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Falcon Copper Corp. Announces Appointment of B. Matthew Hornor as Chief Executive Officer

News provided by newsfile2025-07-14

Travis Naugle to Remain as Executive Chairman, Strengthening Leadership Team as Company Advances Copper-Dominant, Multi-Critical Minerals Portfolio

July 14, 2025 5:22 PM EDT | Source: Falcon Copper Corp.

Fort Collins, Colorado--(Newsfile Corp. - July 14, 2025) - Falcon Copper Corp. (the "Company," or "Falcon Copper"), a copper-dominant, multi-critical minerals exploration company with significant assets across the Western United States, today announced the appointment of B. Matthew Hornor as Chief Executive Officer, effective July 15, 2025. Travis Naugle, founder of Falcon Copper, will continue to serve as Executive Chairman, maintaining his strategic leadership role in advancing the Company's extensive copper dominant, multi-critical minerals portfolio across Montana, Nevada, Arizona, and Idaho, while overseeing Alaska business development and operations.

The Company represents a potential domestic source of critical minerals essential to U.S. national security and economic competitiveness, supporting the Government's America First Energy Agenda and directly addressing supply chain vulnerabilities highlighted in the March 20, 2025 Executive Order calling for "Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production." Falcon Copper's initiatives also align with recent federal programs under the Inflation Reduction Act and the Department of Defense's efforts to secure domestic critical mineral production, offering potential opportunities for strategic funding and partnerships.

Falcon Copper is strategically positioned to support U.S. Government critical minerals security initiatives through targeted partnerships and collaboration. Mr. Hornor's appointment enhances the Company's capacity to deliver on federal Critical Minerals priorities.

"Matthew's appointment as CEO represents a significant milestone for Falcon Copper as we advance our copper-dominant, multi-critical minerals portfolio," said Travis Naugle, Executive Chairman. "Matthew's proven track record in developing and financing major copper projects, combined with his deep expertise in government and international partnerships, positions our company to maximize the potential of our strategic assets. As we respond to the U.S. Government's call for increased domestic critical mineral production, I look forward to continuing our collaboration as we pursue these exceptional copper opportunities across the American West."

"I am honored to join Falcon Copper at such a pivotal time for the copper industry and U.S. critical minerals security," said Matthew Hornor, Chief Executive Officer. "Falcon Copper's flagship Blue Copper Project in Montana, the strategic partnership with Rio Tinto on the Schell Creek Project in Nevada, and our diverse asset base across the American West create an extraordinary platform to support the country's mineral independence. Our projects are directly aligned with federal initiatives to strengthen domestic supply chains and mitigate geopolitical risks. I look forward to collaborating with Travis and the Falcon Copper team to deliver sustainable growth and value for our stakeholders while contributing meaningfully to America's critical minerals future."

Proven Track Record in Significant Copper Development

Mr. Hornor brings globally recognized expertise in copper project development and strategic partnerships, having played pivotal roles in several of the most significant copper discoveries and developments of the past two decades. Mr. Hornor served as a senior executive within the Ivanhoe Capital Group, holding positions as Executive Vice President of Ivanhoe Mines, Chairman of Platreef Resources Inc., and as a key member of the leadership team that led the development and financing of three landmark copper projects:

Oyu Tolgoi (Mongolia): One of the world's largest copper-gold deposits, discovered through grassroots exploration in Mongolia's Gobi Desert. Now a major producer of copper and gold concentrates, Oyu Tolgoi is operated by Rio Tinto and plays a significant role in both regional and global copper supply.
Platreef (South Africa): A major platinum-group metals, nickel, copper, and gold project, which, under Mr. Hornor's leadership, secured a transformational $300 million in strategic investment and offtake commitments from a Japanese consortium led by Itochu Corporation, and including Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation (JOGMEC) and JGC Corporation, a leading Japanese engineering, procurement and construction company.
Kamoa-Kakula (DRC): One of the highest-grade large-scale copper discoveries globally, now in commercial production. Operated by a joint venture including Ivanhoe Mines, Zijin Mining, and the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kamoa-Kakula ranks among the world's highest-grade copper mining operations.

Mr. Hornor also has experience in precious metals exploration and is the founder and CEO of Tejas Capital, a strategic advisory and capital markets firm that has advised on over $2.5 billion in cross-border transactions, particularly focusing on Asia-based capital and resource investments.

Mr. Hornor's unique combination of legal training, commercial expertise, and deep relationships in Japanese markets positions him to advance Falcon Copper's strategic objectives. His legal background and extensive experience in complex international negotiations make him well-suited to navigate government relations and regulatory frameworks essential to critical minerals development. Fluent in Japanese with over 30 years of academic and business experience in Japan, he maintains an extensive network among Japanese trading houses and financial institutions actively seeking copper and critical mineral exposure.

Mr. Hornor holds a BA from the University of Southern California and a Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law, and is an active member of the California Bar. His graduate and post-graduate studies in Japan were twice funded by the prestigious Mombushō (Monbukagakushō) Fellowship, with research conducted at Tohoku University and Tokyo University.

About Falcon Copper Corp.

Falcon Copper Corp. is a copper-dominant, multi-critical minerals exploration company focused on responsibly advancing opportunities in the Western United States. The Company's projects include the exploration and, if warranted, development of a suite of critical minerals including copper, gold, zinc, tungsten, germanium and gallium. The company's portfolio includes nine strategic properties across Montana, Nevada, Arizona, and Idaho, including its flagship Blue Copper Project in Montana, the Schell Creek Project under option to joint venture agreement with Rio Tinto's Kennecott Exploration Company, and other significant opportunities throughout the resource-rich western United States. The acquisition of four additional assets, including properties in Idaho, is subject to various consents. All projects align with the objectives of the Government's Critical Minerals security initiatives and are positioned to significantly contribute to the domestic supply of copper and other critical Minerals, bolstering national security, economic growth and technological advancement.

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Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements and information contained in this new release constitute "forward-looking statements", and "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). These statements appear in a number of places in this news release and include statements regarding the Company's mineral projects, the potential development of the Company's mineral projects, alignment of the Company's mineral projects with certain United States government priorities, potential sources of funding from the United States government, and similar statements regarding the Company's future business prospects. When used in this news release words such as "to be", "will", "planned", "expected", "potential", "anticipated" and similar expressions are intended to identify these forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements and/or information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on forward-looking statements since the Company can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to vary materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements, including risks that the Company's mineral projects do not contain minerals in economically extractable quantities, changes in the priorities of the United States government, risks inherit in the exploration and development of mineral projects, fluctuations in the market prices of minerals, changes in the global economy and other general business risks. Such forward-looking statements are based on various assumptions, including assumptions made with regard to general business and economic conditions, mineral prices, and expected benefits from current United States government priorities. While the Company considers these assumptions to be reasonable, based on information currently available, they may prove to be incorrect. Except as required by applicable law, we assume no obligation to update or to publicly announce the results of any change to any forward-looking statement contained herein to reflect actual results, future events or developments, changes in assumptions or changes in other factors affecting the forward- looking statements.

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