 g/t Gain the Ga High Grade domain. Not yet assigned economic value.2 Low Strip Ratio and Exceptional Infrastructure. The optimized pit shell used to constrain the Mineral Resource has a conceptual strip ratio of 1.26tonnes of waste per tonne of mineralized material. Springer sits beside the Trans-Canada Highway, with power, gas and rail within 8 km.3

Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - October 19, 2026) - Volta Metals Ltd. (CSE: VLTA) (OTCQB: VOLMF) (FSE: D0W)("Volta"or the "Company") announces a substantially expanded Mineral Resource estimate ("MRE") for its Springer Rare Earth Element and Gallium Deposit ("Springer" or the "Deposit") near Sturgeon Falls, Ontario, in which Volta holds a 100% interest. Prepared independently by SLR Consulting (Canada) Ltd. ("SLR") and effective September 30, 2026, the MRE includes all 13 holes (5,445 m) from the 2026 drill program and, for the first time, a supplementary gallium estimate.

"_We more than doubled our Indicated resource, grew our high-grade core by 140% and delivered our first gallium estimate. Next, we're working to advance gallium recovery and deliver a strong PEA in the first half of 2027. We believe Springer is shaping up as one of the few large, road-accessible sources of magnet rare earths, and potentially gallium, in North America, at a time when the market is paying a premium for supply from outside China,_" said Kerem Usenmez, President and CEO of Volta.

Ranked by Measured and Indicated tonnage, including Reserves, of North American rare earth projects (S&P Global Market Intelligence database, May 2025), with Springer updated to this MRE. Inferred resources are excluded. See Figure 1 and "Cautionary Statements". 1Non-base sensitivity case (Table 2). Not a separate Mineral Resource estimate or an economic evaluation. 2Supplementary estimate within the rare earth Mineral Resource volumes (Table 6); not a standalone gallium Mineral Resource. In situ, not recovered or payable metal. Excluded from the NMR, cut-off, pit optimization and RPEEE until recovery and payability are established. 3From the conceptual optimized pit shell used to demonstrate RPEEE; not a mine design, production plan or economic result.

Economic Basis of the Mineral Resource Estimate. The economic basis of the current MRE is limited to the four rare earth oxides comprising MREO: Pr₆O₁₁, Nd₂O₃, Dy₂O₃, and Tb₄O₇. These are the only rare earth oxides assigned value in the NMR calculation used to determine the reporting cut-off and optimized pit constraint and to support Reasonable Prospects for Eventual Economic Extraction ("RPEEE"). The other rare earth oxides and gallium have been modelled and estimated but are assigned no economic value in the current MRE. Ongoing metallurgical test work is evaluating the potential for gallium production. Gallium or other rare earth oxides could be included in the economic basis of a future MRE if sufficient metallurgical recovery, processing cost, product, payability, and market support are established.

WHY IT MATTERS: THE WEST NEEDS MAGNET METALS AND GALLIUM FROM OUTSIDE CHINA

| Mineral | Main uses | Supply and market (S&P Global, August 2026) | Springer (Indicated) | | Neodymium and praseodymium (NdPr) | Permanent magnets for EVs, wind turbines, robotics, electronics and defence systems. | China supplies about 84% of neodymium-praseodymium ("NdPr") oxide. Demand projected to grow from 108,000 t (2025) to 143,000 t (2030). NdPr oxide rose from about US$74/kg (Dec 2025) to about US$150/kg (mid-2026), based on Platts pricing. In July 2025, the U.S. Department of Defense set a US$110/kg NdPr price floor with MP Materials. In March 2026, Japan Australia Rare Earths (JARE), backed by Japan's state agency JOGMEC, agreed a US$110/kg NdPr price floor with Lynas Rare Earths on 5,000 t per year through 2038. Australia is considering floor prices through offtakes for its A$1.2 billion critical minerals strategic reserve, which prioritizes rare earths and gallium, and in June 2026 the G7 agreed to explore price floors. | 27.6 Mt high-grade core at 1.00% TREO, with 495 g/t praseodymium oxide ("Pr₆O₁₁") and 1,683 g/t neodymium oxide ("Nd₂O₃"). Overall, 122.4 Mt at 0.59% TREO (Table 1). | | Dysprosium and terbium (heavy rare earths) | Keep magnets working at high temperatures in EV motors, wind turbines and defence systems. | China dominates heavy rare earth separation and placed rare earth magnets and related products under export licensing in April 2025. In June 2026, G7 leaders set a goal of reducing dependence on any single supplier outside the G7 and partner countries to below 60% for rare earths and permanent magnets by 2030. | 63 g/t Dy₂O₃ and 14 g/t Tb₄O₇ in the 27.6 Mt high-grade core (Table 1). HREO is about 5.5% of Indicated TREO (Table 3). | | Gallium | Semiconductors for radar, 5G, power electronics, AI data centres and LEDs. Also used in magnets. | China produces approximately 99% of primary gallium; supply outside China is about 5 t/year. Demand projected to grow about 12% a year to 1,738 t by 2030. Prices outside China reached about US$2,100/kg in 2026, roughly seven times 2023 levels, versus about US$300/kg inside China. | 14.8 Mt at 56 g/t Ga in the Ga High Grade domain (approximately 75 g/t Ga₂O₃), 36 g/t Ga on average across the resource, about 4,427 t of in-situ gallium in the Indicated category (Table 6). |

