FME Future Metals Nl

Scoping Study Highlights

§  Completed the Panton Scoping Study leveraging off ~A$50m of investment at Panton to date, including previous feasibility studies, ~45,000m of drilling, decline access to orebody & comprehensive bulk metallurgical testwork

§  The Scoping Study demonstrated the potential for Panton to be one of few long life, globally significant PGM operations in the western world

§  Robust project economics, low capital intensity versus industry benchmarks and strong leverage to PGM price appreciation, with:

o  1.5Moz PdEq² mining inventory from 9.8Mt @ 3.60g/t PGM_3E¹, 0.25% Ni, 12.6% Cr₂O₃ (4.77g/t PdEq²) for 1.1Moz PGM_3E¹, 25kt Ni, 1.1Mt Cr₂O₃ concentrate

o  Initial ~9-year mine life (study's mine plan covers 26% of the current defined Reef & High Grade Dunite material and 10% of the overall MRE)

o  PGM production averaging 117,000oz pa from high grade feed of 3.60g/t PGM_3E¹

o  PdEq² production averaging 161,000oz pa (incl. nickel and chromite by-products)

o  Low All-in Sustaining Costs (AISC), averaging US$789/oz (projected to be in the 2^nd quartile), providing resilience throughout the metal price cycle

§ Scoping Study demonstrates the potential for Panton to be one of the few significant primary PGM operations in the western world. The Scoping Study supports a high-grade, initial 9-year operation processing both Reef and High-Grade Dunite material through a conventional crush, grind and flotation flow sheet, producing:

§ Robust economics with Panton demonstrating strong financial metrics that reflect the high-grade and low capital intensity of the Project.

* Note: Rh not included in Panton Scoping Study economic evaluation. Included for comparison to South African PGM Basket Price only

§

§ Panton Base Case long term PGM pricing aligns with the ~85^th percentile of the cost curve (see Figure One), with the current South African PGM_4E basket price at an unsustainable ~65% percentile (i.e. ~35% of current global operations losing money), near all-time lows

§ Panton's estimated AISC of US$789/oz (projected 2^nd quartile) provides the opportunity for the planned future operations to generate robust operating margins in all phases of the PGM price cycle (see Figures One & Two).

§ Scoping Study includes just 26% of Reef & High Grade Dunite material - mine life extension and valuation uplift to be targeted via progressive uplift in Resource categorisation

o   Average annual operating free cash flow of A$72m - clear value-add from mine life extensions

§ Panton has the opportunity to achieve an accelerated pathway to production, driven by:

o   Project's location on granted Mining Leases

o  >A$50m invested in the Project to date including an established portal and decline, comprehensive metallurgical test work, >45,000m of drilling & prior environmental studies

o  Strong relationships with local stakeholders including the Traditional Owners

§ Panton is optimally located, with good access to established infrastructure:

o   East Kimberley region of Western Australia, a top-tier mining and investment jurisdiction

o   ~1km from a sealed highway utilised by other mining operations

o   ~70km from a sealed airstrip for employee and contractor transportation

o   300km from deep-water port at Wyndham, with easy access into key potential markets

Figure One | PGM Industry's Cost Curve and Panton Project's positioning. Source SFA (Oxford)

* - Further details for the industry cost curve analysis are shown under the PGM Industry Cost Curve Position section of this announcement.

Figure Two | South African PGM^4E Basket Price. Source: Bloomberg & Company estimates.

*The PGM_4E basket price is calculated based on the weightings of Pt, Pd, Au and Rh production for the South African PGM industry. All other metals production is considered a by-product and credited towards an operations' cost base

§ Significant upside potential for Panton over and above the Scoping Study outcomes from:

o   Panton orebody is open at depth and interpreted to have improving thicknesses and grades; further drilling may support mine life extensions

o   Inclusion of other payable metals including rhodium, iridium, copper and cobalt

o   Resource delineation and inclusion of processing feed from nearby projects such as the Eileen Bore Project or other discoveries within Future Metals' 176km² exploration acreage

o   Pricing upside associated with 'Western premiums' for scarce and critical resources located in Australia supporting supply chain development outside of China, Russia and South Africa

o   Expansion potential from the significant near-surface Bulk Dunite mineralisation which is not included within the Scoping Study

Figure Three | Panton PGM-Ni-Cr Project's Location

Project's Positioning

The Scoping Study highlighted the Project as being a potentially globally significant producer of PGMs and chromite. Panton also represents one of the only near-term development PGM projects outside of Russia and South Africa. Additionally, the Scoping Study demonstrated that Panton has a lower capital intensity than other similar PGM projects in the study phase, given its higher PGM grade.

