Vancouver, BC, July 27, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Deep Sea Minerals Corp. (CSE: SEAS) (OTCQB: DSEAF) (FSE: X450) (“Deep Sea” or the “Company”) announces that, as a result of a review by the British Columbia Securities Commission (“BCSC”) in connection with the Company’s short form base shelf prospectus, we are issuing the following press release related to our disclosure and promotional activities.
Various promotions disseminated from February 26 to July 10, 2026, pursuant to the Company’s engagements with Capital Gain Media Inc., Exvera Communications Inc., Global One Media Group Pte. Ltd., Investor News Inc. (“Investor News”), Stockhouse Publishing Ltd. D.B.A. The Market Link (“Market Link”) and The Wall Street Analyst, LLC referenced one or more of the following topics. Investors are directed to the Company’s amended and restated annual information form for the year ended December 31, 2025, dated July 27, 2026 (the “A&R AIF”), a copy of which is available under the Company’s SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca, for comprehensive information relating to the matters described below, including the material assumptions, regulatory milestones, risks, uncertainties, costs, and operational requirements associated with each topic:
(i) __The Company’s NOAA Application__. The Company’s news release dated June 1, 2026, disclosed that the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (“NOAA”) determined that the Company’s application for an exploration licence for a defined area of the Clarion-Clipperton Zone in the Pacific Ocean (the “NOAA Application”) under the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act (the “DSHMRA”) was in substantial compliance with applicable U.S. regulatory requirements. The NOAA Application is an application by the Company’s wholly owned U.S. subsidiary, American Deep Sea Minerals Corp., for an exploration licence covering approximately 147,430 km² in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone. On May 26, 2026, NOAA determined the NOAA Application to be in substantial compliance with applicable regulatory requirements. On July 17, 2026, the Company submitted an amended application that it believes fully addresses NOAA’s supplemental information requests. A substantial compliance determination is not a licence or any other authorization to commence offshore work. Before NOAA may issue an exploration licence, the NOAA Application remains subject to a full compliance determination, federal-agency consultation, antitrust review, a public comment period, certification, and preparation of a draft and final environmental impact statement and public hearings. See “Current Business” (including the milestone table) and “The Subsea Mineral Exploration and Development Industry – (b) Subsea Mineral Exploration and Development in International Waters” in the A&R AIF for further details.
(ii) __The Company’s Cook Islands Application__. The Company has incorporated a wholly owned Cook Islands subsidiary, Deep Sea Minerals (Cook Islands) Limited, to advance an application for an exploration licence in the exclusive economic zone of the Cook Islands (the “Cook Islands Application” and, together with the NOAA Application, the “Applications”). The Company has not yet formally submitted the Cook Islands Application. The Cook Islands Seabed Minerals Authority (“CISBMA”) has indicated that it does not presently intend to accept further formal exploration licence applications until after the forthcoming Cook Islands election and parliament reconvenes and approves additional designated parcel blocks and areas for licensing. If and when submitted, the Cook Islands Application will be subject to a multi-step assessment process involving CISBMA, an independent licensing panel, the responsible minister, and Cabinet approval. See “Current Business” (including the milestone table) and “The Subsea Mineral Exploration and Development Industry – (c) Subsea Mineral Exploration and Development in Exclusive Economic Zones” in the A&R AIF for further details.
(iii) __The Company’s expectations regarding the timing of obtaining one or more subsea mineral exploration licences__. Based on currently available information, the Company expects to submit the Cook Islands Application between Q3 2026 and Q1 2027, and anticipates that NOAA may issue an exploration licence in the range of Q4 2027, subject to completion of all required regulatory steps. These are estimates only and are subject to significant uncertainty. Actual timing will depend on, among other things, the outcome of NOAA’s full compliance review, required environmental review and public processes, the timing of the Cook Islands election and government transition, and the availability of a licensing process in the Cook Islands. There can be no assurance that either Application will be approved, or that any exploration licence will be issued on acceptable terms or at all. See “Current Business” (including the milestone table), “Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements and Risk Factors”, and “Risk Factors” in the A&R AIF for further details.
(iv) __The Company’s intended future offshore operations__. The Company does not currently hold any mineral rights or operating authority in any exclusive economic zone or international waters and has not commenced offshore operations. Offshore operations cannot proceed unless and until the Company obtains the applicable exploration licences and all required operational, vessel, safety, environmental, monitoring, and reporting approvals. The Company does not own and does not currently intend to own proprietary subsea mining technology or specialized marine equipment, and expects to rely on qualified third-party technology providers, marine contractors, and independent environmental and scientific consultants for any future offshore work. Revenue from commercial production, if ever achieved, may take up to an additional 10 years following the granting of concessions by host jurisdictions. See “Current Business”, “The Subsea Mineral Exploration and Development Industry – (b) Subsea Mineral Exploration and Development in International Waters”, “The Subsea Mineral Exploration and Development Industry – (c) Subsea Mineral Exploration and Development in Exclusive Economic Zones”, “Economic Dependence”, “Foreign Operations”, and “Risk Factors” in the A&R AIF for further details.
Additionally, various promotions were disseminated for or on behalf of the Company from February 26 to July 10, 2026, that may not have clearly or conspicuously disclosed that such promotions were disseminated for or on behalf of the Company. Some of these promotions omitted a fact necessary to make a particular statement or information not false or misleading, or otherwise included unsubstantiated statements. As a result, investors should assume that all disclosure about the Company during the period from February 26, 2026, to July 10, 2026, other than the Company’s continuous disclosure record available under the Company’s SEDAR+ profile at __www.sedarplus.ca__
- Statements that the Company is one of only a few public companies to have received a substantial compliance determination from NOAA regarding an application under NOAA’s regulatory regime for subsea mineral rights in international waters.
