MONTREAL ,QC / ACCESS Newswire / July 14, 2026 / First Canadian Graphite Inc. (TSXV:FCI)(OTCQB:GRAPF) ("First Canadian Graphite" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the appointment of Anthony (Tony) La Mantia, ICD.D, to its Advisory Board.
Mr. La Mantia is a seasoned C-level executive with over 40 years of experience spanning corporate development, investment attraction, governance, and economic development. He brings particular strength in mining sector corporate development from his past role as Vice President, Corporate Development at Largo Resources Ltd., where he and the executive team played a key role in advancing two major projects to NI 43-101 compliant resources and securing significant investment and off-take agreements.
Mr. La Mantia is the inaugural and current President and CEO of the Waterloo Region Economic Development Corporation (Waterloo EDC). Over the past ten years, he has led the organization to deliver over $4 billion in new investment supporting the creation of over 6,200 jobs. He previously served as Assistant Deputy Minister, Investment & Industry Division at the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development, where he led transformative investment attraction initiatives that generated billions in new private sector investment. Tony will be officially stepping away from his Waterloo EDC responsibilities later this year.
"We are indeed pleased to welcome Tony to our Advisory Board," said John LaGourgue, CEO of First Canadian Graphite. "His extensive experience in investment attraction, mining corporate development, capital markets, and governance will be invaluable as we advance the Lac Guéret South Project and position the Company for growth in the North American critical minerals supply chain."
"With its large, contiguous and highly prospective land holdings in the mining-friendly province of Quebec, First Canadian is extremely well positioned to build a globally significant, high-grade graphite deposit to help meet growing industrial demand," said La Mantia. "I'm genuinely excited to be supporting John and the team on this endeavour."
Advisory Board
First Canadian Graphite has established an Advisory Board to provide strategic, non-binding advice and guidance to the Company's senior management and Board of Directors. The Advisory Board is comprised of up to three independent members with complementary expertise in government relations and mining policy, capital markets, and mining production and operations. Members support project de-risking, stakeholder alignment, capital efficiency, and long-term value creation as the Company advances its district-scale graphite assets in Québec. The Advisory Board serves in a consultative capacity only and does not have decision-making authority or fiduciary responsibilities.