Core Critical Metals Charts Aggressive, Multi-Phase Exploration Strategy for Lucky Mike Silver-Copper-Tungsten Project

14:20 Uhr  |  ACCESS Newswire

Company Unveils Phased Drill Program Targeting Porphyry Cores and High-Grade Skarn Corridors Across 120+ km² District-Scale Land Package in B.C.'s Premier Copper Belt

VANCOUVER, May 6, 2026 - Core Critical Metals Corp. ("CCMC" or the "Company") (TSXV:CCMC)(OTC PINK:CCMCF) (WKN: A41G8G), a North American mineral acquisition and exploration company, today announces its comprehensive multi-phase exploration strategy for the Lucky Mike Silver-Copper-Tungsten Project ("Lucky Mike" or the "Property") located in the Nicola Mining District of British Columbia, Canada.

With the formal closing of the option to acquire up to an 80% interest in the Property now complete (the "Option"), CCMC is positioning Lucky Mike as a flagship asset with the technical foundation, infrastructure advantages, and jurisdictional stability needed to advance a district-scale critical minerals discovery in one of North America's most prolific copper porphyry belts.

Project Summary

The Lucky Mike Silver-Copper-Tungsten Project comprises 37 mineral claims spanning approximately 7,675 hectares, situated midway between Kamloops and Merritt, British Columbia, directly adjacent to the Coquihalla Highway corridor near the Surrey Lake summit. The Property sits within British Columbia's premier copper porphyry and gold mining belt, placing it on-trend with some of Canada's most significant and strategically important critical mineral deposits.

Lucky Mike is strategically proximal to Teck Resources' Highland Valley Copper Mine - Canada's largest open-pit copper operation, which produced 127,000 tonnes of copper in 2025¹ and recently underwent a landmark mine-life extension from 2028 to 2046, anchored by a C$2.87 billion capital investment representing the largest critical minerals investment in British Columbia history. Lucky Mike is also located on-trend with New Gold's New Afton Mine and the Copper Mountain Mine, situating the Property in a corridor of significant copper mineralizing systems².

The Property hosts a historic mineral resource of 73.5 million tonnes at a copper-equivalent grade of 0.23% CuEq, equating to approximately 373 million pounds of contained copper^3,4,5. Additionally, a historic wartime investigation conducted in 1943 by the Strategic Metals Committee drilled 14 diamond drill holes along a 100-metre strike length targeting tungsten potential⁶. Eight of these holes intersected a weighted average grade of 0.312% WO? over an average width of 25 feet, establishing a compelling tungsten opportunity that remains largely untested with modern methods.

Critically, Lucky Mike is fully permitted and drill-ready. The Property features an extensive 6.5-kilometre skarn alteration footprint consistent with the presence of multiple porphyry centres, and independent artificial intelligence-assisted target generation has identified a suite of high-priority, previously untested drill targets positioned to vector exploration toward porphyry cores and high-grade skarn corridors.

Lucky Mike benefits from a suite of existing infrastructure and logistical advantages that materially reduce exploration costs and de-risk program execution relative to comparable exploration-stage projects in more remote jurisdictions:

• Access Roads: The Property is directly accessible via a well-developed network of existing logging and forestry roads suitable for drill rig mobilization without the need for significant access road construction.

• Highway Access: The Property is located adjacent to the Coquihalla Highway, one of British Columbia's primary transportation corridors, facilitating cost-effective movement of equipment, personnel, and core samples.

• Grid Power Proximity: Grid power is accessible within proximity to the Property, reducing reliance on diesel generation for sustained exploration and development activities.

• Local Services - Merritt, BC: The Property is located 20 kilometres north of Merritt, BC, providing ready access to local labor, accommodation, fuel, and supply chains familiar with the needs of mining exploration programs.

• Community and Indigenous Relations: The Nicola Mining District has an established culture of engagement with the mining industry, and CCMC is committed to proactive consultation and partnership with local Indigenous communities throughout all stages of exploration and any future development.

• Proximity to Processing Infrastructure: The Property's proximity to Highland Valley Copper Mine's existing milling and processing infrastructure provides a long-term strategic optionality that may have meaningful economic implications for any future development scenario.

Figure 1 - Project location map¹.

Exploration Philosophy and Strategic Rationale

CCMC's exploration philosophy at Lucky Mike is grounded in three core principles: methodical target validation, capital efficiency, and a progressive de-risking approach designed to unlock value at each stage while maximizing the probability of a discovery.

Management believes that Lucky Mike represents a fundamentally underexplored asset. The Property's 6.5-kilometre skarn footprint and cluster-style mineralization - situated between recent discoveries by Tower Resources and Kodiak Copper - suggest the potential for multiple co-existing porphyry centres across a district that has received limited systematic modern exploration. The integration of legacy geological data with contemporary analytical tools, including AI-assisted geochemical targeting, is expected to yield significant improvements in drill-target quality over those available to historical operators.