PGM Market Dynamics

The supply of primary PGM production is currently dominated by South African and Russian operations. Such operations supply >80% of PGM_4E (Pd, Pt, Au & Rh) production (based on actual 2022 figures). Both of these countries are subject to material investment and operating risks:

-    Russia is currently subject to international sanctions which has deterred Western investment into its mining industry, complicated the sourcing of new and sustaining mining equipment for existing operations and caused Western customers to seek alternative sources for metals such as PGMs.

-    South Africa produced over 71% of primary platinum supply and 37% of primary palladium supply in 2022. Many of the operations in South Africa have operated for several decades, leading to deep mines and aging infrastructure which ultimately increases operating costs and sustaining capital. These issues are amplified by the chronic power availability issues in the country.

-    South African deposits are also relatively high in rhodium, with the recent profitability of many operations being driven by very strong rhodium prices, which has subsequently declined (2021: Rh price ~US$29,000/oz vs 2023: Rh price ~US$4,450/oz). This price decline, coupled with significant cost base inflation has the potential to lead to mine closures in the near to medium term.

PGM Industry Cost Curve Position

The Scoping Study demonstrated that the proposed operation has the potential to be a low-cost producer of PGMs, with strong resilience for future operations throughout the PGM price cycle.

Figure One shows that at the current PGM_4E basket price of ~US$1,250/oz approximately 35% of existing PGM production is loss-making. This creates potential for a significant amount of supply to cease in the near to medium term unless prices increase.

Panton's cash costs net of by-product credits and AISC of US$678/oz and US$789/oz respectively demonstrate that if the Project was currently producing it would be towards the middle of the 2^nd quartile of PGM production, thereby ensuring resilient margins in a depressed price environment and making for an economically robust project capable of withstanding sustained downturns in PGM prices.

Further details on the calculation methodology for the Company's stated cash costs, AISC and PGM industry cost curve are set out in Chapter 10 of the Scoping Study as released to the market on 7 December 2023.

Study Stage PGM Projects ex-South Africa and Russia

Table Six compares Panton's study-stage PGM project with two similar projects located outside of South Africa and Russia. In contrast to other developers, Panton stands out due to its higher PGM grade and significantly lower capital requirements in contrast to the other developers.

Table Six | PGM Project Comparisons (ex-South Africa & Russia)

* - Refer to the Company's announcement of 7 December 2023 for source details.

^**  Pre-production capital estimate of C$1,110. AUD:CAD exchange rate of 0.89 applied.

Upside Opportunities

The Scoping Study underpinned a compelling investment case for progressing the Project, and the Company sees significant further upside opportunities as set out below:

§  Improved geological confidence in existing Resource: The Scoping Study only included 26% of the Reef and High Grade Dunite MRE due to reporting constraints in including Inferred resources. Average annual free cash flows of A$72m in the Scoping Study demonstrate the significant upside in increasing mine life through the inclusion of existing Resources.

§  Resource growth: The Panton orebody is open at depth and interpreted to have improving thicknesses and grades; further drilling may support mine life extensions beyond the currently modelled life of mine.

§  Additional payable metals: The Panton deposit contains metals either not included in the MRE or not assumed to be payable. Additional work in the PFS stage may support the inclusion of other payable metals including rhodium, iridium, copper and cobalt.

§  Expansion potential: The Scoping Study does not include the near-surface Bulk Dunite mineralisation. This component of the MRE comprises 55.7Mt @ 1.2g/t PdEq², and future metallurgical studies may support a significantly expanded operation.

