The Northern Miner November 2023 Issue 20 by The Northern Miner Group

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A guide to DLE, the technology that could transform lithium mining | Projects are seeking ways to speed the metal to market BATTERY METALS

BY COLIN MCCLELLAND

rine lithium mining is at a crossroads. Traditionally, it’s used evaporation ponds which can take months or years to produce the battery metal. Now, more and more

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brine projects are trying a group of technologies called direct lithium extraction (DLE). Advocates say it could slash production times to hours and days, improve recovery and reduce environmental impacts compared to the ponds that can be 60 sq. km in size. Companies in testing say they’re

Clean Tech Lithium’s Laguna Verde project in Chile’s Atacama Region. CLEAN TECH LITHIUM

already outperforming Goldman Sachs estimates this year of DLE recovery rates of at least 80% vs evaporation ponds at around 50%. And they’re beating the bank’s rough DLE operating cost guide of US$5,700 per tonne of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE). It was selling for US$22,675 a tonne at press time, according to Dow Jones. Even if less than half of Latin America’s brine projects adopt the technology, annual LCE output will increase by as much as 140,000 tonnes, the bank said. That’s 19% of last year’s global production, according to world leader Australia. There are three main DLE types: > Adsorption: A brine flows across a material such as clay, silicate or carbon known as an adsorbent. Lithium adheres to cavities on the surface and is collected by washing the adsorbent with water and diluted lithium chloride. Some processes use adsorbent made from lithium aluminum-layered double hydroxide chloride, known as LDH. > Ion exchange: Works like a water softener to extract the ions of lithium out of the brine. The brine flows through material, often a polymer resin in the form of small round beads, that acts as a filter. It is washed with acid, often hydrochloric, to collect the lithium, then neutralized with a base such as sodium hydroxide. The downside includes the environmental risk and cost of using acid and base. Also, the resin must be made to suit each brine’s chemistry, which is different. > Solvent extraction: This pro-

cess involves using a solvent such as kerosene to capture lithium from the brine. Despite the appeal of its high recovery rates, few proj-

DLE RECOVERY RATES TYPICALLY SURPASS

90% VS ~50%

FOR EVAPORATION PONDS ects use this method and most DLE proponents see little future in it at least partly because of its environmental impact. International Battery Metals (CSE: IBAT; US-OTC: IBATF), a lithium extraction technology company based in Houston, has developed its own method which it calls absorption and adsorption. John Burba, considered the father of DLE, developed the process after decades in the business. He designed the initial adsorption plant for Livent’s (NYSE: LTHM) Hombre Muerto project in Argentina, which expects first LCE this quarter and commercial amounts by year’s end. “This process, it’s not the same but it’s very similar to the Livent process. We’ve simplified it dramatically in this particular situation,” Burba, IBAT executive chairman and director of global technology, said by phone. “We are getting remarkably sharp sep-

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arations between the brine and the water.” The company wants to start using the technology on a project this year in the United States or South America, but the site hasn’t been selected. Joshua Hebert, vice-president of field operations, says the company is dealing with a range of clients, all with non-disclosure agreements so he can’t say who they are. “We currently have the only working commercial DLE mobile Lithium continued on P7 >

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GLOBAL MINING NEWS

JOINT VENTURE ARTICLE

Automaker Stellantis takes 19.9% stake in Argentina Lithium subsidiary BY NORTHERN MINER STAFF

Amsterdam-based carmaker Stellantis (NYSE: STLA) whose iconic brands include Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Citroën, Fiat, Opel, Maserati, Peugeot, Jeep and Vauxhall, has invested US$90 million equivalent in Argentine pesos in Canada’s Argentina Lithium & Energy (TSXV: LIT; US-OTC: PNXLF) via its Argentine subsidiary, as part of a wider effort to master the entire EV value chain from batteries to electric motors and e-transmissions. Stellantis, which posted net revenues of US$190 billion last year, has plans to build five gigafactories, two in North America and three in Europe, and is nailing down future lithium supply. “They approached us a year ago because of our reputation as a successful mineral exploration pioneer in Argentina,” says Nikolaos Cacos, president and CEO of Vancouver-based Argentina Lithium. “They didn’t want a control position — their interest was to secure an optionality for lithium. It’s the offtake they were after.” Under the deal, Stellantis has invested the US$90 million equivalent into Argentina Lithium’s subsidiary, Argentina Litio y Energia S.A. (ALE), resulting in the automaker owning 19.9% and Argentina Lithium 80.1%. Stellantis can later convert its stake in ALE into shares in the parent company if it chooses. And Stellantis gets to appoint one director to ALE’s board, or LIT if it converts. The multinational carmaker will secure a seven-year offtake agreement for up to 15,000 tonnes of lithium annually, if the junior becomes a producer. The lithium price will be based on an agreed market-based price formula at the time of each shipment. After the first seven years, Argentina Lithium would sell its lithium to Stellantis at regular market prices. “They are confident that their equity position will give them a return not just on their money, but then some,” Cacos says. “It’s a fancy private placement for an offtake return.” Prior to Stellantis, Argentina Lithium was fielding interest from battery makers, Chinese companies, hedge funds, investment companies, as well as other carmakers, Cacos says. But when Stellantis indicated it was intent on pursuing a deal, Argentina Lithium shut down talks with others. “When things started looking serious with Stellantis we signed an exclusivity agreement and we cut off those other discussions,” Cacos says. “Now as far as automakers go, only Stellantis will be allowed to buy lithium from us for the auto sector. They are looking to ensure they have a steady flow of lithium into their operations because they see a shortfall.” Argentina Lithium’s top projects are Rincon West and Antofalla North. Its goal is to have a resource estimate on Rincon West as early as the first quarter of 2024 and a pre-feasibility study the following year. At Antofalla North, permitting is in progress. The company expects that if exploration goes well and a resource is delineated, advanced engineering studies could be underway within three years. Rincon West shares the Rincon Salar in Salta province with Rio

“(Stellantis) want to help advance the project and give access to funding. They didn’t want a control position — their interest was to secure an optionality for lithium. It’s the offtake they were after.” — NIKOLAOS CACOS CEO, ARGENTINA LITHIUM