As operator, CCMC will fund 100% of all budgeted exploration expenditures until delivery of a Feasibility Study, ensuring the Company maintains full operational control and program continuity. This operator-carry structure, combined with staged earn-in milestones, is designed to align exploration investment with meaningful technical milestones and the progressive creation of shareholder value.

PHASED EXPLORATION STRATEGY

Phase I - Target Consolidation and Pre-Drill Program (2026)

The immediate near-term priority is the systematic consolidation and validation of existing exploration data combined with an aggressive pre-drill program designed to maximize the efficiency and geological effectiveness of the inaugural drill campaign.

• Data Integration: Compilation, digitization, and re-interpretation of all historical diamond drill core, assay data, geological maps, and geophysical surveys across the Property using modern 3D geological modelling software.

• AI-Assisted Target Refinement: Deployment of an expanded AI-assisted geochemical and structural analysis program building on the independent high-priority target delineation already completed, designed to refine and rank drill-target priority based on multi-element pathfinder geochemistry, alteration zonation, and structural controls on mineralization.

• Detailed Soil Geochemistry: Systematic soil geochemical grid survey over untested portions of the 6.5-kilometre skarn corridor to extend multi-element anomaly definition and identify additional target areas not covered by historical programs.

• Geophysical Surveys: Ground-based induced polarization (IP) and magnetometer geophysical surveys over the highest-priority drill targets to provide direct subsurface imaging of sulphide concentrations and structural corridors consistent with porphyry-style mineralization.

• Geological Mapping: Detailed geological mapping of selected outcrop and subcrop areas to refine lithological and structural models supporting drill-collar placement decisions.

• Permitting Confirmation: Confirm and, where required, advance permitting for initial drill-hole locations consistent with B.C. Mines Act and environmental assessment requirements.

Phase I is expected to be substantially completed within the first six months of the earn-in period, providing the technical foundation for an inaugural drill program of the highest possible geological quality.

Phase II - Inaugural Drill Program: Porphyry Core Vectoring

Following completion of Phase I target refinement, CCMC intends to mobilize an inaugural diamond drill program specifically designed to vector exploration toward the interpreted porphyry core zones underlying the skarn mineralization and to test the highest-priority geochemical and geophysical targets identified through the AI-assisted targeting process.

• Drill Program Scope: Initial program of 3,000 to 5,000 metres of diamond drilling across a minimum of 8 to 12 drill holes, prioritizing targets proximal to the historically drilled tungsten and copper zones while testing the structural corridors interpreted to host porphyry core mineralization at depth.

• Technical Design: Drill holes will be oriented to intersect skarn-porphyry contact zones at optimal angles relative to interpreted mineralization vectors, targeting copper-gold-silver-tungsten mineralization within the broader alteration system.

• Assaying and Core Logging: All drill core will be subjected to rigorous logging protocols, systematic chip sampling, and multi-element ICP-MS assay packages designed to characterize both the economic mineralization and the pathfinder element suite useful for further vectoring.

• Mineralogical Analysis: Petrographic thin-section work and portable XRF scanning will be conducted on all drill core to characterize alteration assemblages and accelerate geological interpretation between assay returns.

• Continuous 3D Modelling: Drill results will be continuously modelled in 3D to refine mineralization geometry and inform infill and step-out targeting for subsequent program phases.

The Phase II program is expected to deliver the first set of assay results from the new drill campaign and represents the Company's first major technical de-risking milestone toward validating the district-scale discovery potential of Lucky Mike.

Phase III - Resource Definition

Phase III exploration will be guided entirely by the results of the Phase II inaugural drill program. Subject to positive drill results and ongoing geological modelling, the Company intends to deploy a substantially expanded drill program aimed at deposit definition and multi-target testing across the full 120+ km² land package.

• Expanded Drill Program: An expanded drill program of 8,000 to 15,000 metres targeting infill drilling within the highest-grade mineralization corridors defined by Phase II, combined with step-out drilling along strike and at depth to test for mineralization continuity and potential resource expansion.

• Multi-Target Exploration: Systematic testing of additional high-priority AI-verified target areas across the full extent of the 7-kilometre skarn footprint, including areas peripheral to the historic copper resource zone that have received no modern drilling.

• Metallurgical Testwork: Detailed metallurgical testwork on representative composited drill core to characterize mineral processing characteristics for copper, silver, and tungsten recovery, a critical requirement for any future economic assessment.

• NI 43-101 Resource Estimate: Completion of a NI 43-101 compliant mineral resource estimate inclusive of Phase II and Phase III drilling.

