Fortune Minerals Announces Process Waste Disposal Agreement With SECURE for Planned Alberta Refinery

• On 8 Apr 2026 Fortune Minerals announced a back‑stop agreement with SECURE Waste Infrastructure (TSX: SES).
• The deal covers engineering, permitting and design of a deep injection well for liquid brine and a Class 2 landfill for solid residues, together handling ~200,000 t/yr of process waste from the planned Alberta hydrometallurgical plant.
• SECURE will deliver preliminary cost estimates and obtain all required permits; a definitive construction‑and‑service agreement is expected thereafter.
• The waste‑management solution underpins continuous operation of the NICO project’s refinery, which processes concentrates from the Northwest Territories mine.

• Expectation vs. reality: The waste‑disposal back‑stop was anticipated after the site purchase (Dec 2025) and financing milestones (Jan 2026). Its announcement is therefore expected rather than surprising.
• Magnitude: Provides a cost‑effective, environmentally compliant route for both liquid and solid wastes – a prerequisite for construction but not a value‑creating catalyst on its own. No new capital or revenue disclosed; only engineering & permitting scope.
• Market reaction: Given the modest nature of the news, price impact is likely limited to short‑term optimism; the stock has already been trending upward from $0.06 (early 2025) toward a recent $0.13 peak in early 2026, suggesting the market had priced in progress on this front.
• Conclusion: The announcement is Routine – Positive – it removes an operational risk but does not materially alter the project’s economics or valuation.

Fortune Minerals Ltd. focuses on the NICO Critical Minerals Project – an integrated mine‑concentrator in the Northwest Territories feeding a newly acquired hydrometallurgical refinery in Lamont County, Alberta. The project targets:

• ~1,800 t/yr of cobalt (as sulphate)
• ~1,700 t/yr of bismuth ingots (≈12 % of global reserves)
• ~47,000 oz/yr gold doré
• ~300 t/yr copper cement

Reserves: 33.1 Mt with 1.11 Moz Au, 82.3 Mlb Co, 102.1 Mlb Bi, 27.2 Mlb Cu (20‑year life).