Tinto’s (NYSE: RIO; LSE: RIO; ASX: RIO) adjacent Rincon project, and with Argosy Minerals’ (ASX: AGY) Rincon project to the east. Rincon West sits 3,760 metres above sea level. It is close to a railway and 17 km south of Provincial Route 51, an international road that connects to coastal ports in Chile. In addition, the project is within 1 km of the InterAndes power corridor. Drill holes at Rincon West typically extend to greater than 300 metres depth, and some of the best intercepts include 153 metres grading from 329 to 393 mg per litre lithium in drill hole RW-DDH-006; drill hole RW-DDH-004, which intersected 334 to 382 mg per litre over 132 metres; and 70 metres of 225 to 380 mg per litre in drill hole RW-DDH-001. Antofalla North on the Antofalla Salar, is 25 km from Livent’s (NYSE: LTHM) Fenix lithium mine at Salar del Hombre Muerto and the project’s southernmost boundary is adjacent to properties controlled by lithium producer Albemarle (NYSE: ALB). Albemarle owns the entire central section of the 150 km salar, and Argentina Lithium the northern section, the company says. Elsewhere in Argentina, the company has two other projects, Pocitos and Incahuasi. All four of the projects are in the Lithium Triangle, a lithium-rich region of

Above: Argentina Lithium and Energy’s exploration team. ARGENTINA LTHIUM AND ENERGY

Logging core at the Rincon West project. ARGENTINA LTHIUM AND ENERGY

the Andes around the borders of Argentina, Bolivia and Chile that holds about 60% of the world’s known lithium reserves. Pocitos is about 38 km from Rincon West and makes up about 20% of the entire Salar de Pocitos basin. Incahuasi is on the Incahuasi Salar. The company controls the 17 km by 2.5 km salar and an additional 17 km of sedimentary basin connected to the salar. The town of Antofagasta de la Sierra lies about 34 km to the northeast. The company has not yet completed detailed sampling at Pocitos, while lithium grades in brine from limited drilling at Incahuasi are lower, typically between 50 and 150 mg per litre, with limited additional surface samples including values in excess of 400 mg per litre. The two projects will be explored more rigorously once the company’s key projects are well advanced, the company says. Argentina Lithium is part of the Grosso Group of companies, which has been active in Argentina since 1993. Cacos notes that the Grosso Group’s long history in the country has given Argentina Lithium a “competitive advantage” in sourcing and acquiring strong exploration projects in good locations. “Stellantis was intrigued by our projects because they are all well located, drilling had commenced, and we were getting good results,” Cacos says. “They undertook extensive due diligence and brought in some of the world’s best experts that had helped advance other projects into production.”

A drill rig at Argentina Lithium and Energy’s Incahuasi lithium brine project in Argentina. ARGENTINA LTHIUM AND ENERGY

“We didn’t need to bring in investment bankers, we did it all in-house,” he continues. “They weren’t trying to squeeze us out, they want to help advance the project and give access to funding. They’ve also said they will be available to raise financing for a production plant when the time comes.” With the influx of new funds, Argentina Lithium will likely double if not triple its exploration program. “We can do multiple geophysical work programs and bring in additional drill rigs,” he says. “Right now, we have one drill rig at Rincon West, but I can see us having three or four there.” “Drilling one hole in these lithium salt lake brines can take approximately a month, so if we can bring on more drill rigs it will shorten the time to complete resource estimates.” The investment by Stellantis will also demonstrate to Argentine mines and energy officials that Argentina Lithium means business. “Exploration is only limited by permits, and while we have an excellent rapport with all the government and mining officials in Argentina already, now that they see us with Stellantis, they might

sit up a little straighter when we walk in.” Stellantis hopes to boost net revenues to US$316 billion by 2030 from US$190 billion in 2022, some of which will be driven by sales of battery electric vehicles. Last year it boosted BEV sales by 41% yearon-year to 288,000. It currently has 23 BEVs on the market and plans to double its BEV portfolio to 47 by the end of next year. “Having Stellantis invest in us and working as a partner validates our projects and what we’ve accomplished in Argentina so far,” Cacos says. “To have a company of that stature on our side makes us proud.” News of the agreement on Sept. 27 sent Argentina Lithium’s shares up 113% or 26¢ to 49¢ per share. When the deal closed on Oct. 5, the junior’s shares popped 31% or 12.5¢ to 53¢. At press time in Toronto Argentina Lithium had a market cap of about $61 million. The preceding Joint Venture Article is PROMOTED CONTENT sponsored by Argentina Lithium & Energy Corp. and produced in co-operation with The Northern Miner. Visit: www.argentinalithium. com for more information.

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

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EDITORIAL

COMMENTARY

IAA slapdown gives feds a chance to live up to rhetoric on critical minerals

As graphite surges, expect more critical metal shortages

“A

ccelerating activity in the critical minerals space is essential to meeting global clean energy needs and to building a prosperous economy that will thrive in our net-zero future. Simply put, our future depends on critical minerals.” BY ALISHA HIYATE That’s a quote from a press release issued this year by Federal Natural Resources minister Jonathan Wilkinson. In it, he outlined where some of the nearly $4 billion the federal government earmarked for mining in its 2022 budget was going. But now, the feds have a chance to do something that could make a far greater difference to Canada’s mining sector than mere cash from the state ever could. The question is, will they take it? On Oct. 13, the Supreme Court of Canada released a 5-2 opinion that the Impact Assessment Act (IAA) – formerly Bill C69 — is in large part unconstitutional because it encroaches on matters that are under provincial jurisdiction. Danielle Smith, the premier of Alberta, which brought the case to court, celebrated it as a “massive win” for the provinces. “This legislation is already responsible for the loss of tens of billions in investment as well as thousands of jobs across many provinces and economic sectors,” Smith said in a statement. “The ruling today represents an opportunity for all provinces to stop that bleeding and begin the process of reattracting those investments and jobs into our economies.” The leader of the United Conservative Party, who became premier a year ago, has called the IAA the “Don’t Build Anything Anywhere Act,” while another popular moniker in the Western province is the “No More Pipelines Act.” Other provinces, including Ontario, were intervenors in the case supporting Alberta’s position. Environmental and Indigenous groups lined up to support the legislation, which passed in 2019. Court opinion Essentially, the Supreme Court has said that the federal government should ‘stay in its lane’ when making decisions about projects, says Eden Oliver, senior counsel at Allen McDonald Swartz in Toronto. “The court didn’t like the idea of the federal government making decisions that take into account factors that really fall under provincial powers legislation,” Oliver said. “Two levels of government are making decisions based on the same criteria and may come to different conclusions, but those criteria are not within their constitutional scope.” The court opinion is a reference case, not a constitutional challenge, meaning the decision is not binding and it does not strike down the law. However, the federal government says it will rework the law to conform with the court’s guidance within months. In the meantime, the feds have paused any new decisions on project designations, while the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada will offer opinions on whether all of the 23 projects currently in the process affect areas under federal responsibility. Minister Jonathan Wilkinson has said he believes the changes to the legislation can be “surgical.” Dani Bryant, a partner at law firm Fasken, says it’s too early to tell what the implications of the court opinion will be, outside of delays for proponents on impact assessment decisions. “I don’t think that we know how big of a deal it is until we see how the federal government amends or redrafts the legislation.” However, Bryant noted that the opinion doesn’t say the federal government can’t use a designated process regime, which is similar to the process under the IAA’s predecessor, the 2012 CEAA act. “For projects for which an impact assessment is triggered, they would still have to go through the whole impact assessment.” But the resource sector is hopeful that it could bring some regulatory streamlining around the constitutional division of powers and shared power over environmental regulation. “Frankly, this is a good decision because it is clarifying,” Oliver said. She says the federal government should use this regulatory hitch to rework the legislation to create a regulatory regime that attracts investment while allowing it to uphold its responsibilities. “It’s really an opportunity for cooperative federalism,” she said. “Ideally, the provincial and federal governments would work together to find a streamlined approach to regulation of projects and do it in a way that stops the delays. People are spending huge amounts of money in preparing for these assessments — four and a half, five years of investment.” It ain’t easy being green While much of the media coverage has focused on oil and gas projects, the IAA regulates mining projects, including “green” and critical minerals. But the legislation is so new that no mining projects have been through the entire process yet. The industry is starting to chafe at the complexity and layering of regulations — especially as it looks to help Western governments in their purported quest for homegrown, secure minerals supplies. Throw in a tough two-year bear market for juniors and developers, and you have an industry hoping for some regulatory relief. Jeff Killeen, director of policy and programs at the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada, says there’s definitely some “consultation fatigue” among PDAC members and frustration over inefficiencies in federal processes. However, he doesn’t expect “wholesale” change in the federal government pending IAA rewrite.

