01 May 2025

First Tin PLC

("First Tin" or "the Company")

Auersberg and Gottesberg Project Critical Raw Material Exploration Update

First Tin PLC, a tin development company with advanced, low capex projects in Germany and Australia, is pleased to announce that its 100% owned subsidiary, Saxore Bergbau GmbH ("SBG"), has compiled results from exploration conducted during 2024 and 2025 over its Auersberg and Gottesberg licences in Germany. The results confirm the presence of multiple critical raw materials in addition to tin, further enhancing the strategic importance of this project within the EU.

Highlights include:

·      Critical raw materials gallium (Ga) and indium (In) have been shown to be widespread in the district

·      Elevated levels of lithium (Li), caesium (Cs), and rubidium (Rb) have also been identified

·      Several tin greisen vein structures have been mapped and sampled over a distance of at least 3km, suggesting potential for sizeable systems in the district with grades of between 0.2% and 0.6% Sn plus critical raw material by-products

·      In addition to tin (Sn), silver (Ag) and bismuth (Bi) have been located in several tin greisen systems via surface rock chip sampling

First Tin CEO, Bill Scotting commented:

"These results highlight the potential for tin as well as other critical minerals in this historic mining district in the heartland of Europe's high-tech manufacturing belt, minerals which today are primarily imported from geo-politically sensitive regions. 

The results show that there is further potential for significant tin deposits in our portfolio of exploration licenses in the tin triangle around the known Tellerhäuser and Gottesberg deposits.  In addition, the considerable potential for other critically important minerals is especially relevant as Europe seeks to build security in its critical minerals supply chain. Further work to evaluate these additional critical raw materials and better define the Gottesberg to Gabe Gottes corridor is planned for the 2025 field season."

Details:

Tin Greisens

SBG conducted mapping and sampling at its Auersberg and Gottesberg projects during the 2024-25 field seasons, including collecting and assaying a total of 96 rock chip samples.  This work has been compiled and assessed along with previous SBG and German Democratic Republic (GDR) era work.  Tin assay results are summarised on Figures 1 to 3. 

Figure 1: Summary of SBG Tenure in Saxony, Germany, showing rock chip sampling, SBG tin resources and GDR mineralisation estimates (non-JORC)

Figure 2: Compilation of stream sediment sample results (Sn) from the central part of Auersberg

Figure 3: Compilation of rock chip sample results (Sn) from Gottesberg and Auersberg

It can be seen that a northeast trending zone approximately 11km long has been identified trending from Gottesberg to Gabe Gottes.  Rock chip sampling at two prospects within this zone has identified the following targets:

Pollersberg

Mapping and rock chip sampling (45 samples) has shown mineralisation occurs as a series of greisen veins that can be traced over a distance of at least 300m, with an average rock chip sample grade of 0.19% Sn (Figure 4) and pXRF analyses of up to 1.29% Sn.  Limited previous SBG drilling returned an intercept of 2.6m @ 0.26% Sn from 51.7m:

Figure 4: Summary of Pollersberg structure exploration by SBG (backdrop Lidar DEM)

Gallium and caesium are also elevated in this area with average grades of 29ppm Ga and 81ppm Cs and maxima of 54ppm Ga and 180ppm Cs.  Lithium grades of up to 662ppm Li have been recorded.

St Michaelis

Mapping and rock chip sampling (51 samples) has shown mineralisation occurs as a series of greisen veins that can be traced over a distance of around 600m, with an average rock chip sample grade of 0.24% Sn and a maximum grade of 0.60% Sn (Figure 5).

Figure 5:  Summary of St Michaelis and Katarina structures exploration by SBG (backdrop Lidar DEM)

Gallium and caesium are also enriched with averages of 33ppm Ga (maximum 47ppm) and 95ppm Cs (maximum 147ppm Cs).  Lithium grades of up to 393ppm Li have been recorded.

The mineralisation outcrops and consists of coarse cassiterite as shown on Figure 6. 

Figure 6:  Rock chip sample showing coarse cassiterite (black mineral, SnO₂) from St Michaelis structure

The average grade extracted during the main period of mining (19^th Century) is believed to have been around 0.4% Sn.  This is significantly higher than the SGB rock chip sampling suggests, probably due to the near surface mineralisation already having been mined.  However, mining was generally relatively shallow and potential for higher grade mineralisation remains at depth.

The Pollersberg and St Michaelis structures are separated by a broad valley and there is some suggestion they could be part of the same structure, which would have a strike potential of around 3km within the broad, 10km northeast trending zone that stretches from Gottesberg to Gabe Gottes.

Gallium

Geochemical assaying of samples collected during the 2024 field season, combined with previous SBG and historical data, has shown that the critical raw material (CRM) gallium (Ga) is widespread in the Auersberg licence area, associated with tin bearing greisen alteration around vein structures that can be traced for several kilometres (Figure 7). 

Figure 7:  Summary of Rock chip sampling showing gallium assays from Auersberg and Gottesberg

In particular, a northeast tending zone stretching from Gottesberg to at least St Michaelis has returned consistently high values of up to 54ppm Ga.

