Lithium Africa Defines a Second Spodumene Trend in Côte d’Ivoire: Kanien Trend Rock Samples up to 1.98% Li2O Highlight Discovery Potential
TSX-V: LAF | FSE: 6MQ | OTCQB: LTAFF | www.li-africa.com
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Lithium Africa Defines a Second Spodumene Trend in Côte d’Ivoire:
Kanien Trend Rock Samples up to 1.98% Li2O Highlight Discovery Potential
Cape Town, South Africa – September 16, 2026: Lithium Africa Corp. (TSX -V: LAF) (FSE:
6MQ) (OTCQB: LTAFF) (“Lithium Africa” or the “Company”) today reports rock sampling results
from its Agboville license in Côte d’Ivoire that define the Kanien Trend, the second of two primary
spodumene pegmatite trends in the Company’s Adzopé District (the “ District”) alongside the
Saby Trend at Adzopé. Nineteen spodumene-bearing pegmatite samples from the Kanien Trend
returned up to 1.98% Li2O, with 14 of 19 above 1.0% Li2O, highlighting the discovery potential of
the District. Through its 50/50 joint venture with GFL International Co., Ltd., the Company is
advancing a district -scale exploration program across the approximately 485 km² of granted
licenses that make up the District as a single, integrated opportunity. 1 The Company has also
applied for the adjacent Sikensi license (approximately 368 km²), which, if granted, would extend
the District.1
Highlights
• Kanien Trend defined at Agboville: 19 spodumene-bearing pegmatite rock samples
returned up to 1.98% Li2O, with 14 of 19 above 1.0% Li 2O, along a 2.8 km trend (Table
1).
• A ~7 km corridor of spodumene occurrences: the Kanien Trend lies along strike of
spodumene pegmatite samples of up to 1.36% Li 2O reported by Atlantic Lithium Limited
(“Atlantic Lithium”) on its adjacent Rubino license,2 approximately 3 km to the northeast;
together, these define a corridor of spodumene pegmatite occurrences approximately 7
km long across the license boundary (Figure 1).
• Second primary trend in the Adzopé District: the Kanien Trend joins the previously
defined multi-kilometer Saby Trend at Adzopé, where trenching returned 8.0 m at 1.10%
Li2O and a 2,000m drill campaign is ongoing (see the Company’s news release dated April
23, 2026 titled, “Lithium Africa to Commence 2,000 m Drill Program at Adzopé and
Provides Côte d’Ivoire Exploration Update”).
• District targeting underway: regional mapping, geochronology and granite
geochemistry studies are ongoing across the District to identify fertile intrusions and
prioritize the next targets for trenching and drilling.
Thomas R. Benson, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer and Director of Lithium Africa, commented:
“Following a year of systematic, disciplined field work by our Ivorian team, the Adzopé District
now has two primary spodumene trends. The Kanien Trend, grading up to 1.98% Li 2O and on
strike with our neighbor’s spodumene occurrences, joins the Saby Trend, which the Lithium Africa
1 Currently, the District comprises the granted Adzopé (85.32 km2) and Agboville (399.27 km2) research permits. There
is no assurance that the Sikensi permit (367.79 km2) will be granted.
2 Atlantic Lithium’s news releases dated May 22, 2025 and October 20, 2025 contain information about adjacent
properties on which the Company has no right to explore or mine. Mineral deposits on adjacent properties are not
indicative of mineral deposits on the Company’s properties. The Qualified Person has not been able to verify any data
relating to exploration results on adjacent properties as it is not within the control of the Company.
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team identified earlier and where our drilling campaign is ongoing. The Kanien results are early-
stage, but taken together, the two trends point to an emerging lithium district rather than a series
of isolated occurrences. Our approach from here is to explore it as one: use mapping,
geochronology, and granite geochemistry to identify the fertile intrusions across the District, and
drill only the targets that can move the value of this Company.”
Agboville Results
The Agboville license covers 399.27 km ², about 85 km north of the Port of Abidjan (Figure 1).
Regional mapping has defined metasediments intruded by Eburnean granitoids, including a NE-
SW trending sheared muscovite granite in the northeastern part of the license, cut by spodumene-
bearing pegmatites composed of quartz, albite, and spodumene.
Nineteen rock samples of spodumene -bearing pegmatite were collected during successive
mapping campaigns between May 2025 and May 2026. Together they define the Kanien Trend,
a spodumene-bearing pegmatite trend approximately 2.8 km long along the sheared muscovite
granite (Figure 1). Spodumene pegmatite samples reported by Atlantic Lithium on its adjacent
Rubino license lie along strike approximately 3 km to the northeast of the Kanien Trend, such that
the two occurrences together define a corridor of spodumene pegmatite occurrences
approximately 7 km long.2 Samples grading above 1.0% Li 2O are presented in Table 1, the full
set of samples is presented in Appendix A, and all samples are shown in Figure 1. Rock samples
are selective by nature and are not necessarily representative of the mineralization hosted on the
property.