BY JAMES COOPER

ctober was a big month in mining circles, led by a surge in graphite stocks. As you might be aware, on Oct. 20, authorities in China announced export restrictions over refined graphite. The move is aimed specifically at the electric vehicle market and graphite anode material used in EV batteries. If you follow the mining space closely, I’m sure this announcement hasn’t come as a surprise. In fact, I warned about just such a move in early October, in an article titled: “Which critical metal will China ban next?” Graphite and rare earths were the two commodities I flagged as the most likely contenders. That’s because China dominates the supply of these two key minerals. We saw the first shot fired in July after export restrictions were placed over gallium and germanium, key commodities in the manufacture of semiconductors. In another warning sign, the U.S. Department of Defense has steadily poured billions into critical metal projects over the last 12 months as it scrambles to secure alternative supplies. The Australian rare earth producer Lynas (ASX: LYC) was one of the big benefactors of the department’s attempt to boost domestic supply. LYC received $120 million last year as part of a deal to build a new processing facility in Texas — on U.S. soil. But after China’s germanium and gallium export restrictions, the deal was sweetened, and in August the company received a further $258 million. Deals like this have barely raised an eyebrow, that’s why the graphite export tightening shocked the market into a panic last month. Shares in producer Syrah Resources (ASX: SYR) and South Australian developer Renascor Resources (ASX: RNU) have both climbed around 50% since the announcement in October. Renascor could become the world’s first purified spherical graphite supplier outside China as its Siviour resource hosts the globe’s second largest graphite deposit. Conditions change rapidly in the commodity market, that’s why investors should be positioning their portfolios ahead of these events. More supply cuts ahead The market didn’t pay attention to the gallium and germanium trade restrictions in July. So, will it wake

up to the looming supply problems once graphite’s stranglehold comes into force on Dec. 1? Perhaps. Especially when we consider graphite is a far more ‘mainstream’ commodity. It’s why investors should be broadening their exposure across numerous critical metal stocks set to surge on the back of heightening U.S. and China trade tensions. There’s a very real possibility things could escalate further. Russia, a commodity producing powerhouse, is in a prime position to maximize pain over the West by partnering with China. That could mean a multi-pronged attack placing export bans across numerous critical metals and energy. This would be devastating to manufacturers across Europe and North America. That’s why investors should seriously consider exposure to critical metal stocks. As the graphite development showed, the threats are real and reaching new levels of risk. Manufacturing of EV batteries, solar panels, smartphones, laptops, TV’s, appliances, medical and defence equipment all hinge on the reliable supply of critical metals. These raw materials are fed by China’s mighty midstream and downstream capacity. And with the flick of a switch, the world’s most important supplier can cut exports. This is unfolding far earlier than most geopolitical experts would have expected. Who knows how bad this situation could get in the months to come. It seems unthinkable that multi-billion-dollar companies like Tesla, Toyota or BMW would be left stranded without the raw materials needed to build their products. It’s the same situation for the massive U.S. tech and defence companies relying on China’s supply of rare earths. For too long, manufacturers have ignored the importance of investing in upstream supply and mining. Their day of reckoning is approaching fast. It’s why I believe critical metal stocks are positioned for a major set-up in 2024. Given that stock prices remain depressed, now is the ideal time to align your portfolio to this very real threat James Cooper is a geologist and mining analyst. Based in Melbourne, he’s now the resident commodities analyst at Fat Tail Investment Research and editor for the Diggers & Drillers Publication. You can follow him on X (Twitter) @JCooperGeo.

“It certainly doesn’t lower the regulatory standards or the transparency or disclosure required around project development. And that’s part of the… [reason] why we attract more mineral exploration investment each and every year than any other country in the world,” he said. In the meantime, , the federal government must consider how investment in mineral exploration in Canada is down about 50% from 2021 levels as it tries to catalyze new mine developments and balance its various goals, Killeen says. “We’re trying to reach net zero by 2050. We’re still trying to protect 30% of Canada’s lands and oceans by 2030 and we’re trying to build new critical mineral mines. So we have to be cognizant of all and make sure the government is dovetailing these strategies so that they’re not working in conflict.” TNM

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

inbrief PHOTO OF THE MONTH

Sunset view of rain from the Silver Trail highway in the Yukon, submitted by Aaron Joseph, a heavy equipment operator with Hecla Mining. CREDIT: AARON JOSEPH

To submit your entry for Photo of the Month, please email bmcbride@northernminer.com.