Deepak Varshney, CEO of CCMC, commented: "The closing of the Lucky Mike option marks a transformational moment for Core Critical Metals. We are not simply acquiring another exploration asset - we are taking the first decisive steps in what we believe is the systematic unlocking of a genuinely district-scale critical minerals opportunity in one of the world's most attractive mining jurisdictions. Our phased exploration strategy is designed to systematically validate and build on the historic foundation with the precision and discipline that a project of this calibre demands.

With a fully permitted, drill-ready property, AI-verified high-priority targets, regional infrastructure, and a management team with a track record of value creation in the porphyry copper space, we believe CCMC is well-positioned to deliver discovery-stage news flow and create meaningful value for our shareholders over the coming exploration seasons."

The Company is also pleased to announce that it has engaged Rumble Strip Media Inc. (e-mail: info@rumblestrip.ca; address Unit 893, 250-997 Seymour St., Vancouver, B.C.) for the provision of marketing services for an anticipated period of 60 days commencing on or about May 5, 2026, provided that the term of the marketing services may be extended or shortened at the discretion of management.

Rumble Strip will create content and advertisements and undertake media planning, social media news dissemination, and reporting. The Company will pay a fee of up to $500,000 for the services, with $50,000 paid up-front. The Company will not issue any securities to Rumble Strip as compensation for its marketing services. As of the date hereof, to the company's knowledge, Rumble Strip (including its directors and officers) does not own any securities of the company and is arm's length with the Company.

Qualified Person

The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Mr. Deepak Varshney, P.Geo., Chief Executive Officer and a Director of the Company, who is a "Qualified Person" as defined by National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101").

About Core Critical Metals Corp.

Core Critical Metals Corp. is a North American mineral acquisition and exploration company focused on the development of quality critical metal properties that are drill-ready with high-upside and expansion potential.

CORE CRITICAL METALS CORP.

Deepak Varshney, CEO and Director

For more information, please call 778-899-1780, email deepak@corecriticalmetals.com or visit www.corecriticalmetals.com

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Notes and References:

1. https://www.teck.com/news/news-releases/2026/teck-announces-2025-production-and-sales-update-and-reaffirms-outlook.

2. Readers are cautioned that the geology of nearby properties is not necessarily indicative of the geology of the Property.

3. The above referenced resource estimates do not have a category, are considered historical in nature and should not be relied upon, are based on prior data prepared by a previous property owner, and do not conform to current CIM categories. No methodology or parameters were specified in the source and a qualified person has not done sufficient work to classify the historical estimates as current resources in accordance with current CIM categories and the Company is not treating the historical estimates as a current resource.

   Significant data compilation, re-drilling, re-sampling and data verification may be required by a qualified person before the historical estimates can be classified as current resources. There can be no assurance that any of the historical mineral resources, in whole or in part, will ever become economically viable. In addition, mineral resources are not mineral reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. The Company is not aware of any more recent estimates prepared for the Property.

4. Sookochoff, L (1974), Memo - Resource Estimate, W.A. Dexter & Le Bourgh; R. Tough & Associates Ltd.; BC Property File No. 10721.

5. Smyth, W.R. (1985), Memo - Rey Lake Copper Deposit, Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources; BC Property File No. 10719.

6. Turner, J. (2013), Technical Report NI43-101 for the Lucky Mike Copper-Tungsten Property, Merritt, BC, Nicola Mining District; Plate Resources Inc.; 80 pages.

Forward-looking statements:

This news release contains "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally identified by words such as "expects", "plans", "intends", "anticipates", "believes", "estimates", "may", "will", "should", "could" and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding: the Property, the Option; the Company's proposed exploration and development plans and potential work programs on the Property (including any drill programs or target generation initiatives); and the potential to validate, or otherwise advance any historic mineral resource estimate or historic exploration results referenced in this news release.

Forward-looking statements are based on management's reasonable assumptions, estimates and opinions as of the date of this news release. Such assumptions include, without limitation: that the Company will be able to carry out exploration activities as planned; that exploration results will be consistent with management's expectations; that contractors and service providers will perform as expected; and that general business and economic conditions will remain supportive of the Company's plans.

Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: risks related to the Property and Option; financing risk and equity market volatility; the risk that required regulatory or stock exchange approvals are delayed or not obtained; exploration risk, including the risk that exploration results are not as anticipated or do not support further advancement of the Property; risks related to the interpretation of exploration data and the reliability of any historic information; risks associated with the use of new technologies and data-driven methods; operational risks and hazards; environmental risks and liabilities; permitting and land access risks; changes in laws, regulations and government policies; community and Indigenous relations risks; commodity price fluctuations; and general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties.

The Company is an exploration-stage issuer and does not currently have mineral reserves. Exploration is speculative, requires substantial expenditures and may not result in the discovery of economically recoverable mineralization. There can be no assurance that any forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events may differ materially from those anticipated. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company does not undertake to update or revise any forward-looking statements except as required by applicable law.

SOURCE: Core Critical Metals Corp.