Table 1: Kanien Trend spodumene- bearing pegmatite rock samples grading above 1.0%
Li2O. Fourteen of the nineteen spodumene-bearing pegmatite rock samples collected between
May 2025 and May 2026 graded above 1.0% Li 2O. The full set of samples is presented in
Appendix A. Li2O is calculated from Li using a factor of 2.153. Coordinates are WGS 84 / UTM
Zone 30N.
Sample ID Li2O (%) Easting (m) Northing (m)
LOV_055 1.98 352,950 660,943
LOV_028 1.79 354,305 663,197
LOV_027 1.66 354,271 663,196
LOV_014 1.66 354,438 663,296
LOV_054 1.66 352,941 660,942
LOV_035* 1.42 353,589 662,917
LOV_064 1.40 352,988 660,925
LOV_034 1.37 354,328 663,199
LOV_029 1.31 354,334 663,196
LOV_058 1.12 352,985 660,925
LOV_016 1.09 354,456 663,293
LOV_036* 1.06 353,675 661,226
LOV_020 1.06 354,338 663,209
LOV_026 1.01 354,271 663,179
* Float sample.
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Figure 1: (left - below) The Adzopé District, Côte d’ Ivoire, showing the Adzopé and Agboville
licenses and the Sikensi application, the Saby and Kanien spodumene pegmatite trends, Atlantic
Lithium’s Rubino license, and road and rail links to Abidjan. (right - below) The Kanien Trend on
the Agboville license, showing spodumene-bearing pegmatite rock samples grading above 0.5%
Li2O. Lithium Africa samples are in Appendix A of this news release; Atlantic Lithium samples are
from its news releases dated May 22, 2025 and October 20, 2025, with only samples above 0.5%
Li2O shown.2 Together the occurrences define a corridor of spodumene pegmatite approximately
7 km long across the license boundary.
The Adzopé District
The Company considers the Adzopé and Agboville licenses, together with the Sikensi ground
under application, 1 to represent a single emerging lithium district on the basis of the shared
muscovite-bearing granites interpreted as parental to the pegmatites, the two primary spodumene
pegmatite trends now defined at the Saby Trend (Adzopé) and the Kanien Trend (Agboville), and
the spodumene occurrences reported by Atlantic Lithium on its adjacent licenses along strike of
the Kanien Trend, as disclosed in its news releases dated May 22, 2025 and October 20, 2025.2
Regional mapping, geochronology and whole-rock and mica geochemistry are in progress across
the District to distinguish fertile from barren intrusions and to focus future trenching, auger and
drill programs.
Adzopé Drilling Update
The 2,000 m RC program on the Saby Trend (see the Company’s news releases dated April 23,
2026 and July 7, 2026) was paused for the rainy season after 1,137 m had been completed.
Drilling is expected to resume in the coming weeks. Assay results from the program, together with
associated QA/QC, will be reported once results have been received and validated by the
Qualified Person, targeted for Q4 2026.
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Share Issuances
Further to its news release dated March 30, 2026, the Company has issued 77,753 common
shares at a deemed price of C$1.78 per share to an arm’s length consultant in satisfaction of the
second and final tranche (US$100,000) of the finder’s fee payable in connection with the
acquisition of Namli Exploration & Mining Proprietary Limited.
Further to its news release dated July 7, 2026, the Company has also issued 10,000 common
shares at a deemed price of C$1.50 per share pursuant to a debt settlement agreement dated
July 6, 2026.
All issuances were approved by the TSX Venture Exchange and the shares are subject to a hold
period of four months plus one day from the date of issuance.
QA/QC and Data Verification
Rock samples were collected by the Company ’s geologists as grab samples from outcrop and,
where noted, float, with locations recorded by GPS and verified and digitized by desktop GIS
mapping work. Blanks (cement) and certified reference materials were inserted at the Company’s
field camp. Samples were prepared at Intertek Minerals, Tarkwa, Ghana (method SP02, 85%
passing 75 microns) and analyzed at Intertek Genalysis, Perth, Western Australia, by four -acid
digest and ICP -MS (method 4A -Li/MS48). Samples returning above 5,000 pp m Li were re -
analyzed by four-acid digest with an ICP -OES finish (method 4AH/OE). The multi -acid digest is
considered a near -total digestion. Lithium hosted in certain minerals may not be completely
dissolved. Certified reference material standards largely returned within tolerance; OREAS 45h
returned outside expected tolerance for Li. OREAS 752 exceeded the upper limit of the primary
method in two batches and was not re-assayed by the over-range method, so its lithium accuracy
was not measured. Field blanks also returned slightly elevated Li values relative to detection limit
across the program. These have been flagged to the laboratory for follow -up and, in the
Company’s assessment, do not materially affect the interpretation of the results reported herein.
A total of 19 QC samples — five CRM standards, five field blanks, and nine laboratory control
blanks/check assays — were submitted alongside alongside the rock samples of this program .
No independent field- duplicate program has yet been implemented for this rock -sampling
program; analytical precision has to date been monitored through laboratory check assays only.
Sample preparation and analysis were both conducted by Intertek entities, and no check assays
have yet been sent to a second, independent laboratory. Intertek is independent of the Company.