DEPA RT MENTS

In Brief

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Commentary & Analysis

In Depth

Done Deals

Project Updates

Mining, Metals & Markets

Culture

Executive Q&A

Company Index

SPECIAL SECTIONS » Mining in Ontario 31 » Mining in South America 36

China throws Vital Metals a lifeline

Space mining 2024

Aussies court AstroForge, a U.S.-based startup with plans to mine asteroids, international investors

Chinese rare earth miner Shenghe Resources is acquiring new shares in Vital Metals for A$5.9 million ($3.8 million), allowing the Australian miner to move forward with development at the Nechalacho project in the Northwest Territories. The move comes almost one month after the Australiabased junior placed its processing arm into bankruptcy, and began liquidating assets related to its partially completed $55-million plant in Saskatoon. The decision came after an operations review found the plant wasn’t economical. Shenghe has agreed to subscribe for 9.99% of the issued share capital in Vital at A1¢ a share. It could subscribe for a further 492 million shares at A1.5¢ a share for A$8.9 million. As part of the deal, Shenghe will acquire a 50% interest in Vital’s Wigu Hill rare earths project in Tanzania. Vital also recently appointed Geordie Mark as new managing director and CEO, following departures this year of members of senior management. Shenghe’s cash injection clashes with Vital’s initial claim of becoming a key actor in the emerging North American critical minerals supply chain to rival China.

is fine-tuning details for the launch of a spacecraft in the first quarter of next year, which would make it the first private company to visit an M-type asteroid and operate in deep space. The Brokkr-2 spacecraft will travel on board Elon Musk’s SpaceX rocket, which will carry a drill to explore the Moon’s surface, as part of NASA’s Artemis program. AstroForge’s mission will continue further until reaching an M-type asteroid, which contains higher concentrations of metal than regular asteroids. If successful, it would mark a significant milestone on the startup’s mission to commercially mine asteroids for critical resources. The California-based firm successfully test fired in September the rockets that will allow Brokkr-2 to reach the target celestial body, located 35.4 million km from Earth. This was a crucial step before the spacecraft is integrated with the SpaceX rocket next year. The ride-share trip, chartered by Intuitive Machines, would be the final step of Brokkr-2’s flyby to simulate a projected round-trip mission. After that, the company will install the last needed pieces to the vehicle and the rest of the spacecraft will be built around the system, it said. AstroForge estimates that it would take about nine months to reach the M-type asteroid, with the mission lasting two years.

BY MINING.COM STAFF

The Australian government plans to double the amount of money on offer to A$2 billion ($1.7 billion) in support of critical minerals projects as it works to attract American miners and processing companies. The financial boost will increase the capacity of Australia’s Critical Minerals Facility to finance mining and processing projects for materials. Part of the appeal for Australia of expanding its critical minerals footprint is to plug an anticipated fiscal shortfall amid waning demand for fossil fuel exports in a decarbonizing world. Australia’s lithium shipments were worth A$20 billion ($17.4 billion) in the 12 months through June, with government forecasts showing the sector’s earnings could rival that of thermal coal exports by 2028. A critical minerals task force aimed at increasing private investment in Australia’s rare earths industry and reducing global dependence on China has also been discussed with American authorities. Albanese also planned an early November visit to China, Australia’s largest trade partner and biggest buyer of its iron ore. BY MINING.COM STAFF

BY MINING.COM STAFF

continued on P6 >

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

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inbrief [CONTINUED FROM P5] n

Mining capex

Capital spending in Canada’s mining industry increased by 14% to $13.5 billion last year, its highest in a decade, the latest figures published by Natural Resources Canada showed. The sector’s capex intentions in 2023 are also showing notable growth, rising 21% to $16.4 billion. According to NRCan, mineral and metal prices reflect market demand and the supply balance or instability, and thus are a leading indicator of capex in the mining industry. However, the rise in capex was also driven by inflation rates that soared to their highest levels in decades, leading to increases in the cost of materials and equipment. Companies tend to preserve capital when market conditions are unfavourable and financing options are limited, NRCan said. Conversely, firms tend to accelerate investment plans when the outlook for demand and prices improves, as it provides an opportunity to enhance their cash flow and profits. After record high of $16.9 billion in 2012, capex in the mining industry declined every year for the next five years, reaching a 10-year low of $9 billion in 2017. It recovered over the next two years before declining again during the COVID-19 pandemic. Since 2021, the spending has returned to its pre-pandemic growth trend.

The graphite in NextSource’s shipments that will become SPG represent one of the few supply chains outside of China, which controls 100% of the global SPG market, according to a June report from Climate Energy Finance. China announced in October it would tighten export controls on some graphite products, including spherical graphite, as of Dec. 1. The curbs raised fears of supply disruptions in the EV battery market. BY MINING.COM STAFF

IsoEnergy raises $36.6M

Capitalizing on a hot uranium market, IsoEnergy closed a $36.6-million private placement financing on Oct. 19 to continue its hunt for economic deposits of the metal. In an offering led by NexGen Energy, Mega Uranium,

and Energy Fuels — all players in the uranium sector — the company issued about 8.1 million subscription receipts at a price of $4.50 each. The original offering was upsized with the participation of Sachem Cove Partners. Each subscription receipt will entitle the holder to receive one common share of IsoEnergy, on or about the date that IsoEnergy’s previously announced share-for-share merger with Consolidated Uranium. IsoEnergy proposed in September to acquire all issued and outstanding shares of Consolidated Uranium, with Consolidated shareholders to receive half of an IsoEnergy share for each Consolidated share held. The combined company would have an estimated value of about $903.5 million. The companies have a complementary portfolio of uranium properties and a potential global reach. The merger is expected to close before the end of the year, with a vote of Consolidated shareholders slated for late November. BY CANADIAN MINING JOURNAL STAFF

Quote of the month

BY MINING.COM STAFF

I’ve been a bit of a trailblazer, but I feel like I’m not alone on the trail. There are so many talented women in the industry today.”

NextSource ships graphite

NextSource Materials announced on Oct. 23 it had made its first bulk container shipment of SuperFlake graphite concentrate from the company’s Molo mine in Madagascar. This first shipment has been sent to the company’s downstream technical partner’s battery anode facility located in Mauritius. There, the shipment will be processed into spheronized, purified graphite (SPG) that will then be further processed into coated SPG as part of large scale, multi-step verification tests being conducted by automotive EV supply chains in South Korea and Japan, the company said. NextSource said it expects to receive its first series of verification test results in December of this year. The company has also completed commissioning, after a period of just over six months and achieved full operations of its solar and battery hybrid power plant at Molo. In its first phase, Molo can produce 17,000 tonnes of graphite concentrate per year.

