Pacific Empire closes first tranche of financing

Mr. Brad Peters reports PACIFIC EMPIRE ANNOUNCES CLOSING OF FIRST TRANCHE OF FINANCING, MOBILIZATION OF CREWS TO TRIDENT, AND GRANT OF OPTIONS Pacific Empire Minerals Corp. has closed the first tranche of its non-brokered private placement, mobilized field crews to its Trident copper-gold-project, and granted stock options to officers, directors and consultants. Closing of first tranche of private placement Further to its news releases dated Sept. 17, 2025, the company has closed the first tranche of its non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of $1,386,289.95. In connection with the closing of the first tranche, the company has issued 21,122,570 hard-dollar units and 16,175,000 flow-through units. The offering consisted of hard-dollar units at a price of 3.5 cents per unit and flow-through units at a price of four cents per unit. Each hard-dollar unit consists of one common share and one common share purchase warrant, exercisable at five cents for two years. Each flow-through unit consists of one flow-through common share and one common share purchase warrant, exercisable at six cents for two years. Proceeds from the offering will be used to finance Pacific Empire's 2025 diamond drill program at its flagship Trident copper-gold-silver porphyry project, as well as for general working capital. In connection with the offering, the company paid aggregate finders' fees totalling $48,862.80 in cash and issued an aggregate of 1,329,830 finders' warrants to certain eligible finders, including Haywood Securities Inc., Canaccord Genuity Corp., Research Capital Corp. and Raymond James Ltd. Each finder's warrant entitles the holder to acquire one common share of the company at a price of five cents per share for a period of two years from the closing date. All securities issued under the offering are subject to a statutory hold period of four months and one day in accordance with applicable securities laws. A senior officer and a director of the corporation have subscribed for an aggregate of 1.8 million hard-dollar units and a director of the corporation has subscribed for an aggregate of four million flow-through units as part of the offering, which participation constitutes a related party transaction within the meaning of Multilateral Instrument 61-101, Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions, and Policy 5.9 of the TSX-V. The corporation is relying on the exemption for a formal valuation under Section 5.5(b) of MI 61-101 (trading on the TSX-V) and on the exemption for minority shareholder approval under Section 5.7(1)(b) of MI 61-101 (fair market value of less than $2.5-million). The offering remains subject to final approval of the TSX Venture Exchange. Mobilization to the Trident property The company is also pleased to report that field crews have mobilized to the Trident property in north-central British Columbia. Preparations are under way for the fully permitted 2025 diamond drill program, with drilling anticipated to commence on or about Oct. 12, 2025. The program is designed to test both porphyry and breccia targets that have never before been drilled despite over 50 years of exploration history. Brad Peters, president and chief executive officer of Pacific Empire, commented: "With the closing of this financing, Pacific Empire is fully funded to advance what we believe is one of the most significant exploration programs in the history of the Trident property. Mobilizing our team to site marks the beginning of an exciting chapter for our shareholders as we prepare to drill test undrilled porphyry and breccia targets for the first time." Grant of stock options The company also announces that it has granted an aggregate of 7.7 million stock options to officers, directors and consultants of the company. Each option is exercisable to acquire one common share of the company at a price of five cents per share for a period of five years, subject to the terms of the company's stock option plan and the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange. Unlocking untested ground Although nearly 80 drill holes have been completed at Trident since the 1970s, none have tested the northern porphyry and breccia targets. Historically, access to this area was prevented by the need to cross a creek, which required significant planning and permitting. With Pacific Empire's recently granted multiyear area-based exploration permit, the company is now positioned to drill this area for the very first time. This makes the 2025 program a true milestone in the project's history -- opening ground that has long been considered the most prospective but remained completely untested. Strategic importance The Trident drill program comes at a time when global copper demand is accelerating due to electrification, grid expansion and electric vehicle adoption. At the same time, new large-scale copper discoveries have become increasingly rare, underscoring the importance of exploring in proven, mining-friendly jurisdictions such as British Columbia. With gold also consistently present as a byproduct credit in the system, Trident has the potential to deliver the combination of size, grade and precious metals that makes porphyry copper-gold deposits particularly attractive. Pacific Empire believes the 2025 drill program represents a critical opportunity in the Trident property's 50-year history of exploration. The combination of historical mineralization at the A zone, overlapping geophysical and geochemical anomalies at the porphyry target, and newly permitted access to never-before-drilled breccia targets creates a unique discovery opportunity. With drilling scheduled to begin in September, 2025, Pacific Empire is well positioned to advance Trident toward what could be a significant gold-enriched copper porphyry discovery. Other matters The latest president's newsletter, and updated maps and the corporate presentation, are now available on the company's website. About Trident The Trident property is an early exploration-stage property hosting an alkalic porphyry copper-gold-silver prospect with district-scale potential that is accessible by vehicle. The property is located approximately 50 km southeast of the Kwanika deposit owned by NorthWest Copper Corp. and 50 km to the northwest of Centerra Gold's Mt. Milligan mine. The property covers 6,618 hectares endowed with well-established logging roads providing important efficient access to conduct exploration programs. In 2022, Pacific Empire acquired a 100-per-cent interest in the property in exchange for granting the vendors a 2-per-cent net smelter return (NSR) royalty. One-half (1 per cent) of the 2-per-cent NSR royalty may be purchased for $500,000 by Pacific Empire. About Pinnacle The Pinnacle project is located 60 km west of Centerra Gold's Mt. Milligan copper-gold mine and 30 km southeast of NorthWest Copper's Kwanika copper-gold deposit in a proven copper-gold porphyry district. Access to the Pinnacle is by road, including a new and expanding network of logging roads and trails throughout the main target areas. This improved access is a significant development and is anticipated to contribute to cost effective drill support and provides additional bedrock exposure. Qualified person's statement Kristian Whitehead, PGeo, serves as a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, and has reviewed the scientific and technical information in this news release, approving the disclosure herein. About Pacific Empire Minerals Corp. Pacific Empire is a copper exploration company based in Vancouver, B.C., and trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under the symbol PEMC. The company has a district-scale land position in north-central B.C., totalling 22,541 hectares. British Columbia is a green copper jurisdiction with abundant hydroelectric power, access and infrastructure in close proximity to the end market. We seek Safe Harbor.