Appointment of Non-Executive Director

Mkango Appoints ESG Specialist Philipa Varris to Board and as Chair of Sustainability Committee

LONDON, United Kingdom and VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 24, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mkango Resources Ltd. (AIM/TSX-V: MKA) (the “Company” or “Mkango”) is pleased to announce the appointment of Ms. Philipa Varris as independent non-executive director of the Company, subject to the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange (“TSX-V”). The appointment of Ms. Varris is part of the Company’s global expansion strategy and highlights the importance the Company places on upholding the highest standards of sustainability.

Ms. Varris has held leadership positions in environment, health, safety and community management in the mining sector for over 25 years, primarily in Africa, Australasia and Latin America, across a number of mineral commodities. Philipa has been awarded the Australian Centenary Medal for leadership in Australia’s largest community consultation and strategic vision development initiative and was recognized in 2020 as one of the Women in Mining’s 100 Global Inspirational Women in Mining. Philipa holds a Master of Science in Natural Resources from Curtin University of Technology, is an AusIMM Chartered Environmental Professional and UK Committee member, and is qualified with Corporate Directors International. She holds the position of Head of Sustainability with Horizonte Minerals and is a non-executive director of TSX-listed EnviroGold Global.

As a champion for mining ESG leadership, Philipa has led teams recognised with the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (“PDAC”) Award for Environment and Social Responsibility, the Australian Minerals and Energy Environment Foundation (“AMEEF”) Award for Environmental Excellence, and the Mines and Money ESG Producer of the Year Award, amongst others.

Derek Linfield, Chairman of Mkango Resources, commented: “On behalf of my fellow directors, I would like to welcome Philipa to the Board and look forward to working closely with her. Philipa brings a wealth of experience to the Board and her background in sustainability, health and safety will be of enormous value to Mkango as we progress the Songwe Hill project in Malawi and our recycling business in the United Kingdom, Germany and the United States. We particularly look forward to her contribution as Chair of the newly formed Sustainability Committee of the Board. Sustainability has deep roots in Mkango’s corporate culture and is a key driver of our success in Malawi. The inauguration of a dedicated Board committee reflects Mkango’s desire for deeper Board level oversight of this increasingly technical arena, as the company positions itself for production in both mining and recycling.”

The following information is disclosed pursuant to Rule 17 and Schedule Two paragraph (g) of the AIM Rules for Companies in relation to Philipa Ann Varris (aged 51):

There are no further disclosures required under Schedule 2(g) of the AIM Rules for Companies.

About Mkango

Mkango's corporate strategy is to develop new sustainable primary and secondary sources of neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium and terbium to supply accelerating demand from electric vehicles, wind turbines and other clean technologies. This integrated Mine, Refine, Recycle strategy differentiates Mkango from its peers, uniquely positioning the Company in the rare earths sector. Mkango is listed on the AIM and the TSX-V.

Mkango is developing its flagship Songwe Hill rare earths project (“Songwe Hill”) in Malawi with a Definitive Feasibility Study completed in July 2022 and an Environmental, Social and Health Impact Assessment approved by the Government of Malawi in January 2023. Malawi is known as "The Warm Heart of Africa", a stable democracy with existing road, rail and power infrastructure, and new infrastructure developments underway.

In parallel, Mkango and Grupa Azoty PULAWY, Poland's leading chemical company and the second largest manufacturer of nitrogen and compound fertilizers in the European Union, have agreed to work together towards development of a rare earth Separation Plant at Pulawy in Poland (the “Pulawy Separation Plant”). The Pulawy Separation Plant will process the purified mixed rare earth carbonate produced at Songwe Hill.

Through its 90% ownership of Maginito Limited (“Maginito”) (www.maginito.com), Mkango is also developing green technology opportunities in the rare earths supply chain, encompassing neodymium (NdFeB) magnet recycling as well as innovative rare earth alloy, magnet, and separation technologies. Maginito has recently announced that it is acquiring the shares of HyProMag Limited, a company in the recycling business based in Birmingham, UK, (“HyProMag”) that it doesn’t already own.

Mkango also has an extensive exploration portfolio in Malawi, including the Mchinji rutile exploration project, the Thambani uranium-tantalum-niobium-zircon project and Chimimbe nickel-cobalt project.

For more information, please visit www.mkango.ca

Market Abuse Regulation (MAR) Disclosure

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by the Company to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulations (EU) No. 596/2014 ('MAR') which has been incorporated into UK law by the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. Upon the publication of this announcement via Regulatory Information Service, this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements (within the meaning of that term under applicable securities laws) with respect to Mkango. Generally, forward looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as “plans”, “expects” or “is expected to”, “scheduled”, “estimates” “intends”, “anticipates”, “believes”, or variations of such words and phrases, or statements that certain actions, events or results “can”, “may”, “could”, “would”, “should”, “might” or “will”, occur or be achieved, or the negative connotations thereof. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions or expectations upon which they are based will occur. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve numerous assumptions, known and unknown risks and uncertainties, both general and specific, that contribute to the possibility that the predictions, forecasts, projections and other forward-looking statements will not occur, which may cause actual performance and results in future periods to differ materially from any estimates or projections of future performance or results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors and risks include, without limiting the foregoing, the availability of (or delays in obtaining) financing to develop Songwe Hill, the recycling business of HyProMag and the Pulawy Separation Plant, governmental action and other market effects on global demand and pricing for the metals and associated downstream products for which Mkango is exploring, researching and developing, geological, technical and regulatory matters relating to the development of Songwe Hill, the ability to scale the HPMS and chemical recycling technologies of Maginito to commercial scale, competitors having greater financial capability and effective competing technologies in the recycling and separation business of Maginito and Mkango, availability of scrap supplies for Maginito’s recycling activities, government regulation (including the impact of environmental and other regulations) on and the economics in relation to recycling and the development of the recycling plants being developed by Maginito, the Pulawy Separation Plant and future investments in the United States pursuant to the cooperation agreement between Maginito and CoTec Holding Corp, the outcome and timing of the completion of the feasibility studies, cost overruns, complexities in building and operating the plants, and the positive results of feasibility studies on the various proposed aspects of Mkango’s activities. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date of this news release. Except as required by law, the Company disclaims any intention and assume no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. Additionally, the Company undertakes no obligation to comment on the expectations of, or statements made by, third parties in respect of the matters discussed above.

For further information on Mkango, please contact:

The TSX Venture Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release. 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.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any equity or other securities of the Company in the United States. The securities of the Company will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act") and may not be offered or sold within the United States to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons except in certain transactions exempt from the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act.