— CATHERINE MCLEOD-SELTZER, INDEPENDENT CHAIR, KINROSS GOLD

see story page 14

Letter to the editor

PURSUING A REVIVAL IN GOLD

McEwen: Canada cannot tolerate hatred As an eighth generation Canadian and a proud member of the Order of Canada, I am appalled by our city government in Toronto, and of those communities across our country, that have permitted demonstrations by supporters of Hamas. This is a terrorist organization, recognized as such by our federal government and many others around the world. This organization is committed to genocide, to obliterate Israel and the Jewish people. How can we, as Canadians stand silent when their hateful speech fills our streets, our media, our homes. We should never tolerate their behaviour, their hate speech, and their celebration of killing defenseless Israelis. If these demonstrators want to save Palestine and all who live there, they should start by calling for the immediate removal of Hamas and the return of the innocent individuals that Hamas kidnapped. The horrific tragedies first in Israel and now in Palestine are the result of one and only one group. It is the demented leadership of Hamas. They knew that their barbaric slaughter of defenseless men, women, children, and babies would provoke a rapid and punishing response from Israel. This is exactly what Hamas wanted to happen! Hamas has willingly and deliberately decided to sacrifice the lives of thousands of their own people, the enormous destruction of homes and businesses and the dislocation of hundreds of thousands. What these monsters have done is to ignite an inferno that has turned the lives of both Palestinians and Israelis into a terrible nightmare and could soon turn the Middle East into a living hell.

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If Hamas is allowed to continue with their heinous crimes against their own citizens and Israelis, it will draw other countries into the conflict and it could embroil the entire world and trigger World War III. We must prevent this possible outcome. The world needs to eliminate Hamas! Regarding the demonstrators, I hope they will contain their anger and animosity. Canada is a country that accepts peoples from around the world, but they should never think that we will accept or tolerate their hatred of others. If they are unwilling to leave their anger and prejudices behind, then we as Canadians should actively encourage them to leave our fair land. Their hatred is abhorrent, unwelcome and has no place in Canada. ROB MCEWEN, CM

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

> DLE from on P1

modular extraction plant in the world,” Hebert said. “We’ve gone through some optimizations and you know, put all the bells and whistles that we wanted to on it to get it ready for the big show.” Combination method IBAT’s method sees the lithium in brine absorbed into a crystalline structure that excludes other elements by size, Burba said. It uses water to wash the lithium out of the structure and doesn’t require acid or base. IBAT claims it is stronger and more efficient than others on the market, boasting extraction rates from the brine at about 99%, and total recovery rates ranging from 92-98%. Operating costs would be US$1,500 to US$2,000 a tonne of LCE output depending on fuel prices to extract from a brine holding 600 parts per million lithium, Burba said. It would produce a 35% lithium chloride solution suitable to make LCE. A typical 20,000-tonne-a-year lithium project using IBAT technology could be up and running 18 months after delivery for a cost of about US$250-300 million, Burba said. That compares with six year’s construction time for a traditional plant costing about US$600 million like Livent first envisioned in Argentina. CleanTech Lithium (AIM: CTL), which has three projects in northern Chile, favours adsorption across resins. The method has been used in the industry for some two decades, Jason Baverstock, co-founder and business development manager, said by phone. “The technology is a winner

E3 Lithium CEO Chris Doornbos near E3’s lithium brine project in Alberta. E3 LITHIUM

“We’re really pushing hard not to be a science experiment anymore and to build a commercial facility.” — CHRIS DOORNBOS CEO OF E3 LITHIUM

E3’s lithium brine pilot plant, east of Olds, Alta. E3 LITHIUM

because it’s commercially proven,” Baverstock said. “For us, low-salinity water is used to de-sorp the lithium ions from the resin, whereas with ion exchange they use usually

hydrochloric acid or an acid base material for the de-sorp.” CleanTech uses resins by Sunresin based in Shaanxi, about 1,100 km southwest of Beijing.

Sunresin makes about 50,000 cubic metres of ion exchange resins and adsorbers annually. Jersey, United Kingdom-based CleanTech is preparing a prefeasibility study on the Laguna Verde project due early next year after completing a scoping study this year. It estimated an operating cost of US$3,875 per tonne. At its Francisco Basin project,

the company released a scoping study in September and is drilling until about June to expand and upgrade its resource. It may start a prefeasibility study on that project late next year. Both projects, which are about 950 km north of the capital Santiago, aim to produce 20,000 tonnes annually of battery-grade LCE. Laguna Verde would start in 2026, and Francisco Basin a year later. A third project, the early-stage Llamara, is about 600 km north of the others. E3 Lithium (TSXV: ETL; US-OTC: EEMMF), with Canada’s largest resource of the light metal, is still deciding which DLE technology it wants to adopt for its Clearwater project in Alberta. It’s forecast to start in mid-to-late 2026. Science experiment The company is testing three systems, including its own, that are ion exchange or adsorption, CEO Chris Doornbos said by phone. They’re all looking strong, but the winner DLE continued on P44 >

JOINT VENTURE ARTICLE

Gahcho Kué offers case study on innovative tech revolutionizing the way mining operations are managed.

BY NORTHERN MINER STAFF

Over the last two years, Galaxy Broadband Communications (Galaxy) has established key partnerships with OneWeb (U.K.) and Nokia Canada that promise remarkable communications advancements in the mining industry. Galaxy can now offer clients access to services and their own Private 5G networks to connect headquarters with open pit or underground mines, remote personnel, and devices. Its collaboration with OneWeb, announced in February, aims to provide ample satellite capacity with low-latency network bandwidth, catering to diverse communication needs. This encompasses data traffic flowing to and from headquarters, vendors, and streaming services. In the past, achieving such network connectivity relied on costly terrestrial solutions like microwave or fiber. OneWeb is a cost-effective and accessible alternative, easily deployable even in remote sites. Galaxy can also design a Private 5G solution in collaboration with Nokia that covers the entire mine site. This integration empowers seamless and efficient communication, greatly enhancing operations and connectivity. Well-managed mine sites need real-time operating data from their digital fleet management systems to optimize preventative maintenance, reduce operating costs, and address issues outside of maintenance windows. This information is needed for data sensors on excavators, haul trucks, and tonnage destined for the mill,

