Strategic business joint venture with Vogen Resources

Aeterion PLC (LSE: ATN)An African-focused critical minerals exploration and trading company, is pleased to announce that its wholly owned Rwandan subsidiary, Eastinco Limited (“Eastinco“), has successfully commenced trade and export operations under the new terms of its strategic joint venture (“JV“) Partnership with Vogen Resources Limited (“vogen“), a global metals trading group headquartered in London.

Since Vogen’s founding in 1972, the Vogen name has become synonymous with integrity, reliability and professionalism in the delivery of high-value raw materials to the non-ferrous industry. Importantly, Eastinco has completed its first export operation with Vogen and is currently collecting additional supplies for export under the JV structure, demonstrating both the effectiveness of the revised structure and the partners’ ability to move rapidly from agreement to execution. This initial traction not only validates the strength of the JV terms but also provides increased near-term revenue generation and scalability of trading volumes.

JV Highlights:

• Improved working capital model, reducing the need for equity funding to support business growth.
• Same day purchasing liquidity, increasing purchasing efficiency.
• Institutional-grade risk management and governance framework.
• Mutual unwavering commitment to internationally recognized traceability and responsible sourcing standards.
• Premium market position through responsible sourcing and compliance.

Charles Bray, Executive Chairman of Aeterion plc, commented:

“We are proud to announce Vogen Resources as our joint venture partner.

This achievement speaks volumes about the quality of our assets, our team and our operational and traceability standards. Such partnerships not only bring access to international markets and liquidity, but also a significant degree of third-party verification. The credibility associated with working with Vogen enhances our position with stakeholders including regulators, financiers and potential partners.

The joint venture represents an expansion of Eastinco’s business operations and capabilities, accelerating our progress towards group profitability. This collaboration allows us to optimize pricing and ensure consistent offtake while maintaining the highest standards of responsible sourcing and transparency. It’s a strong endorsement of the platform we’ve built and provides a solid foundation for future growth.

Vogen offers: Funding + Offtake + Logistics

Eastinco provides: Origin + Processing + Compliance + Logistics

We are targeting trading net revenues to fully cover Aterian operating expenses for the full year 2026 and look forward to updating the market with clear details of our trading volumes and profitability established over a representative period.

The JV is a fully funded, scalable and traceable tantalum trading platform, with material sourcing, processing and transactions carried out in accordance with the updated commercial framework. This has enabled Eastinco to significantly increase trading volumes, capture downstream trading margins and accelerate cash flow generation while maintaining full compliance with international responsible sourcing and traceability standards.

Effect

The Board, which previously announced that it had agreed the heads of terms for the joint venture on 9 February 2026, believes the transaction represents an improvement on Eastinco’s prior trading model:

Responsible Sourcing & Traceability Benefits

The JV strengthens Aterion’s overall partnership strategy and its trading strategy of building a fully traceable, compliant and responsibly sourced critical minerals platform. All materials traded comply with OECD due diligence standards and RMI (including ITSCI) traceability protocols, enabling access to high-value end markets where provenance and ESG compliance are key purchasing criteria. This positions Aterion as a trusted supplier to global customers who require verified, conflict-free and transparent supply chains, particularly in the electronics, AI infrastructure and energy transition sectors.

Tantalum Market Chart

Tantalum ore prices recently reached near historical all-time highs US$225/lb (about US$500,000 per metric ton Ta2O5 included)Compared to US$95/lb from just four months ago and gross margins are increasing accordingly. This sharp appreciation reflects growing demand from advanced electronics, military, AI infrastructure and high-performance manufacturing sectors as well as a tight supply environment. Given the rising price, 10 million tonnes of 30% grade Ta2O5 CIF in China is valued at approximately $1.5 million USD.

The resulting market dynamics have introduced high volatility and margins into the commodity complex, prompting buyers to seek reliable, traceable sources of supply. In this context, Eastinco has benefited from both increased trading activity and increased margin opportunities as it broadens its procurement network within a disciplined traceability framework.

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This announcement contains information which, before its disclosure, was inside information as determined under Regulation 11 of the Market Abuse (Amendment) (EU Withdrawal) Regulation 2019/310 (as amended).

Connect directly with the Aterian PLC management team by asking questions, watching video summaries and seeing what other shareholders have to say. Please visit our interactive investor center here: https://aterianplc.com/s/fcf8eb

For more information please visit the company’s website: www.aterianplc.com Or contact:

Eterion PLC:

Charles Bray, Executive Chairman – charles.bray@aterianplc.com
Simon Rollason, CEO and Director – simon.rollason@aterianplc.com