Emergent has an experienced and knowledgeable management team with skills and experience in a variety of fields, including exploration, permitting, engineering, project management and development, mine operation, and finance.  This team includes:

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David Watkinson, B.Sc., P.Eng.

President and CEO, Director

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David Watkinson brings 40 years of professional engineering experience in underground and open pit mine development, including mine permitting, engineering, feasibility, construction, and operations to Emergent. In addition, he has extensive experience in project management, having taken projects from grassroots start-ups to successful operating status. Mr. Watkinson has been responsible for the management of large capital projects and operations in Canada, the United States, and the Philippines. He has held progressively senior positions with Placer Dome Inc., Kinross Gold Corporation, Thyssen Mining Construction of Canada, and Vulcan Materials Company. He holds a B.Sc. in Applied Science, Mining Engineering, from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario (1985) and is a Registered Professional Engineer in the Province of Ontario. Mr. Watkinson is currently President of Emergent and its subsidiary companies; President, CEO, and Director of Ameriwest Critical Metals Inc. (CSE:AWCM); and a Director of Tarku Resources Ltd. (TSXV:TKU).

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Grant T. Smith, CPA, CA, C.Dir.

Chief Financial Officer

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Grant T. Smith is a Chartered Professional Accountant with over two decades of experience in the accounting field.  He holds a BFA (1984) from York University and received his CPA designation in 2006.  He has completed the Chartered Director Program from McMaster University (2020).  Mr. Smith was previously the Chief Financial Officer of the Company from October 2012 to July 2018 and resumed the position in January 2024.  He was a Managing Partner of Clearline Chartered Accountants from 2006 to 2019 and since that time has worked as the Executive Director of Clarity NPO, a consulting firm that provides financial services to non-for-profit organizations.  Mr. Smith has served as CFO for several junior mining companies.

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Denise Pilla

Corporate Secretary

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Denise Pilla is the corporate and administrative clerk at Vancouver Corporate Solutions Inc. (“VCS”).  She has years of experience in office administration and received a business administration diploma from the University of the Fraser Valley.  She is currently completing the Canadian Securities Course.  VCS provides corporate secretarial services, governance, and strategic advice to publicly traded companies, not-for-profit organizations, and public sector bodies and will provide additional support for Emergent when required.

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Andrew MacRitchie, B.Sc. CA

Independent Director, Chair of the Audit Committee

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Andrew MacRitchie has over 25 years of experience in various mineral exploration finance and accounting roles. He is a Chartered Professional Accountant, holds a B.Sc. Honours degree from the University of British Columbia, and articled with PricewaterhouseCoopers. He is Chief Financial Officer of Skeena Resources Limited (TSX:SKE, NYSE:SKE), and has assisted in raising over $1.5 billion in funding for a number of NYSE, Toronto Stock Exchange, and TSX Venture Exchange listed companies.

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Julien  Davy, MSC, MBA, P.Geo.

Independent Director, Chair of the Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee)

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Julien Davy is a professional geologist with exploration and management experience in Canada and abroad. He has been involved in property acquisition, mine investment, and corporate management. He has a master’s degree from Université du Québec à Montréal and an MBA from HEC in Montréal. In 2015, Mr. Davy co-founded Eureka Exploration, a private exploration company, which was sold to Tarku Resources Ltd. in June 2017 (TSXV:TKU). Since that time, he has been President and CEO of Tarku. Mr. In 2025, he also became the CEO of Canadian Metals Inc. (CSE:CME).  Davy is a former Director of the Quebec Mineral Exploration Association, member of the Ordre des Géologues du Quebec and is Qualified Person (QP) according to National Instrument 43-101.

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Joseph Mullin, AB

Independent Director

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Joseph Mullin is President and CEO of Rise Gold Corp. (CSE:RISE), owner of the historic Idaho Maryland Mine in California, and President and CEO of Pure Energy Minerals Limited (TSXV:PE), which holds a lithium brine resource in Nevada that has been optioned to SLB Corp.  He also serves on the Board of Firefox Gold Corp. (TSXV:GOLD), a gold exploration company in Finland.  Mr. Mullin previously led Virginia Energy Resources Inc. through its sale to Consolidated Uranium Inc. (now IsoEnergy), and served as CEO of QuestEx Gold & Copper Ltd., guiding its successful sale to Skeena Resources Limited and Newmont Mining Corporation.   A graduate of Harvard University, early in his career, he was a financial analyst in metals and mining at Goldman Sachs and held investment roles at Invesco Ltd. and Millennium Global Investments Ltd.  With over two decades of international metals and mining experience across the U.S., Canada, Brazil, and Europe, Mr. Mullin brings a depth of experience in mining, finance, and corporate development.

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Michael Leahy, BBA

Independent Director

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Michael Leahy is an experienced business leader with a strong background in corporate development, business strategy, and company operations.  He currently serves as an Advisor to Oroco Resource Corp., a Director of Rex Resources Corp., (TSXV:OWN) and a Director of eLife Minerals Ltd.  He most recently served as CEO of a publicly traded venture capital firm specializing in investments in high-potential start-up companies across a variety of industries and sectors.  He previously held positions as Vice President of Business Development and later Chief Operating Officer for a private technology company renowned for its proprietary satellite radar technology utilized in mineral exploration, subsurface 3-D modeling, and infrastructure monitoring. He also served as Vice President and Director of International Tungsten Inc.  Mr. Leahy’s experience spans diverse sectors, including natural resources, technology, and tourism resort development, and encompasses both private and public companies. He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration (B.B.A.) from Acadia University.

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