Capstone Copper Hits MVDP Production, Unveils Leadership Plan

VANCOUVER, British Columbia--BUSINESS WIRE--

Capstone Copper Corp. ("Capstone" or the "Company") (TSX:CS) (ASX:CSC) today announced that the Mantoverde Development Project ("MVDP") has achieved commercial production and, following this major corporate milestone, outlines its leadership succession plan.

On September 21, 2024, the MVDP achieved commercial production defined as the achievement of reaching a minimum of 30 consecutive days of operations during which the mill operated at an average of 75% of nameplate throughput of 32,000 ore tonnes per day. Strong performance on key metrics, such as concentrate grade and recoveries, were at or above targeted levels for this point of the ramp-up while the mill feed grade has reconciled well with the mine plan model.

The Company notes that 2024 consolidated copper production is trending to the low end of the guidance range of 190,000 to 220,000 tonnes of copper, while C1 cash costs¹ are trending slightly above the guidance range of US$2.30 to US$2.50 per payable pound, mainly due to the ramp-ups at Mantoverde and Mantos Blancos occurring later in the year than was expected when guidance was issued in January 2024. Given the ramp-up success at MVDP and the recent ramp-up performance at Mantos Blancos, the Company expects the fourth quarter to be the strongest quarter of the year across the portfolio.

LEADERSHIP SUCCESSION PLAN

The following leadership changes will take effect at the next Annual General Meeting of the Company on May 2, 2025:

• John MacKenzie will transition from Chief Executive Officer and will be nominated to the role of Non-Executive Chair of the Capstone Board of Directors;
• Cashel Meagher, current President and Chief Operating Officer, will succeed Mr. MacKenzie as CEO of Capstone, and will also be nominated as a member of the Board;
• James Whittaker, current Senior Vice President, Head of Chile, will succeed Mr. Meagher as COO. This facilitates a flattening of the organizational structure with all mine general managers reporting directly to the COO; and
• Darren M. Pylot, founder of Capstone Mining Corp. and current Chair of the Board, will end his term on the Board after over 20 years as a founder, CEO, and Chair of Capstone.

John MacKenzie, Capstone's CEO, commented, "It has been a privilege to have been the Chief Executive Officer of Capstone Copper since its formation in March 2022 and I look forward to continuing to serve the Company as Board Chair. We have made significant strides since the merger: we integrated Capstone Mining and Mantos Copper to position us as a business with peer-leading growth in copper with four producing copper mines and one development project in great jurisdictions across the Americas; we successfully completed construction and achieved commercial production levels at our flagship Mantoverde Development Project; and we have strengthened our team with some of the best people in the mining industry. Now is the right time for these changes and I have every confidence in Cashel to lead the execution of our next stage of growth at Capstone, including our Mantoverde Optimized and Santo Domingo projects."

Peter Meredith, Lead Independent Director of Capstone, commented, "Today's announcement reflects the results of a thorough and orderly succession process and will ensure continuity of leadership and the continued success of the Company. Capstone is positioned extremely well with Cashel Meagher becoming CEO and John MacKenzie assuming the role of Board Chair. Cashel has over thirty years of experience in the mining industry, has been responsible for several large-scale project builds and ramp ups, and is well suited to lead Capstone's next phase of growth. On behalf of all of the Board, I would like to thank Darren Pylot in particular for his many years of service to Capstone. From founding Capstone Mining and leading the organization as CEO, to chairing the Board of Capstone Copper, Capstone has become the company it is today in large part because of Darren's many invaluable contributions."

Cashel Meagher, Capstone's current President & COO, commented, "I am honoured to have been selected to steward Capstone as its next CEO. Capstone Copper has an unparalleled growth platform, driven by our unique portfolio of assets in the Americas and the many strengths of our mine build and operations teams. I am excited to serve our shareholders and all of our stakeholders as we work to create a positive impact in the lives of our people and communities by responsibly producing copper to meet the world's growing needs."

Q3 2024 RESULTS TIMING DETAILS

Capstone will release its third quarter results on Thursday, October 31, 2024 after market close. The announcement will be followed by an investor conference call the same day at 5:00pm Eastern Time / 2:00pm Pacific Time (Friday, November 1, 2024, 8:00 am Australian Eastern Daylight Time).