§  Regional discoveries: The Company has recently expanded its exploration position around the Panton Project. Additional nearby discoveries will potentially further enhance the Project's economics through shared surface and processing infrastructure. Future Metals' Eileen Bore Project is located ~15km to the east of Panton and historic drilling indicates the potential to quickly establish a resource estimate, progress metallurgical understanding and include it in the overall project development plan.

§  Western price premiums: Pricing upside associated with being one of the few western PGM & chromite projects outside of China, Russia and South Africa. The Company will establish the Project's competitiveness on a carbon intensity basis during the planned PFS, however given the grade, and intended power source the Company is currently of the view that the Project will be substantially less carbon intensive than many existing projects.

Note: MRE PdEq calculation details provided in Appendix One of the Scoping Study (please refer to Company's announcement of 7 December 2023).

Palladium Metal Equivalents

Metal recoveries used in the palladium equivalent ("PdEq") calculations are shown below:

§  Reef: Palladium 80%, Platinum 80%, Gold 70%, Nickel 45% and Chromite 70%

§  Dunite: Palladium 75%, Platinum 75%, Gold 85% and Nickel 40%

Assumed metal prices used are also shown below:

§  Palladium US$1,500/oz, Platinum US$1,250/oz, Gold US$1,750/oz, Nickel US$20,000/t and US$175/t for chromite concentrate (40-42% Cr₂O₃)

Metal equivalents were calculated according to the following formulae:

§  Reef: PdEq (Palladium Equivalent g/t) = Pd(g/t) + 0.833 x Pt(g/t) + 1.02083 x Au(g/t) + 2.33276 x Ni(%) + 0.07560 x Cr₂O₃ (%)

Dunite: PdEq (Palladium Equivalent g/t) = Pd(g/t) + 0.833 x Pt(g/t) + 1.322 x Au(g/t) + 2.2118 x Ni(%)

Strategic Exploration Position - Alice Downs Corridor

On 5 October 2023, an option agreement was entered into to acquire 100% of Osprey Minerals Pty Ltd ("Osprey") which owns ~100km² of highly prospective exploration tenements ("Osprey Projects") in the East Kimberley region of Western Australia. The Osprey Projects are located within a 20km radius of the Company's 100% owned Panton Project and made up of the Eileen Bore, Sally Downs and Springvale Projects, collectively referred to as the Alice Downs Corridor (see Figure Four).

The Alice Downs Corridor is characterised by a series of differentiated pyroxenite, and gabbroic intrusions emplaced along a structural corridor, the Alice Downs Fault, which represents a major north-northeast trending splay off the deep-seated, mantle tapping, Halls Creek Fault.

Broad zones of disseminated and net-textured copper and nickel sulphides occur within the host intrusions and are comprised of chalcopyrite, pyrrhotite, pentlandite and pyrite. The previously mined Copernicus deposit is one such example. Additionally, targets along the 18km Alice Downs Corridor, with confirmed nickel-copper sulphide mineralisation, include Eileen Bore, Palamino and Salk on the Company's tenure.

Figure Four | Regional Plan showing main targets along the Alice Downs Corridor 18km strike. Note the location of the Eileen Bore inset Map for Figure Six.

A majority of the project area is under cover which has limited the effectiveness of historical surface sampling. There is significant potential for blind deposits with no surface anomalism. There is an extensive exploration dataset for parts of the tenement area including geophysical surveys; magnetics, gravity, Versatile Time Domain Electromagnetic ("VTEM") and Induced Polarisation ("IP") which concentrated at the Eileen Bore Prospect. The main focus of historic drilling within the Company's tenure has been on the near surface mineralisation at Eileen Bore. 

Review of historical drilling combined with geophysical and structural interpretations has identified multiple mineralised bodies that have a NW plunge proximal to the Alice Downs Fault, with historic drilling ineffectively testing these targets.

Eileen Bore Prospect

The Eileen Bore Prospect is an advanced exploration target with drilling confirming wide zones of consistent Cu-Ni-PGM mineralisation from surface along a known strike of approximately 300m. Mineralisation remains open down plunge and at depth, with mineralisation only tested to 96m.