Technicians position a 5G cellular tower at the Gahcho Kué mine. GALAXY BROADBAND

enabling effective management of both waste and mineral-rich rocks. Employees and contractors benefit from devices that can track worker locations during emergencies and maintain constant communication during operations. Doug Harvey, VP Sales, Business Development & Marketing at Galaxy, underscores that the realization of a connected mine is now feasible due to recent advancements in network technology, such as those being implemented by Galaxy. “By having high-speed internet remotely with low latency, it’s akin to having a fiber connection anywhere in the world,” Harvey says. “Executives and managers can now access real-time information about their company’s operations.” Access to that data allows remote sites to optimize inventory management by reducing spare parts and gaining a deeper understanding of inventory levels and consumption rates. In the past, remote sites mitigated the failure risk by stockpiling critical parts. With detailed digital fleet information, parts can now

be ordered on-site for regular maintenance, reducing downtime caused by unexpected breakages. Many existing systems in mines currently operate independently, without seamless integration, notes Andrew Mackenzie, Galaxy’s VP of Solutions & Sales Engineering, who emphasizes the transformative potential of satellite supported 5G in centralizing and streamlining communication systems. Galaxy’s new technology offers a dedicated packet core at the site, delivering rapid connectivity and efficient service to all devices on the network. A dedicated packet core functions like a cell tower, but it’s uniquely designed to connect directly to the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite system, distinguishing it from traditional cell towers. The advantage of a mine with its own dedicated packet core extends beyond mere provision of service where it was previously unavailable, Mackenzie says. The technology can handle more sessions concurrently, reaching an ultra-high data throughput. Its provision of total site coverage allows integration of solutions and products into the network,

Gahcho Kué case study The remote Gahcho Kué diamond mine, located in the Northwest Territories and operated by De Beers Group, is at the forefront of adopting cutting-edge technologies, including Nokia Private 5G and LEO satellite connections.. Investments in digital solutions at Gahcho Kué include a digital fleet management system, data collectors on mining shovels to track mining productivity, remote water quality sensors providing real-time data, hand-held devices enabling maintenance technicians to access work orders in the field, and wireless sensors for potential predictive maintenance. These systems are integrated into an Intelligent Edge computing system on-site, allowing for comprehensive data collation. This data is then leveraged by the minebased team to generate tailored reports, which facilitates rapid decision-making. Alex Mackay, IT Manager, North America, for De Beers Group, says the investments are expected to help cut costs, among other benefits. “Installation of the 5G network at Gahcho Kué mine is an important step toward our goal of creating a connected workforce. This will enable us to connect equipment and mobile devices and bring realtime access to information and data wherever our team members are at the mine, from the bottom of the pit to the logistics laydown yard.” According to Mackay,

“Technology innovation and experimentation are key drivers to our success in unlocking cost, productivity, and safety improvements at Gahcho Kué. We are working to create a connected workforce by employing mobile devices, wireless sensors and data collectors tied together with the new Private 5G network on site. In 2022, we began to use data and voice connections using low earth orbiting satellites at the mine and, as a result, in late August 2023 we were able to turn off the microwave link that had been used since the mine opened in 2016.” The technology at Gahcho Kué is being closely observed by the De Beers Diamond FutureSmart team, the mining innovation program developed by De Beers’ parent company Anglo American. The team is developing technology that could eventually be used at the Chidliak diamond project on Baffin Island, Nunavut. Leveraging FutureSmart principles, it’s being advanced as a high-tech mine with remote and autonomous operation, mobile and modular infrastructure, and low carbon emissions, with Galaxy’s technology seen as a key enabler of this vision in the remote Arctic. As mining technology continues to evolve, Galaxy’s partnerships show the benefits of having a Private 5G network onsite. The preceding Joint Venture Article is PROMOTED CONTENT sponsored by Galaxy Broadband Communications and produced in co-operation with The Northern Miner. Visit: www.galaxybroadband. ca for more information.

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

www.northernminer.com

commentary&analysis Five ‘good practices’ for integrating ESG in mining COMMENTARY

| Why glowing ESG ratings shouldn’t be the end goal

BY KEVIN D’SOUZA

“While our industry is making important progress toward ESG goals, there remains plenty of room for improvement, and investors want to distinguish between true impact and value creation, versus vanity metrics. Many... believe we are witnessing a true industry transformation.”

ontrary to popular perception, the mining industry has been responding to what we like to call “ESG” concerns since the environmental movements of the 1970s. Even the acronym “ESG” (environmental, social and governance) is not new and was first popularized in the 2004 report titled “Who Cares Wins,” a joint initiative of financial institutions at the invitation of the United Nations. Less than 20 years later, the term ESG has been instrumental in driving awareness about sustainability and responsible business practices. However, we may have reached a point where the acronym itself might inadvertently limit our perspective. For instance, by its very nature, ESG is broad — covering a myriad of themes that keep expanding — and hence can mean different things to different stakeholders. It is not the perfect label. Recently these three simple letters have morphed into shorthand attracting hype and controversy. To be crystal clear, from a mining perspective, ESG has no relevance to any political affiliation. At the root of the ongoing politicization of ESG has been the confusion between ESG integration and impact investing. For those in the mining industry, ESG is neither about just avoiding risks nor compromising financial returns or being a tradeoff on profitability. Nor should it be considered an after-thought public relations add-on ‘check-thebox’ exercise. Whatever we choose to call it, ESG remains a fiduciary responsibility and vital risk management approach for us in the mining industry. ‘Good practices’ ESG issues are certainly not static in our industry. They change and evolve with time and geography. Some issues may be long-term, oth-

Kevin D’Souza

ers short-term, and not every ESG topic is relevant to every mine site or company. This makes it impossible to define one set of “best practices” for the industry; rather, there are a variety of constantly evolving “good practices.” In 2001, the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM) was founded to improve sustainable development performance in the industry and share good practices, and for over two decades, the industry has demonstrated the will to constantly improve as society’s standards grow ever more stringent. Since then, there has been a parallel proliferation of ESG performance standards and reporting frameworks from respected industry groups, such as the ICMM, Mining Association of Canada (MAC) and the World Gold Council (WGC) as well as supplier-led initiatives like the Copper Mark, and thirdparty resources like the Initiative