All three are designated critical minerals in Canada, the United States and the European Union, and governments are now funding supply outside China. In 2026, the Government of Canada committed up to C$400 million to support Teck's Trail operations expansion, targeting gallium, germanium and antimony, and conditionally approved up to C$18.95 million for a Rio Tinto and Indium Corporation gallium pilot plant. Even if every announced project outside China is built, S&P Global estimates the market outside China would still be short of gallium in 2030. Market figures are third-party estimates (S&P Global, August 2026; USGS). Price floor information is from Lynas Rare Earths (ASX announcement, March 10, 2026), the Government of Australia and the G7 Leaders' Declaration on Critical Minerals (June 17, 2026). Contained gallium is in situ and does not represent recovered or payable metal.

WHAT'S NEXT: DRILLING, METALLURGY AND A PEA

Volta is advancing Springer through a focused exploration and technical development program designed to expand its high-grade resource, evaluate gallium recovery and establish the Deposit's preliminary economic potential.

Expand the High-Grade Rare Earth and Gallium Zone. Additional drilling is planned to expand the high-grade rare earth and gallium mineralized zones, targeting further resource growth and opportunities to enhance the Deposit's grade profile ahead of the PEA. Advance Rare Earth and Gallium Metallurgy. Metallurgical test work is ongoing to optimize rare earth recoveries and evaluate the potential for gallium production. Establishing a viable process to recover gallium into a saleable product, together with associated processing costs and payability, will be essential to determining its potential economic contribution. Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA"). The PEA, targeted for the first half of 2027, will incorporate the updated MRE, relevant results from planned drilling and ongoing metallurgical studies to evaluate Springer's preliminary development options and economic potential. File Updated NI 43-101 Technical Report. An independent NI 43-101 Technical Report supporting the updated MRE will be filed on SEDAR+ within 45 days of this news release.

| READING THE NUMBERS

TREO (total rare earth oxides) is the standard measure of rare earth content. 1.00% TREO = 10 kg of rare earth oxides per tonne of rock. MREO (magnet rare earth oxides) is the sum of the praseodymium, neodymium, dysprosium and terbium oxides, the four used in permanent magnets and the only four assigned values in this MRE. MREO as a % of TREO shows how much of the rare earth content is magnet metals. HREO (heavy rare earth oxides) includes dysprosium (Dy), terbium (Tb) and yttrium (Y), among others, which are scarcer and mostly separated in China. g/t = grams per tonne, the same as parts per million (ppm). Previous Volta drill results reported gallium as Ga₂O₃; multiply g/t Ga by 1.3442 to convert to g/t Ga₂O₃. NMR (net metal revenue) is the estimated value per tonne from the four magnet rare earth oxides and is used only to decide which blocks are included in the resource. Indicated Mineral Resources have closer drilling and higher confidence than Inferred Mineral Resources. Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. |

DETAILS

Springer Among North America's Largest Rare Earth Deposits With 122.4 Mt of Indicated Mineral Resources, Springer ranks fifth among North American rare earth projects by combined Measured and Indicated resource tonnage, based on the S&P Global Market Intelligence database (Figure 1). Inferred Mineral Resources are shown separately for context and are excluded from the ranking. The comparison is based on resource tonnage and does not account for differences in grade, cut-off criteria, reporting standards, effective dates, commodity mix, metallurgical assumptions, infrastructure, development stage, or project economics.

[](https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/9598/319617_a693a4df948cfb63_001full.jpg)

Figure 1. North American rare earth projects ranked by Measured and Indicated tonnage, including Reserves where reported. Inferred tonnage is shown separately for context and is not used in the ranking (S&P Global Market Intelligence database, May 2025; Springer at the September 30, 2026 MRE).

