5E Advanced Materials Applauds the U.S. Congress for its Acknowledgement and Support of Boron in the FY 2024 National Defense Authorization Act

The House-passed Act includes crucial language that indicates congressional awareness of the importance of boron for defense applications, and support for further developing domestic supply chains for defense-critical materials

HESPERIA, Calif., Sept. 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — 5E Advanced Materials, Inc. (Nasdaq: FEAM) (ASX: 5EA) (“5E” or the “Company”), a boron and lithium company with U.S. government Critical Infrastructure designation for its 5E Boron Americas (Fort Cady) Complex, applauds the U.S. House of Representatives for including language in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that directly highlights the importance of boron and boron derivatives in national defense applications and acknowledges the importance of onshoring the supply chains of critical materials for defense applications.

This important boron legislative amendment to H.R. 2670 the FY24 NDAA was passed unanimously by the House Armed Services Committee on June 30, 2023. Per the amendment, the language in the NDAA directs the Department of Defense to study the importance of boron to the U.S. defense and its supply chains. The amendment, which was authored by Rep. John Garamendi (D-CA), was included as part of an en bloc package originally offered by Rep. Michael Waltz (R-FL). The amendment included supportive language that instructs the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment to conduct a review of the United States’ boron supply chains and to provide a report of its findings to Congress, specifically to the House Armed Services Committee regarding the nation’s current boron sources. This report is also expected to assess the vulnerabilities of boron supply chains and provide a detailed review of domestic producers and processors.

Critically, the bill has passed the House and its companion measure has passed the Senate. Currently, staff from the Armed Services Committees across both chambers of Congress are negotiating a final version to resolve differences. Importantly, the amendment will be included in a final agreement given that the boron supply chain is part of the NDAA directive report language. While timing for final passage depends on the negotiations and various other factors, passage of the bill is tentatively expected by the end of CY 2023.

“This inclusion of language supporting boron production in the NDAA for 2024 gives credence to our fundamental belief that boron is critical to our nation’s defense applications, such as advanced ceramics in aerospace, boron-carbide products like body and tank armor, and fuel and rocket propulsion technologies,” said J.T. Starzecki, Chief Marketing Officer of 5E Advanced Materials.

“We would like to thank Rep. John Garamendi for his recognition of the important role that boron and boron derivatives will play for our domestic defense industry, and for the clear efforts himself and other supportive members of congress are undertaking to secure our nation’s supply chains and for this critical mineral. These efforts in turn are helping to align the U.S. government and written legislation with domestic enterprise, leveraging significant levels of private investment. We are thankful to our representatives in Washington, as their efforts represent a strong step in the right direction towards the establishment of critical infrastructure and production capacity. As a local U.S. source and provider of boron solutions, moving forward we will continue to execute the Company’s strategy and vision to become one of the leading global producers of boron and boron-advanced derivatives, with the encouragement that our domestic production will soon go to support those aforementioned U.S. national defense applications and help mitigate the current supply shortfall.”

Amendment Background

• The amendment directs the Department of Defense to study the importance of boron to U.S. defense applications and its supply chains.
• The amendment instructs the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment to conduct a review of the United States’ boron supply chains and provide a report of the findings to Congress regarding the nation’s current boron sources, the vulnerabilities of its supply chains, and provide a review of domestic producers and processors.
• The House Armed Services Committee unanimously approved an amendment adding the boron legislation to the FY24 NDAA on June 30, 2023.

About 5E Advanced Materials, Inc. 

5E Advanced Materials, Inc. (Nasdaq: FEAM) (ASX: 5EA) is focused on becoming a vertically integrated global leader and supplier of boron specialty and advanced materials, complemented by lithium co-product production. The Company’s mission is to become a supplier of these critical materials to industries addressing global decarbonization, food and domestic security. Boron and lithium products will target applications in the fields of electric transportation, clean energy infrastructure, such as solar and wind power, fertilizers, and domestic security. The business strategy and objectives are to develop capabilities ranging from upstream extraction and product sales of boric acid, lithium carbonate and potentially other co-products, to downstream boron advanced material processing and development. The business is based on our large domestic boron and lithium resource, which is in Southern California and designated as Critical Infrastructure by the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

Forward Looking Statements and Disclosures 

This press release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this press release regarding our business strategy, plans, goal, and objectives are forward-looking statements. When used in this press release, the words “believe,” “project,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “budget,” “target,” “aim,” “strategy,” “estimate,” “plan,” “guidance,” “outlook,” “intent,” “may,” “should,” “could,” “will,” “would,” “will be,” “will continue,” “will likely result,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain such identifying words. These forward-looking statements are based on 5E’s current expectations and assumptions about future events and are based on currently available information as to the outcome and timing of future events. We caution you that these forward-looking statements are subject to all of the risks and uncertainties, most of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond our control, incident to the extraction of the critical materials we intend to produce and advanced materials production and development. These risks include, but are not limited to: our limited operating history in the borates and lithium industries and no revenue from our proposed extraction operations at our properties; our need for substantial additional financing to execute our business plan and our ability to access capital and the financial markets; our status as an exploration stage company dependent on a single project with no known Regulation S-K 1300 mineral reserves and the inherent uncertainty in estimates of mineral resources; our lack of history in mineral production and the significant risks associated with achieving our business strategies, including our downstream processing ambitions; our incurrence of significant net operating losses to date and plans to incur continued losses for the foreseeable future; risks and uncertainties relating to the development of the Fort Cady project, including our ability to timely and successfully complete our Small Scale Boron Facility; our ability to obtain, maintain and renew required governmental permits for our development activities, including satisfying all mandated conditions to any such permits; and other risks. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties occur, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, our actual results and plans could differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements. No representation or warranty (express or implied) is made as to, and no reliance should be place on, any information, including projections, estimates, targets, and opinions contained herein, and no liability whatsoever is accepted as to any errors, omissions, or misstatements contained herein. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as to the date of this press release.

For additional information regarding these various factors, you should carefully review the risk factors and other disclosures in the Company’s Form 10-K filed on September 28, 2022. Additional risks are also disclosed by 5E in its filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission throughout the year, including its Form 10-K, Form 10-Qs and Form 8-Ks, as well as in its filings under the Australian Securities Exchange. Any forward-looking statements are given only as of the date hereof. Except as required by law, 5E expressly disclaims any obligation to update or revise any such forward-looking statements. Additionally, 5E undertakes no obligation to comment on third party analyses or statements regarding 5E’s actual or expected financial or operating results or its securities.

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