Nine Mile Metals Mobilizes Second Drill Rig to the Tribag-West Wedge Target Area to Test High-Priority TDEM VMS Targets

TORONTO, ON / ACCESS Newswire / October 1, 2026 / Nine Mile Metals Ltd. (CSE:NINE)(OTCID:VMSXF)(FSE:KQ9) (the "Company" or "Nine Mile") is pleased to announce that its second drill rig has mobilized and is now on site at the Tribag-West Wedge target area of its Wedge VMS Project in the Bathurst Mining Camp, New Brunswick. The rig will test the high-priority Time Domain Electromagnetic (TDEM) VMS targets first announced by the Company on January 6, 2025, with drilling expected to commence at Tribag in the coming days. Drilling at the Wedge Mine continues in parallel as part of the Company's 10,000-metre 2026 drill program.

HIGHLIGHTS:

• Second rig on site: The Company's second drill rig, previously announced on June 24, 2026, has mobilized and is now on site at the Tribag-West Wedge target area, with drilling expected to commence at Tribag in the coming days.
• High-priority targets: Seven modelled TDEM conductor plates (A1, B1, C1, C2, C3, C4 and D1) associated with the Tribag (Pb-Zn) and West Wedge (Cu-Pb-Zn) VMS occurrences, on the same magnetic trend as the historic Wedge Mine.
• Program progress: As of September 21, 2026, the Company had completed 18 drill holes and 4,934.50 metres of its 10,000-metre program at the Wedge Mine.
• What's next: Eight borehole electromagnetic (BHEM) surveys are commencing on perimeter holes at the Wedge Mine to guide a second round of drilling on the depth and lateral extent of the Wedge lenses, while drilling gets underway at Tribag.

Moving from Targets to Drilling

The Tribag-West Wedge targets have been part of the Company's 10,000-metre 2026 drill program since it was announced in May, with drilling planned to follow Phase 3 work at the Wedge Mine. The second drill rig, first announced on June 24, 2026, now allows the Company to begin testing the target area, starting at Tribag, while drilling continues at the Wedge Mine.

"We are pleased to finally have our second drill rig on site at the Tribag-West Wedge targets. The rig was contracted for this season, but with the demand for drill rigs right now, it took longer to arrive than we had planned. It's here now, and having a second rig means we can keep drilling at the Wedge Mine while we start testing the exploration potential along the Wedge VMS Trend, beginning at Tribag. These targets have been a priority since the TDEM survey was completed, and this is the kind of exploration drilling we have been waiting for. The whole team is excited to finally put a drill into them. We look forward to updates from the drill site." - Patrick J. Cruickshank, MBA, CEO & Director

The Tribag-West Wedge TDEM Targets

EarthEx Geophysical Solutions Inc. ("EarthEx") reprocessed legacy MegaTEM and Aerodat airborne data across the Company's Western Portfolio and, using late-time conductance analysis, defined eleven priority VMS trends. Priority Targets 3 and 4 lie approximately 3.0 kilometres northwest of the Wedge Mine and correspond directly to the West Wedge and Tribag VMS occurrences. Target 7 lies approximately 6 kilometres northwest of the Wedge Mine along the same Wedge VMS Trend, which extends for approximately 6.5 kilometres (Figure 1).

FIGURE 1: BMC Western Portfolio Projects

Maxwell plate modelling of the strong conductors defined seven individual target plates associated with the two VMS occurrences, all lying along the same magnetic trend as the historic Wedge Mine. Six of the seven plates (B1, C1, C2, C3, C4 and D1) are shown in plan view in Figure 2.

FIGURE 2: Plan View - Mineral Occurrences, Survey Grid and Modelled Target Plates over the RMI

The plates were modelled from 17.4 line kilometres of TDEM surveying completed by EarthEx over the Tribag and West Wedge areas (Figure 3).

