Critical Elements Rose West Hits 1.89% Li2O and 161 ppm Ta2O5 Over 27.35 m — Rose Project Lands in Canada Investment Summit Prospectus Ahead of September 14 Institutional Showcase

Two events separated by one month have put Critical Elements Lithium Corporation (TSX-V: CRE) in front of a different kind of audience heading into the week of September 14.

The company's August 12, 2026 news release reported assays from the Phase 2 Summer 2026 drill program at Rose West, located in Eeyou Istchee, Québec, approximately 10 km west of the flagship Rose Lithium-Tantalum Project. The headline hole, RW-26-35A, cut 1.89% Li2O and 161 ppm Ta2O5 over 27.35 m through Pegmatite 3, including a higher-grade sub-interval of 2.70% Li2O and 222 ppm Ta2O5 over 10.50 m and a second sub-interval of 1.84% Li2O and 115 ppm Ta2O5 over 9.00 m, per that release on accessnewswire.com.

The program returned results from three additional holes. Hole RW-26-51 delivered two separate pegmatite intercepts: 1.23% Li2O and 227 ppm Ta2O5 over 6.45 m (including 1.64% Li2O and 179 ppm Ta2O5 over 4.00 m) through Pegmatite 5, and 1.58% Li2O and 118 ppm Ta2O5 over 16.85 m through Pegmatite 3. Hole RW-26-52 returned 1.00% Li2O and 88 ppm Ta2O5 over 19.40 m through Pegmatite 3, including sub-intervals of 1.11% Li2O and 176 ppm Ta2O5 over 6.70 m and 1.43% Li2O and 83 ppm Ta2O5 over 4.00 m. Hole RW-26-58 added 1.33% Li2O and 145 ppm Ta2O5 over 14.05 m through Pegmatite 5, with a best sub-interval of 1.81% Li2O and 122 ppm Ta2O5 over 9.00 m. All four holes are part of a Phase 2 program targeting 10,000 meters total, per the August 12, 2026 release.

Tantalum grades above 100 ppm Ta2O5 appear across multiple holes and both Pegmatite 3 and Pegmatite 5, per the same release. The lithium and tantalum grades are reported together for each interval throughout the August 12, 2026 disclosure.

The footprint has grown substantially since the discovery. Rose West was initially intercepted over a 450 m x 370 m area in the winter of 2024. As of June 9, 2026, per the company's disclosures, that surface expression had grown to 1,250 m x 800 m — described as a six-fold increase.

On September 11, 2026, Critical Elements announced that the Rose Lithium-Tantalum Project has been selected for inclusion in the Canada Investment Summit Prospectus, per the company's release on cecorp.ca. The prospectus is being provided to participants at the inaugural Canada Investment Summit in Toronto on September 14–15, 2026, an event expected to gather leading global investors collectively managing more than US$100 trillion in assets, per that same release.

The Rose project carries feasibility-stage figures on record. A 2023 Feasibility Study estimates an after-tax internal rate of return of 65.7% and after-tax net present value of US$2.2 billion at an 8% discount rate, per the company's profile on stocktitan.net. The project holds key federal and provincial environmental approvals and a mining lease from Québec authorities, covering a 1,016 km² land package, per the same source.

Lithium spot prices have been under pressure. Benchmark Mineral Intelligence assessed lithium carbonate (min 99.5%, battery grade, spot) at $19,750 per tonne, equivalent to $19.75 per kg, CIF Asia on September 2, 2026, down 0.8% week on week, per that assessment. As of September 9, 2026, the global benchmark settled at $21.73 per kg, reflecting a 1.15% decline amid an unexpected surplus in Chinese inventories.

The broader market backdrop shifted during the week of September 8–12. The 10-Year U.S. Treasury yield reached 4.80%, a level not seen since early 2025, per SWBC Investment Hub commentary, driven in part by Chair Warsh's hawkish Jackson Hole speech and stronger jobs numbers. The VIX moved from 14.52 to 17.85 over the same week, per IG Markets. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq rose 0.1% and 0.4% respectively for the week, while the Dow fell 0.3%, per Trading Economics. On September 11 alone, the S&P 500 gained 0.9%, the Dow added 509 points, and the Nasdaq 100 rose 0.9%, per the same source.

Geopolitical pressure added to the week's complexity. U.S.-Iran military activity in the Strait of Hormuz maintained a risk premium in energy markets, per Yahoo Finance reporting on September 8, 2026. Canada's retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods took effect just after midnight on September 9, 2026, following the collapse of negotiations with the United States, per the same Yahoo Finance report.

On the labor and inflation front, July payrolls were revised to a gain of 21,000 from a previously reported decline of 23,000, the unemployment rate held at 4.1% in August, and average hourly earnings rose 0.3% sequentially to $37.75, up 3.1% year over year, per Yahoo Finance on September 8, 2026. Following that report, CME FedWatch showed a 40.6% probability that the federal funds rate would remain at 3.50–3.75% after the September meeting, per the same source. The August CPI report, released September 11, showed inflation remaining above the Fed's 2% target, per Polymarket data.

No real-time CRE.V share price or shares-outstanding data was available for September 13, 2026; the last confirmed quote in available search results dates to May 28, 2026.