EMP METALS PARTNER SALTWORKS SELECTED BY GLOBAL SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURER FOR LANDMARK ADVANCED WATER RECOVERY AND ZLD PROJECT

Vancouver, British Columbia, April 7, 2026 – EMP Metals Corp. (CSE: EMPS) (OTCQB: EMPPF) (FSE: 9ST) (“EMP Metals” or the “Company”) is pleased to share that its valued partner on Project Aurora, Saltworks Technologies Inc. (“Saltworks”), was selected by a leading global semiconductor manufacturer to deliver critical water recovery and zero liquid discharge (ZLD) infrastructure.

This decision reinforces Saltworks’ leadership in delivering future‑proof water treatment systems for the world’s most demanding industrial facilities. The award followed a rigorous process in which Saltworks’ modernized industrial desalination processes, modular off‑site construction (OSC) architecture, and intelligent digital controls provided clear advantages.

Karl Kottmeier, EMP Metals CEO, commented, “We are pleased to share this tremendous development for our partner Saltworks with our shareholders and the investment community. It is exactly this sort of confirmation and validation of engineering excellence that provides us with even more confidence that Project Aurora will continue to advance successfully.”

These capabilities reduce execution risk, accelerate delivery for schedule‑critical fabs, and optimize total lifecycle cost. Saltworks’ approach supports meeting the stringent reliability, water sustainability, and operational resilience requirements of next‑generation semiconductor manufacturing at scale.

The large-scale multi-stream project incorporates Saltworks’ advanced high-TDS ion exchange Xtract, ultra-high-recovery XtremeRO, and SaltMaker MVR ZLD (see Figure 1), unified as a complete digital, modular system delivered as a single package.

The scalable OSC package, based on repeatable and proven designs, minimizes custom engineering, execution risk, and site construction timelines. This strategy, combined with Saltworks’ patented self-diagnosis and self-cleaning equipment, along with health maintenance digital technology, delivers the operational certainty required for advanced semiconductor production, where water treatment reliability is mission-critical.

Saltworks continues to lead in industrial water, brine management, and lithium refining, delivering repeatable, factory‑built systems that combine technical depth, digital intelligence, and real‑world performance at scale.

Figure 1 – 3D model of multiple SaltMaker units integrated into a ZLD system for semiconductor fab water recovery

About EMP Metals

EMP is a Canadian-based lithium exploration and development company focused on large-scale resources using direct lithium extraction (DLE). EMP currently holds over 205,000 net acres (83,000 hectares) of Subsurface Dispositions and strategic wellbores in Southern Saskatchewan.

For more information, please go to the Company’s website at www.empmetals.com or contact:

Karl Kottmeier, CEO

karl@pemgroup.ca

Phone: 1-604-689-7422

Paul Schubach, COO

paul@empmetals.com

Phone: 1-306-519-8341

Forward-Looking Statements

Information set forth in this news release contains forward-looking statements that are based on assumptions as of the date of this news release. These statements reflect management’s current estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations. They are not guarantees of future performance. EMP Metals cautions that all forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain, and that actual performance may be affected by a number of material factors, many of which are beyond EMP Metals’ control. Such factors include, among other things: risks and uncertainties relating to EMP Metals’ limited operating history, ability to obtain sufficient financing to carry out its exploration and development objectives on its mineral properties, obtaining the necessary permits to carry out its activities and the need to comply with environmental and governmental regulations. Accordingly, actual and future events, conditions and results may differ materially from the estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations expressed or implied in the forward-looking information. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, EMP Metals undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking information.

The Canadian Securities Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the information contained herein and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.