- Statements relating to the projected demand for critical minerals attributed to the International Energy Agency (“IEA”) but which did not provide the specific underlying sources.
- Statements relating to historical pricing of copper, cobalt and other critical minerals but which did not provide the specific underlying sources.
- Statements indicating a three to five year timeframe for the Company to deliver its first cargo of polymetallic nodules were forward-looking and did not adequately identify the material assumptions and uncertainties underlying that timeframe.
- Statements indicating that The Metals Company Inc. (“TMC”) is currently the furthest ahead in the exploration efforts, having recently been approved for a licence by NOAA.
- Statements relating to the presence of 21 billion tonnes of polymetallic nodules in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (“CCZ”) and 6.7 billion tonnes in the Cook Islands EEZ or otherwise including quantitative resource estimates contained in CCZ and Cook Islands’ EEZ but which did not provide the specific underlying sources.
- Statements that include quantitative resource estimates that were attributed to the United States Geological Survey (“USGS”) and a congressional study without identifying the specific underlying sources.
- Statements that the U.S. may soon authorize companies to commercially mine the seabed.
At the request of the BCSC, the Company wishes to clarify such statements, as follows:
- The Company’s belief that it is one of only a few publicly traded companies to have received a substantial compliance determination from NOAA regarding an application under NOAA’s regulatory regime for subsea mineral rights in international waters. The Company based this belief on public filings in Canada and the United States. However, public companies in other jurisdictions, or public companies in Canada and the United States for which a substantial compliance determination would not constitute a material fact or change requiring disclosure under applicable law, may have also submitted applications to NOAA for subsea mineral rights that NOAA has determined to be in substantial compliance.
- Statements relating to the projected demand for critical minerals attributed to the IEA should have referenced the IEA’s report entitled “Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2024”.1
- Statements relating to historical prices for copper, cobalt and other critical minerals were based on publicly available commodity price data published by Trading Economics, including the historical price charts and data available for the applicable commodities.2
- NOAA has not granted TMC an exploration licence or a commercial recovery permit. TMC’s combined application for an exploration licence and commercial recovery permit has been certified by NOAA as substantially compliant and remains subject to additional regulatory review and approvals.3
- Quantitative resource estimates in the CCZ, whether or not attributed to the USGS, were obtained from the USGS.4
- Quantitative resource estimates in the Cook Islands’ exclusive economic zone were obtained from a report entitled “Cook Islands Polymetallic Nodule Deposit” with an effective date of March 22, 2023, prepared for the Cook Islands Seabed Minerals Authority.5
- Statements relating to the authorization of commercial seabed mining operations in international waters by the United States were made based on the Company’s analysis of recent regulatory and policy developments by the United States. The Company wishes to clarify that no commercial recovery permits have been granted under the NOAA regime.
Investors are strongly encouraged to review the A&R AIF for comprehensive information relating to the Company, including the Company’s material assumptions underlying its expectations and other forward-looking information, and the significant uncertainties that could cause actual events to differ materially.
Furthermore, the following promotions have been disseminated on behalf of the Company: (i) a video entitled “Deep Sea Minerals: Why Seabed Mining Is Now an Investable Sector” and dated April 28, 2026 (the “Market Link Video”), pursuant to the Company’s engagement of Market Link, which was disclosed in the Company’s news release of April 1, 2026; (ii) a video entitled “Deep Sea Minerals ($SEAS | $DSEAF): The Emerging Commercial Reality of Seabed Mining” and dated April 30, 2026 (the “Global One Video”), pursuant to the Company’s engagement of Global One, which was disclosed in the Company’s news release of January 23, 2026; (iii) a public investor interview titled “Deep Sea Minerals’ James Deckelman on the Next Critical Minerals Frontier” and dated May 1, 2026 (the “Investor News Video #1” and, together with the Market Link Video and Global One Video, the “Videos”), pursuant to the Company’s engagement of Investor News; and (iv) a public investor interview entitled “James Deckelman on Deep Sea Minerals and the Strategic Push Into Seabed Critical Minerals” and dated March 3, 2026 (the “Investor News Video #2”), pursuant to the Company’s engagement with Investor News. Following a review by the BCSC and, at its request, the Company has: (i) instructed the relevant service providers to remove the Videos; and (ii) instructed Investor News to update the written description of the Investor News Video #2.
ABOUT DEEP SEA MINERALS CORP.
Deep Sea Minerals Corp. is a subsea mineral exploration and development company focused on evaluating opportunities to support the future supply of critical minerals through the acquisition, exploration, and development of deep-sea mineral assets.
The Company’s strategy is centered on identifying jurisdictions and geological settings with potential exposure to polymetallic nodule systems, which are recognized for containing combinations of metals that may be relevant to defense, industrial manufacturing, clean energy infrastructure, advanced electronics, and artificial intelligence-related supply chains. These seabed resources represent a largely undeveloped component of the global mineral supply base and are the subject of increasing policy, scientific, and regulatory attention worldwide.
As part of this process, the Company is advancing an application for an exploration licence under the NOAA regime for an area of the Clarion-Clipperton Zone in the Pacific Ocean, and has commenced early-stage engagement with other select governments and regulatory bodies in the Pacific Ocean region to assess potential pathways for future exploration initiatives, subject to applicable international, national, and environmental frameworks.