A total of 60 holes have been drilled at Eileen Bore for 5,761m. This historical drilling demonstrated a disseminated Cu-Ni-PGM magmatic sulphide body within a gabbro-pyroxenite host which extends over ~300m of strike. There are multiple holes which have ended in mineralisation and modelling suggests mineralisation is focused within a synformal fold axis and is plunging to the north-northwest. Drilling down plunge remains open with scope for significant additional mineralisation (see Figure Five).

Drilling results include:

§ 120m @ 0.73% Cu, 0.29% Ni & 0.86g/t PGM_3E from 0m (EOH) ^{(EBRC 010)}

o   Incl. 16m @ 1.0% Cu, 0.36% Ni & 0.99g/t PGM_3E from 100m

§ 96m @ 0.70% Cu, 0.29% Ni & 0.78g/t PGM_3E from 24m (EOH) ^{(EBRC 003)}

o   Incl. 10m @ 1.08% Cu, 0.34% Ni & 1.04g/t PGM_3E from 56m

§ 84m @ 0.54% Cu, 0.24% Ni & 0.75g/t PGM_3E from 36m (EOH) ^{(EBRC 011)}

§ 47m @ 0.62% Cu, 0.30% Ni & 0.60g/t PGM_3E from 3m^(AD07)

§ 36m @ 0.53% Cu, 0.25% Ni & 0.59g/t PGM_3E from 40m^{(EBRC 002)}

§ 64m @ 0.77% Cu, & 0.30% Ni from 32m (EoH) ^(EP09)

§ 52m @ 0.74% Cu, & 0.29% Ni from 10m ^(EP08)

Figure Five | Cross section of drilling at Eileen Bore demonstrating mineralisation open at depth.

In addition, compelling targets at Eileen Bore are to the north of the area which has been previously drilled, in an antiformal fold axis and to the south along the Alice Downs Fault in a synform. Drill Target 2 to the north is based on coincident magmatic chalcopyrite-pyrrhotite mineralisation identified in peridotite rock chips by petrology and is associated with Ni-Cu, PGE and Au soil anomalism. There is no historic drill testing in the area.

To the south, Drill Target 3 is associated with the same coincident soil anomalism identified at Eileen Bore and Drill Target 2, which has also not been drill tested. Targets are outlined in Figure Six below.

Figure Six | Eileen Bore Prospect showing 3 main drill areas: down plunge mineralisation from section A-A' and Drill Targets 2 and 3.

Additional Targets

The Salk prospect is situated along strike to the north of Eileen Bore within the same 100% owned exploration tenement. Historic drilling at Salk identified nickel-copper mineralisation in an ultramafic that is interpreted to be in a fault offset position from the Copernicus Mine. Results included 17m @ 0.31% Ni, 0.18% Cu from 36m (including 2m @ 0.68% Ni and 0.31% Cu). The current structural interpretation suggests mineralisation plunges to the northwest and drilling at Salk has only been to the south.

Further along strike to the north, within the farm in and joint venture with Octava Minerals Ltd (ASX:OCT) where FME is earning a 70% interest, is the Palamino prospect (see Figure Four). Historic drilling confirmed a thick pyroxenite body dipping to the northwest that was not previously mapped. Disseminated sulphides were intersected with the best result being 5m @ 0.39% Ni and 0.32% Cu in hole WCR016.

Forward Exploration Plan

Preparation for a drilling campaign to test the down plunge extension of Eileen Bore and confirm adjacent near-surface economic mineralisation at Drill Targets 2 and 3 is underway. This initial stage of drilling is planned to commence in Q2 2024. Follow up stages will occur if initial drilling determines the potential for a material amount of economic mineralisation.

In addition, field mapping and sampling will be undertaken along the Alice Springs Corridor, with a particular focus on Palamino and Salk to confirm the current geological model and refine these drill targets.

The Company continues to assess opportunities for further enhancing the Company's strategic land position in the highly prospective East Kimberley region. The Company sees a strong opportunity for development of a potential 'hub and spoke' strategy utilising Panton and Eileen Bore as potential feed sources for a central processing hub.