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for Responsible Mining Assurance (IRMA) or the Responsible Mining Initiative (RMI), to name but a few. Despite their good intentions, this proliferation has caused and continues to create confusion and frustration (and supports a lucrative ESG assurance industry). Those on-site trying to understand what is relevant to their stakeholders and what will actually help drive improved ESG performance — without causing assurance audit fatigue — feel this most acutely. While our industry is making important progress toward ESG goals, there remains plenty of room for improvement, and investors want to distinguish between true impact and value creation, versus vanity metrics. Many in both the mining and investor communities believe we are witnessing a true industry transformation, with the ESG performance bar continuously being raised. Ill-conceived ESG approaches However, not all mining companies fully appreciate that in today’s world, providing glossy annual ESG reports and paying lip service to ESG ideals is simply not enough. Glowing ESG ratings and annual reports are not the end goal. ESG ratings at best provide a blunt analytical “opinion,” often obscuring as much as they reveal. Such shortcomings really matter as mining companies are being peer-pressured to rush into ill-conceived ESG approaches that neither address their specific impacts, risks and opportunities nor support investor decision-making. Investors and the public alike are also becoming increasingly tuned in to evidence of “greenwashing” — the practice of consciously or unconsciously communicating misleading statements; making unsubstantiated claims; or obfuscating information pertaining to the ESG characteristics of a business and its products. Realistically, companies should instead assess their own ESG materiality with greater clarity around what truly matters to them, and then develop a set of policies and minimum operating standards based on the accepted “good practices” — but tailored to their unique situations. Here are five good prac-

tices to consider when integrating ESG in mining:

On-the-ground expertise

Successful ESG is hands-on, not academic. It can’t be unilaterally driven from a corporate office as it must “bring the outside in” to be able to navigate the complexity and dynamism of ESG and understand what pragmatic good practices are. Beginning with the earliest exploration stages and continuing well past mine closure, employees with cross-cultural competencies should be on site and working directly with local communities, including Indigenous peoples, to create consistent, respectful, and open communication.

Governance

While the “G” of ESG is sometimes overlooked in favour of social and environmental considerations, sound governance holds it all together. Remember ESG affects virtually every function and discipline in a mining company. Miners must establish strong governance with clear lines of accountability and ownership; meaningful ESG metrics and analytics to quantify impact; and internal processes that prioritize, integrate, and address the needs and goals of all internal and external stakeholders, from local communities to shareholders.

Transparency Despite what some consultants may insinuate, the “S” in ESG does not stand for “story.” Accurate and balanced disclosure around ESG approaches and performance can help burnish reputations while withholding it could potentially harm valuations, access to capital, or brand reputation with a variety of important stakeholders. It would be a mistake to expect that every aspect of every ESG intervention or initiative will succeed. Even with high levels of expertise and the best of intentions, there are simply too many variables in any situation to guarantee specific outcomes. It’s about testing and learning while acknowledging that transparency is the new normal. To build reputational value, companies need to own their own narrative, be willing to acknowledge and address

sub-optimal outcomes openly and transparently, and share their lessons learned.

Net Value

Authentic ESG goes beyond legal compliance and adhering to regulations; it’s not enough to simply “do no harm” and check the box. Legal compliance is the floor, not the ceiling. It’s also important that companies avoid “defensive sustainability” — that is, focusing primarily on monitoring negative impacts and doing “less bad” while failing to create value. Companies need to mature from a legalistic compliance mindset to a values-driven one. They need to ensure the systematic application of ESG disciplines to proactively seek opportunities to create enduring value throughout the business. They need to support their operations to have a positive net impact on the local environment and community while actively contributing to a “just” net zero transition.

Accountability

“Social licence to operate” refers to the tacit “licence” sought by mining companies around the world. A company builds and maintains a social licence over time through meaningful local relationships and being a steward of the environment, its employees, and the community in which it operates — in short, by being accountable for its actions. However, too many in the industry fail to recognize the difference between a social licence and social performance. The former is about the benefit to the company only and its desire to secure community acceptance, whereas the latter is about the benefit to communities and creating societal value through equitable benefit sharing and maximizing local procurement and local employment. The companies that successfully integrate ESG understand this important difference and commit to upholding high standards of accountability and integrity towards both, potentially reducing the real costs of doing business. Most importantly, companies— and investors—need to understand that “hands-on” ESG and mining experience is critical to sustained success. ESG cannot be directed from a satellite unit responsible for creating reports, delegated to “armchair experts,” or analyzed on paper. It needs to be built from the ground up on actual mine sites. When all is said and done, ESG is fundamentally about understanding how a business interacts with the rest of the world. It is about operating as a good corporate citizen that implements positive environmental, social, and governance changes, that is accountable for its actions, and is transparent about its mistakes. TNM

Kevin PCJ D’Souza is the Chief Sustainability Officer with Resource Capital Funds (www. resourcecapitalfunds.com). He is a global mining ESG executive and professional with over 30 years of direct experience in over 50 countries. Portions of the article were previously published.

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

indepth Supreme Court ruling to reshape Canadian environmental assessment rules LEGAL

| IAA exceeds federal jurisdiction for resource projects, judges say

BY HENRY LAZENBY

n a landmark decision that has reignited the age-old debate about the division of powers between federal and provincial authorities, Canada’s Supreme Court has declared certain provisions of the Impact Assessment Act (IAA) unconstitutional. The Oct. 13 ruling, delivered with a 5-2 majority, specifically found the IAA’s provisions related to the assessment of “designated projects” to be outside the jurisdiction of the federal Parliament and, therefore, unconstitutional. While the implications of the decision in the short-term are still unclear, Sean Sutherland, a partner at law firm Osler and who represented the Business Council of Alberta as an intervenor in the case, said it would reinstate confidence regarding the federal environmental impact assessment process which the IAA had eroded. “This is a significant decision for major project proponents concerned about the overbreadth of the IAA, delays and increased costs to major projects captured by the IAA, and decision-making regarding major projects within a province by federal politicians based on federal policies and priorities,” Sutherland told The Northern Miner in an interview in October. “The decision itself, in the medium and long term, provides more certainty because we have guidance from the courts on what those proper jurisdictional limits are. In the short term, it’s a bit of another wait-and-see.” Sutherland said the decision challenges Canada’s approach to environmental assessments and is expected to lead to significant revisions to the IAA. The legislation was passed in August 2019, superseding the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act of 2012. The majority ruling applies to designated projects — typically large-scale or significant developments within Canada that may substantially impact the environment and surrounding communities. Designated projects undergo a more thorough assessment process to ensure responsible development. However, critics have long cautioned that the IAA introduced more ambiguity around project approvals, and the final say under that act was a decision by the federal cabinet – a group of politicians whose policies and priorities can change. In its response, the Mining Association of Canada (MAC) noted the uncertainty caused by the ruling will hurt the mining industry and Canada’s energy transition. “We call on Canada and Parliament to respond to the Court opinion expeditiously to shorten the period of investment uncertainty,” the association said in an Oct. 13 statement. “Prolonged uncertainty is a roadblock to building the mines and infrastructure we urgently need to achieve our climate change, supply chain security and critical minerals goals.” MAC said it will carefully analyze the court’s opinion before pro-

