Iris secures right to high-quality Tungsten project, Montana, USA and update on capital increase

IRIS Metals Limited (ASX: IR1, “IRIS” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a binding Heads of Agreement (HOA) with Finley Mining Inc for the exclusive right to farm the Finley Basin Tungsten Project (Tungsten Project) in Granite County, Montana, USA. This strategic farm-in opportunity expands IRIS’s exposure to critical minerals beyond lithium, positioning the company in a key tungsten district with historic production potential and untapped high-grade tungsten potential in a jurisdiction primed for a revival under the U.S. Critical Minerals Policy.

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HIGHLIGHTS

• IRIS Metals has signed a binding Heads of Agreement with Finley Mining Inc and its shareholders, granting IRIS an exclusive right to operate in the high-grade Finley Basin Tungsten Project, located in Granite County, Montana, USA, subject to the execution of full farm-in agreements to be negotiated in good faith within 40 business days (unless extended) on the agreed key terms.
• Because the transaction occurred during a proposed capital raising program, the Company has decided not to raise capital at this time, given the strategic benefits of the Tungsten acquisition.
• Limited drilling conducted by Union Carbide in the late 1970s and early 1980s resulted in a historic, non-JORC compliant tungsten reserve of 850,000 tonnes at an average rate of 0.68% WO₃¹which is considered high-grade compared to many global tungsten deposits.
• The farm-in provides IRIS with exposure to tungsten, a critical mineral with strategic importance for defense, energy and industrial applications, complementing IRIS’ existing portfolio of critical minerals.
• The farm-in structure allows IRIS to acquire a 100% interest in the project through phased exploration expenditures of up to USD$2,000,000 over four years and the delivery of a JORC-compliant Inferred Resource.
• Exploration activities will commence in early 2026 at the Finley Basin Project, focusing on resource definition, extension and development studies.
• The transaction aligns with IRIS’ strategy to expand its critical minerals footprint in the US by leveraging incentives for domestically sourced materials.

Peter Marks, Executive Chairman of IRIS Metals, commented:

“This binding agreement marks an exciting step for IRIS as we expand and diversify our critical minerals portfolio into tungsten, an essential component for the defense and technology industries. The Finley Basin Project offers significant benefits with its future geology and location in a mining-friendly jurisdiction. Combined with our existing portfolio in South Dakota, this positions IRIS to capitalize on the significantly growing demand for critical minerals from the US.”

Montana Portfolio Expansion and Development

IRIS is actively evaluating additional critical mineral opportunities to complement its core assets in South Dakota. This embed in the Finley Basin Tungsten Project diversifies IRIS’s assets into tungsten, a critical mineral essential for military energy, alloys, electronics and renewable energy technologies, with U.S. demand rising amid defense initiatives and clean energy goals, yet vulnerable to geopolitical supply disruptions.

The expansion of IRIS’s mineral portfolio to tungsten was measured in an approach in which a number of projects were assessed and compared. The company selected the Finley Basin Project because of its high-performance properties compared to other tungsten projects in the US.²historical exploration results, favorable jurisdiction, potential for expansion of known mineralization, local milling capabilities and reasonable proximity to the company’s operations in South Dakota.

IRIS’ primary focus remains advancing South Dakota’s lithium and rubidium projects toward near-term development under the Hub & Spoke strategy, which emphasizes centralized processing across multiple locations.

Recent expansions, including the September 2025 acquisition of the Ingersoll Project from Rapid Critical Metals, have significantly expanded IRIS’s Black Hills footprint and private land holdings. IRIS is rapidly expanding mineral resources and advancing studies to support a multi-mine production model, with economic analyzes targeting 2026.

This strategic diversification is significantly aligned with broader US incentives for domestically produced critical minerals and supports resilient supply chains under frameworks such as the Australia-US Climate, Critical Minerals and Clean Energy Transformation Compact.

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