Following recognition of the high Ga content of rock chip samples around Pollersberg and St Michaelis, a review of existing data for the Tellerhauser and Gottesberg projects was undertaken, looking specifically at gallium assays. This has shown high gallium exists at both projects, with assays of up to 600ppm Ga being found at Tellerhauser and up to 120ppm Ga at Gottesberg (Table 1).

For context, the current price of gallium is around US$0.24/g, compared with US$0.35/g for indium and US$0.03/g for tin. Whilst recoveries of the metal are unknown, and hence no specific value can be put on the likely economics, potential exists for gallium to become a significant by-product if future metallurgical testwork shows it can be economically extracted.

Table 1: Selected gallium assay data from SBG's projects in Saxony

Figure 8 shows average gallium values for known projects worldwide, with average assays for SBG's Germany projects shown for comparison.

Figure 8:  Average gallium values for known projects worldwide with average assays from SBG's projects shown for comparison.

Indium

A significant enrichment of indium has been found in tin, copper and zinc minerals at Tellerhauser and Gottesberg.  Tellerhauser is one of the World's largest undeveloped indium deposits, with an Indicated and Inferred resource estimate of 708,000kg at an average grade of 25ppm In (see RNS dated 22 April, 2024 for details). 

Previous work at the Breitenbrunn prospect has returned high indium values from underground channel sampling - averaging 93ppm In and with a highest assay value of 720ppm In (Figure 9).

The average indium grade at Gottesberg is around 9ppm In based on previous incomplete drillhole assaying.While still high, it appears that the skarn hosted mineralisation at Tellerhauser and Breitenbrunn is significanty more enriched in indium than greisen hosted mineralisation.

Sampling at Auersberg and Gottesberg has also shown elevated indium values within tin greisen veins (Figure 9).  Average assays at Pollersberg are 2.6ppm In with a maximum of 7.6ppm In while at St Michaelis, the average is 1.4ppm In with a maximum of 2.6ppm In, supporting the lower indium content of greisen hosted tin mineralisation.

This summary suggests indium may be a common by-product, and that the district is generally very elevated in this CRM.

Figure 9:  Summary of Rock chip sampling showing indium assays from Auersberg and Gottesberg

Lithium-Rubidium-Caesium

The Eibenstock Granite, the source for the tin mineralisation at SBG's projects, has been shown to be enriched in lithium, rubidium, caesium, fluorine and tin.  Greisen samples from the Auersberg project have similar enrichments, assumed to be within mica in the greisen alteration.

It is unclear which mica is enriched and whether or not the above elements are extractable.  This may be the focus of future studies given the large size potential available.

Figure 10:  Summary of Rock chip sampling showing lithium assays from Auersberg and Gottesberg

Figure 11:  Summary of Rock chip sampling showing rubidium assays from Auersberg and Gottesberg

Figure 12:  Summary of Rock chip sampling showing caesium assays from Auersberg and Gottesberg

Averages and maxima (in brackets) from Pollersberg are 306ppm Li (662ppm Li), 523ppm Rb (1390ppm Rb), 81ppm Cs (180ppm Cs) and from St Michaelis are 212ppm Li (393ppm Li), 484ppm Rb (745ppm Rb), 95ppm Cs (147ppm Cs).

Silver and bismuth

Rock chip sampling from Neuberg-Grummetstock, east of the known tin-greisen-deposit Gottesberg, showed As rich minerals with notable grades of silver, bismuth and indium. The results of these two samples are listed in Table 2 and suggests that the mineralisation occurs primarily in arsenic-rich mineral phases.

Table 2: Results from rock samples GB_801 and GB_802 showing significant enrichment of the elements Ag-Bi-In-As (Analysis by ACTLABS).

Conclusions

Recent exploration has shown potential for significant tin-indium-gallium mineralisation within the Eibenstock granite at Gottesberg, Pollersberg and St Michaelis.  This trend can be interpreted to continue to the Gabe Gottes area, a strike of around 10km, hence forming a large target.

Potential for the district to host significant CRMs has been shown, and a re-evaluation of the Tellerhauser and Gottesberg deposits suggests that they could both host significant indium and gallium credits.  The indium potential at Tellerhauser has already been shown, with a total of 708,000kg indium being identified as Indicated and Inferred Resources.  It is likely that the indium content has been underestimated due to incomplete assay data for this element.

Further work designed to identify additional critical raw materials and better define the Gottesberg to Gabe Gottes corridor is planned for the 2025 field season.

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Notes to Editors

First Tin PLC is an ethical, reliable, and sustainable tin production company led by a team of renowned tin specialists. The Company is focused on becoming a tin supplier in conflict-free, low political risk jurisdictions through the rapid development of high value, low capex tin assets in Germany and Australia, which have been de-risked significantly, with extensive work undertaken to date.

Tin is a critical metal, vital in any plan to decarbonise and electrify the world, yet Europe and North America have very little supply. Rising demand, together with shortages, is expected to lead tin to experience sustained deficit markets for the foreseeable future.

First Tin's goal is to use best-in-class environmental standards to bring two tin mines into production in three years, providing provenance of supply to support the current global clean energy and technological revolutions.