Benjamin Gelber, P.Geo., the Qualified Person for this news release, has verified the data
disclosed herein, including the sampling, analytical and test data underlying the results.
Verification consisted of a review of the original Intertek Genalysis assay certificates for all
analytical batches against the Company’s rock geochemistry database, including the over-range
lithium re-assays; recalculation of the Li2O values in Table 1 and Appendix A from the certified
lithium values; a review of the certified reference material and blank results for each batch; a
review of the field logs and photographs supporting the classification of the tabulated samples as
spodumene-bearing pegmatite; and a check of sample coordinates against the Company’s GPS
records. Mr. Gelber has not visited the Agboville license and relied on field documentation
prepared by the Company ’s geologists. Grab samples are selective by nature and are not
necessarily representative of the mineralization hosted on the property. The Qualified Person did
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not identify any failure to verify the data and considers the data adequate for the purposes of this
news release.
Qualified Person
The technical and scientific information in this news release was reviewed and approved by
Benjamin Gelber, P.Geo., a Consultant of the Company and a practicing Professional Geologist
registered with Engineers & Geoscientists British Columbia (EGBC, Licence No. 33258), who is
a non-independent “Qualified Person” as defined by National Instrument 43- 101 – Standards of
Disclosure for Mineral Projects.
About Lithium Africa Corp.
Lithium Africa Corp. is a capital -efficient lithium exploration and consolidation company
assembling a portfolio of hard- rock lithium assets across Africa. Through its 50/50 joint venture
with GFL International Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Ganfeng Lithium Gr oup Co., Ltd., the Company
holds an indirect 50% interest in lithium exploration projects in Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Zimbabwe,
and Mali. The Company also holds a majority interest in the Springbok Project in South Africa,
which is held outside the joint venture. For more information, please visit www.li-africa.com.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF LITHIUM AFRICA CORP.
Thomas R. Benson, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer & Director
For further information regarding the Company contact:
Jeanne Liu, Corporate Communications at [email protected], 1.604.771.7125.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
Statements contained in this news release that are not historical facts may be forward -looking
statements within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements in
this press release include statements relating to the Company’s planned exploration and
evaluation activities, including the resumption and completion of the drill program at Adzopé and
the timing of results, planned trenching, auger drilling and mapping at Agboville, the regional
mapping, geochronology and geochemist ry program, the characterization of the Adzopé and
Agboville licenses as a district, the Sikensi application, and community and permitting matters.
There is significant risk that the forward-looking statements will not prove to be accurate, that the
management’s assumptions may not be correct and that actual results may differ materially from
such forward-looking statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on the
forward-looking statements. Generally forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of
terminology such as “anticipate”, “will”, “expect”, “may”, “continue”, “could”, “estimate”, “forecast”,
“plan”, “potential” and similar expressions. These forward- looking statements are based on a
number of assumptions which may prove to be incorrect which, without limiting the generality of
the following, include: the ability to raise funds through private or public equity financings; general
business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties; delay or failure to rec eive
regulatory approvals; risks inherent in exploration activities; the impact of exploration competition;
unexpected geological conditions; changes in government regulations and policies, including
trade laws and policies; failure to obtain necessary per mits and approvals from government
authorities; volatility and sensitivity to market prices; volatility and sensitivity to capital market
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fluctuations; environmental and safety risks including increased regulatory burdens; weather and
other natural phenomena; and other exploration, development, operating, financial market and
regulatory risks. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of
the date hereof or the dates specifically referenced in this press release, where applicable. Except
as required by applicable securities laws and regulation, the Company disclaims any intention or
obligation to update or revi se any forward -looking statement, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. All
forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this
cautionary statement.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is
defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the
adequacy or accuracy of this release.
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APPENDIX A – Kanien Trend Spodumene-Bearing Pegmatite Rock Sample Results
Nineteen rock samples of spodumene-bearing pegmatite were collected along the Kanien Trend
between May 2025 and May 2026 and are tabulated below. Li 2O is calculated from Li using a
factor of 2.153. Coordinates are WGS 84 / UTM Zone 30N.
Sample ID Li2O (%) Easting (m) Northing (m)
LOV_055 1.98 352,950 660,943
LOV_028 1.79 354,305 663,197
LOV_027 1.66 354,271 663,196
LOV_014 1.66 354,438 663,296
LOV_054 1.66 352,941 660,942
LOV_035* 1.42 353,589 662,917
LOV_064 1.40 352,988 660,925
LOV_034 1.37 354,328 663,199
LOV_029 1.31 354,334 663,196
LOV_058 1.12 352,985 660,925
LOV_016 1.09 354,456 663,293
LOV_036* 1.06 353,675 661,226
LOV_020 1.06 354,338 663,209
LOV_026 1.01 354,271 663,179
LOV_057 0.98 352,942 660,939
LOV_019 0.91 354,462 663,285
LOV_025 0.83 354,263 663,173
LOV_050 0.81 354,275 663,059
LOV_013 0.60 354,435 663,294
* Float sample.