Critical One Energy Inc. is pleased to announce that it has signed a binding memorandum of understanding (the “MOU”) with Solar International Core Canada (“SICC”), a strategic investment and operating firm with institutional financing partnerships that include the Sultanate of Oman Sovereign Wealth Fund. The MOU positions Critical One as a co-development partner in building a Canadian critical minerals supply chain and brings C$25 million of strategic capital, a construction financing facility of up to C$400 million and a future antimony offtake agreement to the Company’s flagship Howells Lake Antimony-Gold Project. Located in the homelands of the Eabametoong First Nation (“EFN”), Thunder Bay Mining Division, Howells Lake is approximately 120 kilometers west of the Ring of Fire access corridor in northwestern Ontario, Canada.
The MOU brings together SICC as the principal capital and offtake partner and Northlink Development Group Inc. (“Northlink”) as the developer and project manager of the planned Ontario antimony processing facility. Through this partnership, Critical One participates as both a future antimony feedstock supplier from Howells Lake and a carried equity partner in the facility.
Highlights:
- Strategic Equity Position: C$15 million from SICC at C$1.20 per share for 12.5 million common shares without warrant exposure, representing a 48% premium to the closing price on Wednesday, October 28, 2026 (C$0.81), for a 12% interest on a fully diluted basis. SICC has agreed to a 12-month voluntary lock-up.
- Board Position: SICC may nominate one director to Critical One’s Board of Directors.
- Mine Construction Finance: SICC shall use commercially reasonable efforts to deliver to Critical One, within ninety (90) days of signing the MOU, to provide an indicative term sheet for a construction debt facility of up to C$400 million to fund industrial mine and plant infrastructure.
- Ontario Processing Facility: Establishes a strategic commercial alliance wherein Howells Lake antimony feedstock is integrated with the Ontario processing facility being developed by Northlink, with SICC funding a C$10 million commitment representing Critical One’s carried equity interest in the processing facility.
- Future Antimony Supply: Exclusive offtake rights to purchase up to 150 million pounds of future antimony production from Howells Lake, at international benchmark prices. It is noted that future production is not guaranteed and Howells Lake does not have an NI 43-101 compliant resource.
“Being positioned as a strategic co-development partner, with returns from processing as well as mining, elevates Critical One’s growth strategy,” said Duane Parnham, Executive Chairman and CEO of Critical One. “We are advancing our geological results into a development plan that returns benefits directly to our shareholders and the Eabametoong First Nation community.”
Chief Solomon Atlookan described the growing partnership between Critical One and Eabametoong First Nation. “Our community members hunt, fish, and harvest throughout this beautiful area. It is our home, and we have begun a relationship with Duane and Critical One on respectful terms and will continue to be guided by our land users and stewards of the land. This partnership is not merely about revenue sharing or environmental protections. We are seeking to plan for the future of our people and sustainable growth of our community through strategic opportunities, and we are pleased to see respectful companies come alongside our First Nation.”
Commercial Development Strategy
SICC’s stake in Critical One ties its future supply to the Company's success. Establishing the funding route at this early stage means the project can be designed and its capital planned together. As outlined in the MOU, the construction financing would become available after the studies, permits, and approvals that precede a construction decision.
Having the buyer (offtake partner) from the start also means its product specifications will help shape how Howells Lake material is processed, flowing through to engineering, infrastructure, and delivery design. Completion of the equity investment is subject to 90-day due diligence and acceptance by the Canadian Securities Exchange.
“This collaboration with Critical One Energy is a decisive step toward closing critical vulnerabilities in North American critical minerals supply chains,” said Marc Kealey, Vice-Chairman of Solar International Core Canada. “By integrating upstream Canadian feedstock with domestic refining infrastructure, we are creating an integrated, value-added supply ecosystem that keeps economic benefits, processing intellectual property, and high-skilled jobs inside Canada. Because of this, SICC is keen and proud to act as the principal capital partner accelerating this vital initiative."
Geological Foundation for Future Supply
The offtake and financing under the MOU are anchored by the Howells Lake Project, where the Company’s independent NI 43-101 technical report prepared by Micon International Limited, describes antimony mineralization traced over more than 300 meters of strike and 200 meters of depth, open to the northeast and at depth. Intersections Micon calls very significant include 8.0 meters grading 42.2% antimony in HWL-2026-006 and 31.5 meters grading 4.9% antimony in HWL-2026-016. The funded, Micon-recommended 20,000-meter program is designed to develop a maiden resource calculation and show the scale of feedstock Howells Lake could supply for the offtake agreement.
Next Steps at Howells Lake
Critical One welcomes ongoing planning and consultation sessions with Eabametoong First Nation as well as EFN’s participation in the development process as technical work at Howells Lake advances.
Preliminary mineralogical testing identified stibnite as the principal antimony mineral in the samples examined, with no arsenic- or mercury-bearing minerals identified in those samples. Additional metallurgical test work will show how Howells Lake material can be processed and what product it can deliver. In parallel, drilling continues toward an initial mineral resource estimate to define the tonnage and grade of mineralization in the project’s East Zone.
Qualified Person
The scientific and technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Matthew Trenkler, P.Geo., Chief Geological Officer of Critical One Energy Inc., a “Qualified Person” as defined under National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.