CCC Provides Updates on Its Exploration Program in the Ring of Fire and on Efforts to Transfer Its Subsidiary's Corridor Claims to a Trust for an Indigenous Enterprise

Toronto, January 12, 2026 - The Canadian Chrome Company Inc. (CSE: CACR) (CSE: CACR.A), formerly known as KWG Resources Inc. ("CCC" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that, following completion of its first-tranche flow-through financing in December 2025 (see the Company's news release No. 379 dated December 31, 2025), the Company is reviewing its geological and other information to determine the best use of the proceeds of that financing for exploration expenditures on its chromite exploration properties as the Company anticipates second-tranche flow-through financings in 2026. Those properties include chromite deposits located in the Ring of Fire, approximately 280 km north of Nakina, Ontario, in the James Bay Lowlands of Northern Ontario, including 1,024 hectares covered by four unpatented mining claims which contain the Black Horse chromite deposit (the "Koper Lake Project") and 1,033.6 hectares covered by 80 unpatented mining claims (the "Hornby Property") adjoining the southerly boundary of the Big Daddy Project, The Company has received from the Ministry of Mining and currently holds Exploration Permit PR-23-000242 for the conduct of further drilling at the Black Horse chromite deposit in the Koper Lake Project. The permit has a term of 3 years and a present expiration date of September 15, 2026.

The Company also provides an update on the mineral exploration claims which were originally staked by the Company's subsidiary, Canada Chrome Corporation ("Canada Chrome"), in 2009 and 2010 and underlie the route which the Company had identified at that time and has been subsequently recognized by others as the best route for a transportation and utility corridor between Nakina and the Ring of Fire (the "Corridor Claims") - along what has recently also been proposed as various alternative routing lineaments for the proposed Northern Road Link, the Marten Falls Community Access Road and the Webequie Supply Road. Following the Company's announcement in late August 2025 (see the Company's news release No. 386 dated August 28, 2025) in which it noted that the Corridor Claims were at risk of being forfeited, Canada Chrome proceeded with placing those Corridor Claims in a trust and then, in September, 2025, signed a trust deed with The Gitchiziibii Company Inc. as the original trustee (the "Indigenous Trustee") for it to hold and maintain those Corridor Claims for transfer to an entity to be set up as an indigenous enterprise (the "Proposed Indigenous Enterprise") for the benefit of members of the Matawa First Nations. The Company's proposal was for the Proposed Indigenous Enterprise to engage in the development and operation of transportation and electrification services along the route of the Corridor Claims establishing a utility corridor to provide transportation and electrification services to the Ring of Fire and to the First Nation communities of the area. The transfer of the Corridor Claims to the Proposed Indigenous Enterprise was subject to satisfactory arrangements being made for Canada Chrome's costs to be recovered out of the project and for Canada Chrome's 32 aggregate permit applications located at various places along the route of the utility corridor also to be transferred to the Proposed Indigenous Enterprise on implementation of those terms. In the interim, the documentation provided that the trustee and any subsequent holder would ensure that Canada Chrome was made aware of any applications for access rights over the surface of the Corridor Claims so that Canada Chrome and the Company could assess whether to respond to any such application. As well, the documentation provided that Canada Chrome and the Company would be afforded special status regarding the right to use aggregate from those proposed aggregate pit and quarry locations and the use of the transportation corridor facilities. Canada Chrome has attempted to transfer the Corridor Claims to the Indigenous Trustee, but was advised that, since the expiry dates of the Corridor Claims had passed and the requests that the Corridor Claims be placed "on hold, special circumstances apply" had not been determined, the transfers could not be recorded. The Company and its subsidiary, Canada Chrome, were subsequently advised that Ministry officials were not willing to grant Canada Chrome's requests for exclusions of time for exploration work under s.67 of the Mining Act, which refusal would result in the forfeiture of its Corridor Claims. As a result, Canada Chrome filed a request to appeal to the Minister under s.73.1 and s.185 of the Mining Act requesting the Minister to grant relief from any forfeitures of Corridor Claims and to place the Corridor Claims "on hold - special circumstances apply" to enable Canada Chrome, the Indigenous Trustee and the other applicable representatives of the Mattawa First Nations to complete the creation and organization of the Proposed Indigenous Enterprise for the development and operation of transportation and electrification services along the route of the utility corridor providing transportation and electrification services to the Ring of Fire and to the First Nation communities of the area. Following filing of those requests to appeal to the Minister, the Company and Canada Chrome had communications with Ministry officials and filed supplementary materials regarding Canada Chrome's requests and appeals. Canada Chrome was then advised at the end of December, 2025, that forfeitures were being proceeded with by the Provincial Mining Recorder and would be recorded for all of the Corridor Claims along the utility corridor. That advice was followed with further advice from Ministry officials that, although the forfeitures were being recorded, the appeals by Canada Chrome to the Minister for annulment of those forfeitures remained under consideration, no decision had yet been made by the Minister or any of the Minister's delegates and, if the forfeitures are annulled, the Minister or the Minister's delegate could reinstate the Corridor Claims. As well, Ministry officials advised Canada Chrome and the Company that an order had been issued to withdraw the area of the Corridor Claims from staking and, accordingly, that the area of the Corridor Claims was not at risk of being claim-staked by third parties while Canada Chrome's appeals for relief from forfeiture were being considered. The Company is considering whether, in addition to waiting for the Minister's consideration of Canada Chrome's appeals, the Company and its subsidiary should appeal to the Ontario Land Tribunal the Provincial Mining Recorder's decision to record forfeitures of the Corridor Claims.

"We have been pleased to learn that the potential of the Ring of Fire's chrome endowment as a secure source of supply for stainless steelmaking is well understood in the USA," said Company President Megan McElwain. "It is important to the development of that potential that the community access road planners take account of the mining project's priority requirements. For the buyer and seller to control that together, the railroad must be part of the plan so that the chrome development can have the protections of the physical monopoly its owners have won for the risks that they took. China's interests in the area can then be subsequently addressed, as is well understood by those responsible for thinking critically about critical minerals and their role in global competitiveness and national security. The threatened forfeiture of the right-of-way claims cannot be left unaddressed in the circumstances, as we have represented to Premier Ford."

About The Canadian Chrome Company Inc.
The Canadian Chrome Company Inc. is an exploration stage company that is focused on identification, acquisition, consolidation, exploration, development and evaluation of large-scale deposits of minerals including chromite in the Ring of Fire, as well as other base metals and strategic minerals and, where applicable, support for the development of transportation and electrification links to access remote areas where these deposits may be located.

Forward-Looking Statements: Information set forth in this news release may involve forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. The forward-looking statements contained herein are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking statements included in this document are made as of the date of this document and the Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable securities legislation. Although management believes that the expectations represented in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct.

Disclaimer: Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/280119