Apex Critical Metals Advances Cap Project with Significant Drill Results and 2026 Strategy

Apex Critical Metals CA03753D1042

Apex Critical Metals has concluded its 2025 field season with substantial drill results from its wholly-owned Cap Critical Minerals Project in British Columbia, simultaneously outlining a clear exploration roadmap for the coming year. The data points to a larger, high-grade niobium discovery, accompanied by notable rare earth and phosphate mineralization. This progress raises the prospect of the project advancing toward an initial resource definition.

The latest assay results extend the known mineralized zone and underscore a multi-commodity potential beyond the primary niobium focus. Key intercepts highlight this diversity:

• Rare Earth Elements (REE): Holes CAP25-005 and CAP25-006 returned 1.08% to 1.33% total rare earth oxides (REO) over 3.0 and 3.4 meters, respectively.
• Phosphate (P₂O₅): Significant phosphate intervals were identified, including 16.2% P₂O₅ over 3.8 meters in CAP25-007, nested within a broader 45-meter zone averaging 6.22% P₂O₅. Another hole, CAP25-012, intersected 58.2 meters of 5.63% P₂O₅.

CEO Sean Charland emphasized that these findings support the interpretation of an extensive, mineralized carbonatite system, combining near-surface, high-grade niobium with additional critical mineral hits.

High-Grade Niobium Intercepts Expand Target

The 2025 program, consisting of nine helicopter-supported core drill holes totaling 2,323 meters, has delivered its most compelling niobium results to date. Hole CAP25-006 is particularly notable:

• It intersected 124.5 meters grading 0.27% Nb₂O₅.
• This interval includes a previously reported high-grade section of 36 meters at 0.59% Nb₂O₅.
• Within that, a peak sub-interval of 10 meters graded 1.08% Nb₂O₅.

The 1.08% grade substantially exceeds the 0.5% threshold often considered robust in niobium exploration. The company notes the mineralization in CAP25-006 remains open in multiple directions, making it a priority for follow-up drilling.

New Geophysical Target Identified

Complementing the drill campaign, an airborne geophysical survey completed in late 2025 revealed a prominent magnetic anomaly measuring approximately 2.2 by 1.8 kilometers. This feature is interpreted as a concealed intrusive body.

• This structure has only been intersected by a single historical drill hole from 2017, which did not reach the suspected target depth.
• Management views it as a highly prospective and largely untested target zone.

The magnetic signature roughly correlates with a 1.8-kilometer-long niobium soil anomaly trend identified in 2024, which the 2025 drilling has now confirmed at depth.

Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Apex Critical Metals?

Dual-Track Exploration Planned for 2026

Looking ahead, Apex has defined a two-pronged exploration strategy for the Cap Project in 2026:

1. Step-Out Drilling: Focused on expanding and defining the continuity of the high-grade niobium mineralization around the CAP25-006 discovery.
2. Initial Testing: The first drill tests of the newly identified magnetic anomaly target in the southeastern project area to evaluate the potential of the interpreted intrusive body.

All 2025 assay data and geophysical results will be integrated into an updated geological model to guide these future drill programs.

Concurrently, the company maintains a near-term focus on its Rift Rare Earth Project in Nebraska. A fully funded drilling program there is scheduled to commence early in the first quarter of 2026.

Financial Position and Upcoming Catalysts

This operational update comes during a period of accelerated spending. In early December, Apex reported a net loss of CAD 2.68 million for Q1 of its 2026 fiscal year, compared to CAD 0.406 million in the same period last year. The increase is directly tied to heightened exploration activity.

To fund its programs, the company completed a CAD 10 million private placement in October 2025, issuing 4 million units at CAD 2.50 per unit to bolster working capital and cover exploration expenditures.

The planning for the 2026 drill campaigns is now underway. The success of these efforts, particularly the step-out drilling around CAP25-006 and the initial tests in Nebraska, will be crucial in determining whether the Cap Project can transition toward resource definition and what role both assets will play in the company's future portfolio.