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/9598/319617_a693a4df948cfb63_001full.jpg

Springer at a Glance

| Item | Detail | | Location | About 70 km east of Sudbury and 8 km north of Sturgeon Falls, Ontario, on the traditional territory of the Nipissing First Nation. | | Property | 4,879 hectares. Volta holds a 100% interest in the Springer Property. | | Access and infrastructure | Trans-Canada Highway and Highway 64, paved roads, on-site power lines fed from the Crystal Falls hydroelectric dam, natural gas pipeline and Canadian National Railway service, all within 8 km of the deposit. | | Drilling in the MRE | The project dataset comprises 39 drill holes from the 2011-2012, 2025, and 2026 programs, including 13 holes (5,445 m) drilled in 2026. Of these, 38 drill holes were included in the MRE dataset. Drill hole SL-11-07 was excluded because it is spatially isolated from the drilling that defines the deposit. | | Resource shape | Open pit reporting shell with a low strip ratio of 1.26 tonnes of waste per tonne of mineralized material. | | Rare earth resource | Indicated Mineral Resource of 122.4 Mt grading 0.59% TREO, including a higher-grade core of 27.6 Mt grading 1.00% TREO. Inferred Mineral Resource of 197.5 Mt at 0.53% TREO, including 26.7 Mt grading 0.94% TREO. | | Supplementary gallium | 36 g/t Ga across the resource, including 14.8 Mt grading 56 g/t Ga (Indicated) and 19.6 Mt grading 53 g/t Ga (Inferred) in the Ga High Grade domain. | | Next steps | Drilling to expand the high-grade rare earth and gallium zones, ongoing metallurgical test work, and a PEA targeted for the first half of 2027. |

Updated Mineral Resource Estimate SLR Consulting (Canada) Ltd. (SLR) prepared an updated rare earth Mineral Resource estimate (MRE) for Volta Metals Ltd. (Volta) for the Springer Rare Earth Element and Gallium Deposit in Ontario, with an effective date of September 30, 2026. Indicated Mineral Resources total 122.4 Mt at an average net metal revenue (NMR) of C$223/t, grading 0.59% total rare earth oxides (TREO), and 0.13% magnet rare earth oxides (MREO), including 293 g/t Pr₆O₁₁, 993 g/t Nd₂O₃, 33 g/t Dy₂O₃, and 8 g/t Tb₄O₇. Inferred Mineral Resources total 197.5 Mt at an average NMR of C$191/t, grading 0.53% TREO, and 0.11% MREO, including 258 g/t Pr₆O₁₁, 856 g/t Nd₂O₃, 27 g/t Dy₂O₃, and 6 g/t Tb₄O₇. The supplementary gallium estimate within the Indicated Mineral Resource volume averages 36 g/t Ga, including 14.8 Mt grading 56 g/t Ga in the Ga High Grade domain. The supplementary gallium estimate within the Inferred Mineral Resource volume also averages 36 g/t Ga, including 19.6 Mt grading 53 g/t Ga in the Ga High Grade domain. Gallium is assigned no economic value because available metallurgical test work has not established overall recovery to a saleable gallium product, processing costs, or commercial payability. Additional metallurgical test work is in progress.

TREO is the compositional total of the 15 rare earth oxides listed in the notes to Table 1. MREO is the sum of Pr₆O₁₁, Nd₂O₃, Dy₂O₃, and Tb₄O₇, expressed as a percentage. The rare earth Mineral Resource estimate is based on drilling and assay data available as of August 21, 2026 and is classified in accordance with the CIM Definition Standards for Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves (May 2014). Reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction (RPEEE) were demonstrated for the rare earth Mineral Resources by constraining the estimate within an optimized open pit shell and reporting blocks above a C$43/t NMR cut-off.

NMR is the estimated value per tonne calculated from four rare earth oxides: praseodymium oxide (Pr₆O₁₁), neodymium oxide (Nd₂O₃), dysprosium oxide (Dy₂O₃), and terbium oxide (Tb₄O₇). These four oxides comprise MREO and are the only rare earth oxides included in the pricing and recovery assumptions used to determine the reporting cut-off and pit constraint. TREO is a compositional total that also includes rare earth oxides that are not assigned value in the NMR calculation. Gallium is not included in the NMR calculation, reporting cut-off, pit optimization, or RPEEE assessment.

Table 1 summarizes the open pit rare earth Mineral Resources by classification and the High Grade and Main estimation domains. Table 2 presents block model sensitivities within the same optimized open pit shell at selected NMR cut-off values; C$43/t is the reporting cut-off, and the other cut-off values are non-base sensitivity cases. Table 3 reports the average grades of all rare earth oxides (REOs), including light rare earth oxides (LREO) and heavy rare earth oxides (HREO), within the Mineral Resources by classification. Table 4 presents the assumptions used to calculate NMR. Table 5 compares the current and previous open pit Mineral Resource estimates by classification and domain. Table 6 reports supplementary gallium grades and in situ content within the open pit reporting constraints and C$43/t NMR cut-off of the rare earth Mineral Resources reported in Table 1.

