Kodal Minerals Plc / Index: AIM / Epic: KOD / Sector: Mining

Kodal Minerals plc

("Kodal Minerals", "Kodal" or the "Company")

04 November 2025

Mali President Officially Opens Bougouni Lithium Project

Kodal Minerals (AIM: KOD), the West African lithium producer and mineral exploration and development company, is pleased to announce the official opening of the Stage 1 Bougouni Lithium Project in southern Mali ("Bougouni Project" or "Project") by General Assimi Goïta, President of the Republic of Mali ("President Goïta"), in a ceremony held on Monday, 3 November 2025.

The official opening of the Stage 1 Dense Media Separation ("DMS") processing plant at the Bougouni Project was hosted by General Ousmane Wele, Governor of the Bougouni Region, who welcomed government dignitaries including President Goïta, Professor Amadou Keita, the Mali Minister of Mines, community leaders including the Village Chief of Ngoulana, and national and local media. To celebrate the official opening of the Bougouni Project, located approximately 180km south of Bamako in southern Mali, the ceremony included speeches from Professor Keita and Chairman of Kodal Mining UK Limited ("KMUK") and CEO of Hainan Mining Co. Ltd ("Hainan"), David Teng, who is also a director of Kodal. This was followed by a guided tour of the Bougouni Project including the DMS processing plant for visiting dignitaries, where the official unveiling of an Inauguration Plaque by President Goïta took place.

Bougouni Project background

The Bougouni Project is operated by local Mali registered mining company, Les Mines de Lithium de Bougouni SA ("LMLB"). LMLB is a subsidiary of KMUK, in which Kodal has a 49 per cent. shareholding in and the balance owned by Hainan. The Malian government holds a direct 35 per cent. stake in LMLB.

The Bougouni Project commenced construction in mid-2024 and announced first production of high-grade lithium spodumene concentrate at grades of 5.53% Li₂O in February 2025 (see announcement dated 11 February 2025) during the plant commissioning phase and has produced over 45,000 tonnes of spodumene, to date. Targeted annual production at the Bougouni Project is 125,000 tonnes at average grade of 5.5% Li₂O. The Stage 1 DMS processes coarse-grained spodumene material from the Ngoualana Mine, feeding [a nameplate capacity of / up to] 1Mtpa of lithium ore into the DMS processing plant utilising a conventional circuit to maximise spodumene recovery.

The Company recently commenced and successfully completed first transportation of spodumene product from site to the Port of San Pedro in Côte d'Ivoire, which will subsequently be exported to its partner and offtaker Hainan's refinery in China. Departure of the first export shipment, expected to occur later in November 2025, will trigger payment and first revenues to LMLB.

Bernard Aylward, CEO of Kodal Minerals, remarked:

"I am delighted to have attended the opening today and observed the strong support of the President of the Republic of Mali, General Assimi Goïta, government dignitaries and representatives from the communities in which we operate.  I noted particularly the comments of the Chief of Ngoualana referring to the opportunities the new development provides and stating his belief that this was the greatest day for his village.  

"In partnership with Hainan, the Bougouni operations team has delivered our flagship critical minerals project, both on time and within our US$65 million capital budget. This is no small achievement, and I want to give a heartfelt thanks to Steve Zaninovich, Kodal's Operations Director and Jerry Gao, Hainan VP of Operations, who have led our dedicated 650-strong team of employees, 95% of which are Malian nationals - a number we can be extremely proud of. Our Project will deliver direct and indirect benefits to not only the local community here at Bougouni but also nationally to the wider Malian economy. It was very pleasing to see the happiness of all of our team present at the opening and the recognition of this achievement.

"I also want to offer our thanks to President Goïta, Professor Amadou Keita and General Wele, whose steadfast support has helped us advance and complete the first stage of the Bougouni Project. Lithium is still a relatively new commodity in Mali and with a production target of 125,000 tonnes annually for Stage 1, I look forward to our Bougouni Project significantly contributing to the national output of the country's 'white gold', with further plans to almost double output for Stage 2, which is currently in the planning phase."

**ENDS**

For further information, please visit www.kodalminerals.com or contact the following:

About Kodal Minerals

Kodal Minerals plc, the AIM-quoted West African lithium explorer, developer and producer, is the co-developer of its flagship Bougouni Lithium Project in Southern Mali alongside development partner Hainan Mining, a subsidiary of Hong Kong-listed Fosun International.

The Bougouni Lithium Project covers 350km² in the world-class Birimian terrain of West Africa, located approximately 180km south of Mali's capital Bamako. The Stage 1 Dense Media Separation ('DMS') processing plant, which achieved first spodumene concentrate production in February 2025, has a target output of 125ktpa Li₂O spodumene concentrate. Stage 2 Floatation plant is expected to commence operations in 2028 with a forecast output of 230ktpa Li₂O.

Bougouni is operated by Les Mines de Lithium de Bougouni SA ('LMLB'), a subsidiary of Kodal Mining UK Limited ('KMUK'), in which Kodal has a 49 per cent shareholding. The company also has a number of highly prospective gold assets in its diverse portfolio located in West Africa.

For more information on Kodal, please visit kodalminerals.com