FIGURE 3: Wedge TDEM Survey Grid over Remanent Magnetic Intensity (RMI), Target Areas 3, 4, 6 and 7

All plates other than A1 sit at modelled depths of 300 to 450 metres. Plate A1 is large and at depth, suggesting a regional, stratigraphic or structural feature that has yet to be determined (Figure 4).

FIGURE 4: Looking West - Modelled Target Plates A1, B1, C1, C2, C3, C4 and D1

At Tribag (Target 4), mineralization has been identified at surface and in previous shallow drill holes, with a grab sample from trench LF17-11 returning 12.6% Zn, 7.22% Pb and 0.53% Cu. At West Wedge (Target 3), historical drilling completed in the 1980s returned assays of up to 0.78% Cu, 5.35% Pb, 12.9% Zn, 70.62 g/t Ag and 1.37 g/t Au over a 3.75-metre drill width.

"The Tribag conductors sit on the same magnetic trend as the Wedge Mine, and six of the seven modelled plates sit at 300 to 450 metres. Strong conductors at depth, on trend with the Wedge, with known mineralization at surface and in the shallow historic holes. That is exactly the setup you look for in the Bathurst Camp. Results from the first holes at Tribag will guide how we continue to test the target area, and we look forward to seeing what the core tells us." - Gary Lohman, B.Sc., P.Geo., VP Exploration and Director

Wedge Mine Drilling Continues

Phase 3 drilling at the Wedge Mine is ongoing. As reported on September 24, 2026, eight BHEM surveys are commencing on perimeter holes to guide a second round of drilling on the depth and lateral extent of the Wedge lenses. Drill core is logged, photographed and sampled at the Company's warehouse in Bathurst, New Brunswick, with samples submitted to ALS Global in Moncton for analysis.

Qualified Person

Technical information in this news release has been prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 and reviewed and approved by Gary Lohman, B.Sc., P.Geo., VP Exploration and Director, the Company's Qualified Person, who is not independent of the Company.

About Nine Mile Metals Ltd.

Nine Mile Metals Ltd. is a Canadian public mineral exploration company focused on Critical Mineral VMS (Cu, Pb, Zn, Ag and Au) exploration in the world-famous Bathurst Mining Camp, New Brunswick. The Company is exploring four VMS projects: Wedge, Nine Mile Brook, California Lake, and Canoe Landing Lake (East - West), positioning for the boom in AI data centers, EV and green technologies requiring copper, silver, lead, and zinc, with a hedge with gold.

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ON BEHALF OF NINE MILE METALS LTD.

Patrick J. Cruickshank, MBA
CEO & Director
T: +1.506.804.6117
E: info@ninemilemetals.com

Jonathan Holmes
President & Director
T: +1.506-804-6117
E: jonathan@ninemilemetals.com

This press release may include forward-looking information within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation concerning the business of Nine Mile, based on certain key expectations and assumptions made by management, identifiable by words such as "will," "may," "would," "expect," "intend," "plan," "seek," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "predict," "potential," "continue," "likely," "could" and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements in this press release include that (a) drilling in the Tribag-West Wedge target area is expected to commence at Tribag in the coming days, with further drilling in the target area to be guided by results, (b) drilling will continue at the Wedge Mine as part of the Company's 10,000-metre 2026 drill program, (c) the Company will complete eight (8) BHEM surveys on perimeter holes to guide a second round of drilling, and (d) further certified assay results will be reported upon receipt from ALS Global. Although Nine Mile believes the expectations and assumptions on which such forward-looking information is based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on it, as Nine Mile can give no assurance they will prove correct. Grab samples are selective by nature and may not be representative of mineralization on the property. The West Wedge drill results referenced in this release are historical and have not been verified by the Qualified Person. TDEM conductors are geophysical targets only, and their source can only be determined by drilling.

The Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE) has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or the accuracy of the contents of this release.

The Canadian Venture Building, 82 Richmond Street East, Toronto, ON M5C 1P1
T: (506) 804-6117 · www.ninemilemetals.com

SOURCE: Nine Mile Metals