Aeternum Adds John M. Melkon to Board of Directors

• John M. Melkon will join board of directors as a director and act as a consultant to the Company immediately.
  
• Melkon, a thirty-year veteran of negotiating critical material supply chains for USA in challenging geopolitical situations, brings significant operating experience to the board of directors.
  
• Most recently, Melkon has been Director and an Assistant Professor at the United States Military Academy and is leading the Critical Materials Consortium.
  

WASHINGTON, Aug. 11, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Aeternum (OTC: AETN) (“Company”), a company aiming to become a highly strategic supplier of critical minerals, today announced it has recruited John M. Melkon to its board of directors as a director and as a consultant to the Company.

Mr. John Melkon is currently a senior advisor to the United States Military Academy at West Point. Previously, from 2012 -2026 he was a Director and an Assistant Professor at the United States Military Academy and has been recently charged with building and leading the Critical Minerals Consortium. In this capacity he is responsible for facilitating the coordination, planning and execution of the strategic vision and mission to educate faculty, cadets and the community of practice. He also teaches Seminars on Sub-Saharan African Geography, as well as the Geography of the Middle East and North Africa. He serves as a Co-Chair for the Bilateral Defense Committee between the U.S. and South Africa.

Prior to his service at CSCMO (Center for the Study of Civil/Military Operations), Mr. Melkon served as a Senior Operations Advisor to the United States Army Africa in Vicenza, Italy from 2009 to 2012. He was responsible for providing strategic liaison to Inter-Agency and multi-national partners and advising the command on critical operational planning. During that tenure he served the command in OPERATION ODYSSEY DAWN. He was also a Strategic Operations Officer for the Department of Defense from 2006 to 2009 with service to OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM. Before re-entering public service Mr. Melkon worked as an International Banking Associate for Credit Suisse First Boston in Frankfurt, Germany.

Prior to his civilian service with CSFB, Mr. Melkon was an Army Special Forces Officer and in over thirty years of national security service to the United States of America, Mr. Melkon has had operational and combat experience in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Central and South East Asia. His expertise spans a wide range of Civil-Military Operations, Unconventional Warfare, Counterterrorism, Counterinsurgency and Foreign Internal Defense. He is a graduate of the National Senior Intelligence Course and also an FBI Certified Crisis Negotiator.

Mr. Melkon is currently a PhD Candidate at Stellenbosch University along with a Professor of Practice at North West University in South Africa. He received his A.B. in History from Princeton University, and he also holds an MBA from the Lowry Mays School of Business
and an MPIA with honors from the George Bush School of Government and Public Service at Texas A&M University. He has been conferred an MA in European Politics and a Certificate of Professional Achievement in Enterprise Risk Management from Columbia University in 2022. He is also a Harvard John F Kennedy School Senior Executive in National and International Security.

“We are excited to add John to our board of directors. We believe that John’s experience in negotiating with governments in frontier regions is unique and will bring considerable operational expertise to the Company,” said Josua Oosthuizen, Chief Executive Officer of Aeternum.

“Additionally, we believe that John’s understanding of critical material supply chains globally and their strategic importance to the United States is unique and aligned with the Company’s objective to become a leading supplier of critical minerals and metals to the United States,” he added.

Following the raising of $4 million in financing from the Company’s executive chairman, Paul Mann, the Company has spent the last six months developing a mining opportunity in Nigeria that will focus on the production of tin, niobium and tantalum. All three are classified as critical materials used in electronics and super alloys. The United States is reliant on overseas suppliers for all three critical materials with a net import reliance of 75% - 100% of all three materials. This mine is anticipated to start commercial production during 1H 2027.

Aeternum also owns an option to acquire a 51% stake in American Renaissance Minerals, a company which is advancing the Nkamouna Cobalt-Nickel-Manganese Project in Cameroon. Nickel is used principally in austenitic stainless steel while cobalt is used in lithium-ion battery cathodes, where it improves thermal stability, cycle life and energy density, and in superalloys for aerospace and defense applications. Nickel and cobalt are both included on the United States list of critical minerals and net import reliance for both have been over 70% in recent years.

Aeternum has identified a number of other assets which are aligned with its strategy to become a highly strategic supplier of critical minerals. These assets will all be non-Chinese assets that come from conflict free regions with a bankable chain of custody. Importantly, it is envisaged that these assets will have extremely fast speed to market because United States industries require the security of critical minerals immediately. The Company’s tin assets, contained within the Jos Plateau alluvial deposit in Nigeria, is expected to start commissioning process within 12 months of the project start, thereby, Aeternum believes, providing an extremely high and predictable return in investment and a fast cash-on-cash payback.

ABOUT AETERNUM
Aeternum (OTC: AETN) seeks to become a highly strategic supplier of critical minerals. Its first resource is a mine located in the Jos Plateau in Nigeria that will focus on the production of tin, niobium, tantalum and other metals.

Led by a management team with a track record of designing, building and commissioning mineral-processing plants in Africa, and supported by independent geological and metallurgical consultants, Aeternum’s goal is to develop multiple assets globally and create a diversified revenue stream from several critical minerals.

FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS
This press release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to various risks and uncertainties. These forward-looking statements include statements which may be accompanied by the words “intends,” “may,” “will,” “plans,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “projects,” “predicts,” “estimates,” “aims,” “believes,” “hopes,” “potential,” or other similar expressions. Although the Company believes that the expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot assure you that such expectations will turn out to be correct, and the Company cautions investors that actual results may differ materially from the anticipated results. Such factors include, among others, risks relating to the timing and ability of the Company to obtain and the timing of the approval of relevant regulatory bodies, if at all; risks relating to property interests; risks related to access to the project; risks inherent in mineral exploration, including the fact that any particular phase of exploration may be unsuccessful; the availability of contractors; geo-political risks; the global economic climate; metal prices; environmental risks; political risks; and community and non-governmental actions. Further to this, geological similarities or characteristics are not guarantees or certainties of successful exploration. Neither the Company nor any other person assumes responsibility for the accuracy and completeness of any such forward-looking statements. The Company does not undertake, and assumes no obligation, to update or revise any such forward-looking statements or forward-looking information contained herein to reflect new events or circumstances, except as may be required by law. The Company encourage readers to review the “Risk Factors” in our Form 8-K filed July 7, 2026, and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a comprehensive understanding.

For more information, please contact:

Aeternum
Investor Relations Department
Email: info@aeternumresources.com