January 17, 2023.  Grid Metals Corp (TSXV:GRDM; OTCQB:MSMGF) (the "Company") is pleased to announce the results for the initial six holes of an ongoing exploration and resource delineation drilling program at its Donner Lake Lithium Property (the "Property"), located in the Bird River Greenstone Belt of southeastern Manitoba, 150 kilometers from Winnipeg.  The holes targeted the Main Dyke pegmatite and included intersections of 9.5 metres of 1.4% Li2O, 4.3 metres of 1.6% Li2O and 3.4 metres of 1.7% Li2O.  Drilling has now covered a strike length exceeding 800 metres and to a vertical depth of up to 250 metres.     Donner Lake is a 75% / 25% joint venture with Lithium Royalty Corp.   

Above:   Length-weighted average Li2O grades for the Main Dyke pegmatite intersections in drill holes GDL22-19 to GDL22-24.  Based on the hole inclinations and the interpreted average dip of the Main Dyke of ~75 degrees, the true thickness is estimated to represent between 55 and 85% of the lithium zone interval lengths reported in this table.

Highlights

• 29 drill holes completed to date at approximately 70 to 90 m step out spacing to a ~ 250m vertical depth on the Main Dyke and along over 800 m of strike length.
• Spodumene has been noted in all 29 drill holes completed to date.
• The Main Dyke is showing excellent continuity of visible spodumene content and lithium grades    and is maintaining a near vertical orientation.
• Drilling is also locally encountering one or more spodumene-rich pegmatites in the immediate hangingwall and footwall to the Main Dyke, such that the Main Dyke is now interpreted as a system of mineralogically similar LCT-type pegmatite bodies.

Robin Dunbar, President and CEO of Grid Metals commented , “ the current phase of exploration is off to an excellent start. Our focus in the current program is delineate the Main and Northwest dykes in order to establish an initial resource at the project.  We will also be testing new exploration targets in the project area. We are looking to establish  a   “low footprint/high ESG credential” resource amenable to toll milling at the operating Tanco Mine – Canada’ only lithium producing mine which is  located 35 km to the south of Donner Lake.”   

Above: Plan view  of the Donner Lake Pegmatite Field. Grid has now drilled  40 holes  at the Main Dyke     ( 29 in 2022/23 and 11  in 2018) and 16 drill holes ( 2022) at the  Northwest Dyke.  Other known pegmatite dykes are shown.

Results to Date

To date a total of 29 drill holes have now been completed and  six of those holes are reported here.  Assays are pending for the other drill holes.  The new drilling combined with the shallow holes completed in 2018 and previously reported by the Company covers more than  800 m strike length of the Main Dyke to an average vertical depth of approximately 200 - 250 meters.

An important initial result from the resource drilling along the Main Dyke trend is the recognition of multiple, sub-parallel pegmatite dykes.  Drilling to date has  intersected three distinct lithium-enriched pegmatites including the Upper Main Dyke, which ranges from 1.00 to 9.93 m width,  the Main Dyke, which ranges from 1.00 to 7.58 m in width, and the Lower Main Dyke,  which ranges from 1.08 to 3.71 m in width. Note that these widths represent the measured core length of the dykes and do not represent true widths.

Above:  Long section of Main Dyke  (looking northwest, perpendicular to the strike of the Main Dyke) showing location of Main Dyke drill holes, results from drill holes GDL22-19 to GDL22-24 (in red)  and pierce points for drill holes up to and including hole GDL22-39.  Analytical results for holes GDL22-25 to GDL-22-39 are pending.

Above: Cross section showing steep dips of the lithium-enriched pegmatites intersected in holes GDL22-19 and GDL22-20.  Looking along strike to the northeast.

Drilling Plans

Two rigs are currently drilling at the Property and will focus on the following objectives:

• Completing the initial phase  of resource delineation;
• Exploration drilling along the interpreted strike extensions of both the Main and Northwest dykes;
• Initial testing of selected, historic lithogeochemical anomalies (see discussion, below) on the property  and,
• Exploration drilling of other mapped lithium-bearing pegmatites that were identified in the 2022 field program, including the Southwest Dykes.

The Company anticipates completing in excess of an additional 10,000 metres in the current drill campaign.

Above: Plan view map showing the lithium abundance contours reported in the aforementioned Tanco lithogeochemical survey (Manitoba Mines Branch 1979 Assessment File #92397) at Donner Lake.      Outcropping pegmatites are shown in red.  Proposed exploration drill holes are shown with blue collars.