Table 1: Summary of the Springer Open Pit Mineral Resources, September 30, 2026

| Classification | Domain | Tonnage (Mt) | NMR (C$/t) | Grade | | | | | | | TREO (%) | MREO (%) | Pr₆O₁₁ (g/t) | Nd₂O₃ (g/t) | Dy₂O₃ (g/t) | Tb₄O₇ (g/t) | | | | | | Indicated | High Grade | 27.6 | 384 | 1.00 | 0.23 | 495 | 1,683 | 63 | 14 | | Main | 94.8 | 176 | 0.47 | 0.11 | 234 | 792 | 24 | 6 | | | Total | 122.4 | 223 | 0.59 | 0.13 | 293 | 993 | 33 | 8 | | | Inferred | High Grade | 26.7 | 333 | 0.94 | 0.20 | 464 | 1,507 | 43 | 10 | | Main | 170.8 | 169 | 0.46 | 0.10 | 226 | 754 | 24 | 6 | | | Total | 197.5 | 191 | 0.53 | 0.11 | 258 | 856 | 27 | 6 | |

MREO represents approximately 22.4% of TREO in the Indicated Mineral Resources and approximately 21.7% of TREO in the Inferred Mineral Resources.

Notes: 1. CIM (2014) definitions were followed for Mineral Resources. 2. Open pit Mineral Resources are reported within an optimized pit shell and above a C$43/t net metal revenue (NMR) cut-off. The cut-off is the rounded sum of C$40.00/t processing costs and C$2.74/t G&A costs. Pit optimization applies a mining cost of C$4.00/t moved. 3. The rare earth oxides included in the NMR calculation are Pr₆O₁₁, Nd₂O₃, Dy₂O₃, and Tb₄O₇, collectively referred to as MREO. MREO is the sum of these four oxides, expressed as a percentage. Only these oxides are assigned economic value in the NMR calculation; no other rare earth oxide, and no gallium, contributes to NMR. 4. Total rare earth oxides (TREO) is the sum of La₂O₃, CeO₂, Pr₆O₁₁, Nd₂O₃, Sm₂O₃, Eu₂O₃, Gd₂O₃, Tb₄O₇, Dy₂O₃, Ho₂O₃, Er₂O₃, Tm₂O₃, Yb₂O₃, Lu₂O₃, and Y₂O₃. TREO is a compositional total. 5. Rare earth oxide price assumptions are US$160/kg Pr₆O₁₁, US$150/kg Nd₂O₃, US$3,000/kg Tb₄O₇, and US$900/kg Dy₂O₃, using an exchange rate of C$1.35/US$1.00. 6. Metallurgical recovery assumptions are 82.1% Pr₆O₁₁, 82.1% Nd₂O₃, 75.4% Tb₄O₇, and 69.5% Dy₂O₃. 7. NMR applies separation deductions of 15% to Pr₆O₁₁ and Nd₂O₃ revenue and 25% to Dy₂O₃ and Tb₄O₇ revenue. No royalty is applied. 8. The NMR factors applied are C$0.151/t per g/t Pr₆O₁₁, C$0.141/t per g/t Nd₂O₃, C$2.29/t per g/t Tb₄O₇, and C$0.633/t per g/t Dy₂O₃. 9. The average density of the reported Mineral Resource is 2.68 t/m³. Grades are reported as mass-weighted averages within the reporting constraints. 10. Mineral Resources that are not Mineral Reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. No Mineral Reserves have been estimated. 11. Totals may not add or multiply accurately due to rounding.

[](https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/9598/319617_a693a4df948cfb63_002full.jpg)

Figure 2. Springer rare earth resource domains, High Grade and Main, within the optimized pit shell, oblique view (Source: SLR, 2026).

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[](https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/9598/319617_a693a4df948cfb63_003full.jpg)

Figure 3. Springer Mineral Resource classification, Indicated (green) and Inferred (blue), within the optimized pit shell, oblique view (Source: SLR, 2026).

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Sensitivity to Cut-off Table 2 presents block model sensitivities within the same optimized open pit shell at selected NMR cut-off values. The C$43/t NMR cut-off is the reporting cut-off used for the Mineral Resource estimate; all other cut-off values are non-base sensitivity cases. As the cut-off increases, lower-value blocks are excluded, and the reported tonnage decreases, while average NMR and grades generally increase. The non-base cases are provided solely to illustrate sensitivity to the selection of a reporting cut-off and are not separate Mineral Resource estimates, alternative project cases, production targets, or economic evaluations. The sensitivity results do not account for changes to the optimized pit shell, mine design, mining sequence, dilution, recovery, operating costs, commodity prices, or other modifying factors that could apply at a different cut-off value.