Focus Graphite Inc. announced the completion of its 2022 core drilling program at its 100%-owned Lac Tétépisca graphite project, located southwest of the Manicouagan Reservoir in the Côte-Nord administrative region of Québec, on the Nitassinan of the Pessamit Innu. The 2022 program, which commenced on March 3 and ended on November 17, consisted of systematic resource definition drilling at depth on the Company's Manicouagan Ouest Graphitic Corridor ("MOGG") deposit together with exploration drilling at the nearby West Limb and Southwest MOGC geophysical (MAG-TDEM) targets. The drilling program was completed ahead of schedule and under budget and in accordance with the Company's flow-through expenditure obligations for 2021 and 2022.

74 holes completed (total: 14,900.5 metres), from LT-22-107 to LT-22-179, including: 27 holes drilled over a 1.5 km strike length on the MOGC deposit (total: 6,640.2 metres); 29 exploration holes drilled on the West Limb target (total: 5,421.6 metres), and 18 exploration holes drilled on the Southwest MOGC target. Drilling completed on the MOGC deposit includes seven (7) 300 m-length vertical HQ-diameter holes, 19 high angled holes drilled to a vertical depth of 200 metres, plus a short hole (LT-22-173A) drilled at moderate angle. These vertical and high angle holes are expected to yield up to 25 tonnes of mineralized drill core from which composite samples will be generated for independent metallurgical processing and flake graphite concentrate recovery, and for subsequent concentrate purification and battery applications and performance tests.

Excluding seventeen (17) holes remaining to be logged in detail, a total of 3,760 core samples, ranging between 1 to 3 metres in length, have been selected so far for geochemical analysis, of which approximately 75% are for graphitic carbon analysis and 25% are for dolomite analysis (major oxides and trace elements). Core splitting and sample preparation are underway at IOS Services Géoscientifiques Inc. ("IOS") laboratories in Saguenay, Québec. Pulverized samples are being expedited to COREM in Québec-City for graphitic carbon (Cg) and total sulfur (S(tot)) determinations, or for whole rock analysis for the dolomite, with 10% duplicates sent to Activation Laboratories in Ancaster, Ontario.

The bulk of the analytical work is expected to require up to four months to be completed. The 2022 core drilling program at the Lac Tétépisca project was designed and operated by IOS Services Géoscientifiques Inc. ("IOS") of Saguenay, Québec, under the supervision of Table Jamésienne de Concertation Minière ("TJCM") of Chibougamau, Québec, acting as an independent technical adviser to the Company. Drilling was performed by Forage G4 of Val-d'Or, Québec using a single drill rig.

Starting in March 2022, drill core boxes for each hole were packaged by sequential numbers onto pallets in the field by IOS personnel and then shipped by truck every 2 weeks to IOS's facilities in Saguenay where they were archived. Sampling has been conducted with a diamond saw, with NQ-diameter core from the Southwest MOGC and West Limb targets being halved, while all HQ-diameter core from the MOGC deposit was quartered. Sample preparation work consisting of crushing and grinding began last September and is expected to be completed by next January.

Pulverized splits are sent to COREM, an ISO/IEC 17025:2005 certified facility located in Québec City, for graphitic carbon (code LSA-M-B10) and total sulphur (code LSA-M-B41) analysis using LECO induction furnace with infrared spectrometry. Pulverized split samples of dolomitic marble are sent to COREM for main oxide analysis by X-ray fluorescence analysis on borate glasses (Code: LSA-M-A32) with 10% of samples analyzed for 25 trace element analysis using ICP-OES and ICP-MS after an aqua-regia digestion (Code LSA-OEP and LSA-MSP). The analytical quality control program for the Lac Tétépisca project is designed and implemented by an IOS chemist and is identical to the one used for previous drill programs at Lac Tétépisca or at the Company's Lac Knife project.

Under the QA/QC program, about 10% of the core samples will also be analyzed by COREM for total carbon (code LSA-M-B45), organic carbon (code LSA-M-B58) and inorganic carbon (code LSA-M-B11). The same 10% of the samples are duplicated and sent to ACTLABS Laboratories of Ancaster, Ontario (ISO/IEC 17025:2005 with CAN-P-1579) for graphitic carbon (code 5D - C Graphitic) and total sulphur (code 4F - S Combustion infrared detection) determinations and for 35 trace element analysis using ICP-MS after an aqua-regia digestion (code 1E2 - Aqua Regia). About 15% of reference materials are inserted in the sample sequences, either certified or internal reference material samples (CDN-GR1, CMRI12, Oreas-724, GLC-004, NSC-DC-60119, NSC-DC-60120, NSC-DC-60121), duplicates (quarter-split core, crushing or grinding duplicates), and preparation blanks.