Lithogeochemical Program

Most of the currently proposed exploration drill holes (see plan view map, above) are designed to test the southwest extension of the Main Dyke system, which is in part modeled from the results of a 1980’s lithogeochemical survey conducted by the Tantalum Mining Corporation (Tanco) [MB assessment report file #92397].      As shown there is a good correlation of the contoured lithium lithogeochemical anomalies and the known strike extent of the Main Dyke.   Lithium enrichment in the host rocks to LCT-type pegmatites is interpreted to occur during pegmatite emplacement and involves metasomatic alteration that can extend for tens of metres to >100 metres away from the dyke margins.  Lithogeochemistry  is a preferred exploration tool for rare element-enriched pegmatites.  Accordingly, Grid completed a much larger lithogeochemical survey at the Property during summer and fall of 2022.  The results from that survey are currently being evaluated and will be used to help  guide future exploration at the Property over an expanded area.

Summary of the Donner Lake Lithium Property

• The property is currently a 75% Grid / 25% Lithium Royalty Corp joint venture.
• Grid has signed an MOU with Tantalum Mining Corporation of Canada Limited ( Tanco )   with the purpose of  establishing  a toll milling operation (i.e., Grid mineralized material to be processed at the Tanco Mine).
• A metallurgical study is in process on samples from both the Main Dyke and Northwest Dyke.
• Year 1 baseline environmental field  data collection has been completed.
• An Advanced Exploration Permit from the Manitoba government to enable bulk samples to be collected is expected be submitted during this quarter.
• A drone magnetic survey is currently being flown over the Donner Lake Property to assist in generating new exploration targets.
• Continuous engagement is occurring with the Sagkeeng First Nation on whose traditional lands the project is situated on.

QAQC

The exploration program at Donner Lake is being supervised by Carey Galeschuk, P.Geo., who is an experienced lithium geologist with nearly three decades of exploration experience in the Bird River Belt with Grid Metals, Tantalum Mining Corporation of Canada and other companies.  Grid Metals applies best practice quality assurance and quality control ("QAQC") protocols on all it’s exploration programs.  For the Donner Lake Lithium Project drilling program, core was logged and sampled at the Company’s core facility located on the Makwa Property.  Generally, 1.0 metre sample lengths were used.  Samples were bagged and tagged and then transported by secure carrier to the Actlabs (Thunder Bay) laboratory for sample preparation and analysis for lithium, cesium, tantalum and selected major and trace element abundances using a sodium peroxide fusion total digestion method followed by ICP-OES and ICP-MS analysis.  The Company is using two lithium + rare metal certified reference materials ("CRMs") and an analytical blank for the program to monitor analytical accuracy and check for cross contamination between samples. 

Mr. Galeschuk has reviewed and approved the contents of this press release with respect to NI 43-101 reporting guidelines. 

About Grid Metals Corp.

Grid Metals is focused on both lithium and Ni-Cu-PGM in the Bird River area approximately 150 km north east of Winnipeg Manitoba.  In addition to activity at Donner Lake the Company has a PEA stage Ni-Cu-PGM-Co project (Makwa-Mayville) undergoing exploration and development activity.

On Behalf of the Board of Grid Metals Corp.

For more information about the Company please see the Company website at www.gridmetalscorp.com or contact:
Robin Dunbar - President, CEO & Director Telephone: 416-955-4773 Email: rd@gridmetalscorp.com
David Black - Investor Relations Email: info@gridmetalscorp.com

 Below: Complete analytical results from dril holes GDL22-19 to GDL22-24

We seek safe harbour. This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and forward-looking information within the meaning of the Securities Act (Ontario) (together, "forward-looking statements"). Such forward-looking statements  include the Company’s closing of the proposed financial transactions,  sale of royalty and property interests. the overall economic potential of its properties, the availability of adequate financing and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward- looking statements to be materially different. Such factors include, among others, risks and uncertainties relating to potential political risk, uncertainty of production and capital costs estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses, physical risks inherent in mining operations, metallurgical risk, currency fluctuations, fluctuations in the price of nickel, cobalt, copper and other metals, completion of economic evaluations, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, the inability or failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis, and other risks and uncertainties, including those described in the Company's Management Discussion and Analysis for the most recent financial period and Material Change Reports filed with the Canadian Securities Administrators and available at www.sedar.com.

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