Canada’s Supreme Court. ADOBE STOCK

viding constructive advice. The federal government said on the same day that it accepted the ruling. Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault and Justice Minister and Attorney General of Canada Arif Virani said in a joint statement the government planned to quickly improve the legislation through Parliament. “Our immediate priority will be to provide guidance to our many stakeholders and Indigenous partners to ensure as much predictability as possible for projects affected by this opinion,” the minister said. “We understand the importance of timeliness in determining a path forward. The government wants to ensure clarity and certainty for investment in the projects this country needs.” According to the government, the Act allows each province and territory to make separate decisions based on their areas of jurisdiction, supporting the federal government’s ‘one project, one assessment’ objective. Currently, 23 projects are undergoing the federal impact assessment process under the IAA, with eight final decisions already made, allowing those projects to proceed. While the court was split on designated projects, it unanimously affirmed the IAA’s validity concerning projects carried out or financed by federal authorities on federal lands or outside Canada. Majority opinion Chief Justice Richard Wagner laid out the reasons for the majority opinion, saying the ‘designated projects’ scheme exceeded the bounds of federal jurisdiction for two main reasons. “First, the scheme is not directed at regulating ‘effects within federal jurisdiction,’ shifting the decision away from the acceptability of adverse federal effects,” he wrote. “Second, the IAA’s definition of ‘effects within federal jurisdiction’ is itself over-broad, going far beyond the limits of federal jurisdiction in the Constitution.” In the majority’s view, the IAA failed to tailor its regulations to the aspects of projects falling within exclusive federal jurisdiction, treating all “designated projects” similarly, regardless of Parliament’s jurisdiction over them. They also argued that the IAA’s broad scope of “effects within federal jurisdiction” allowed the federal government to deny projects

based solely on their greenhouse gas emissions, extending beyond its scope of its “peace, order, and good government” power as well as others outlined in the Constitution. In a dissenting opinion, Justice Andromache Karakatsanis argued that the IAA establishes an environmental assessment process that

evaluates the effects of major projects on issues within federal jurisdiction. “Instances of government action that exceed statutory authority, federal jurisdiction, or both could be challenged on judicial review in future cases,” he wrote. While the majority’s ruling will fundamentally reshape federal assessment and decision-making over major projects, it emphasizes that federal decision-making must consider only factors within federal legislative jurisdiction rather than broad policy-based considerations. The judgment also casts doubt on the government’s plans for a cap on oil and gas emissions and a clean electricity standard, suggesting that these initiatives may exceed federal jurisdiction and erode the division of powers under the Constitution, Karakatsanis wrote. Legal analysis While the reference decision does not technically strike down the leg-

islation, it clearly indicates from Canada’s highest court that the IAA and its regulations need significant revision to align with Canada’s constitutional framework, law firm Bennett Jones said in an Oct. 16 legal note. It also said the majority decision sent a strong message that environmental protection must respect the constitutional division of powers. “The opinion that the IAA and regulations are unconstitutional also confirms that primary jurisdiction over non-renewable natural resources rests with the provinces,” the firm wrote. An analysis by Osler, which represented the Business Council of Alberta in the case, noted the decision means that federal decision-making regarding assessments and approving projects located entirely within a province should be based solely on factors within federal legislative jurisdiction. “Consequently, any amended IAA continued on P44 >

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indepth [CONTINUED FROM P9]

BC Supreme Court rules Mineral Tenure Act offside with duty to consult INDIGENOUS BY HENRY LAZENBY

irst Nations leaders praised the British Columbia Supreme Court’s Sept. 26 ruling that the province must consult with Indigenous groups before granting mineral claims, upholding the Crown’s duty to consult. The province’s miners welcomed the ruling too, seeing it as an opportunity to modernize the Mineral Tenure Act. Importantly, the ruling protected existing claims. The court found that the way B.C.’s Chief Gold Commissioner has implemented the mineral claims process doesn’t meet the Crown’s duty to consult with Indigenous groups. It gave the provincial government 18 months to consult with Indigenous groups and the minerals industry to modernize the system in a way that integrates the duty to consult. The province has discretion in how it does so. The court recognized that the province could change the manner in which the act is implemented by the Chief Gold Commissioner or change the legislation. The current system automatically lets B.C. award mineral claims to miners through an online portal. The B.C. Gold Commissioner oversees the administration and regulation of mineral and placer mining claims, ensures compliance with relevant legislation, and manages disputes related to mining rights in the province. Critics outside of the mining sector have long challenged this system because it allows for the automatic registration of mineral claims without consulting First Nations. The

| Judge calls BC view on feasibility of early consultation ‘simply wrong’

“There is an opportunity for a more inclusive process that provides shared benefit as we unlock the minerals... necessary for a low-carbon future.” KEERIT JUTLA, President and CEO, Association for Mineral Exploration

industry has argued that prior consultation would negate prospectors’ intellectual property by giving notice that they expect to find mineralization in a given area before they’re able to register a claim. The Gitxaała Nation and Ehattesaht First Nation initiated the case, heard in April and May. They aimed to overturn several mineral claims the province sanctioned on Lax k’naga dzol (Banks Island) in Gitxaała territory, near Prince Rupert. These claims were granted without any notification, consultation or consent of the Gitxaała Nation. In his 148-page ruling, Justice Alan Ross rejected the Chief Gold Commissioner’s argument that it wasn’t feasible to consult Indigenous communities before granting min-

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eral rights as “simply wrong.” He declared that the existing online system, which doesn’t include a consultation framework, violates the Crown’s constitutional obligations. The Gitxaała First Nation said the decision supports its views on the act. “The ruling confirms our long-standing position: B.C. must engage with Gitxaała and other Indigenous communities before granting mineral claims in our territories,” Gitxaała Chief Councillor Linda Innes said in a statement. “The province must quickly correct its current approach, which dismisses our rights without consultation or consent.” Current claims unchanged Innes was disappointed, however, that the decision doesn’t affect existing mineral claims. “Although the Court suspended its declaration for 18 months,

B.C.’s mineral tenure system needs immediate revision. We find it disappointing that the Court didn’t revoke the mineral claims we challenged, leaving our territory at risk for further mineral claims without adequate consultation.” This verdict marks the first extensive legal review of B.C.’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (commonly referred to as DRIPA), which was passed in late 2019. While the court didn’t comment on aligning the B.C. claim system with the UN Declaration adopted in 2007 (UNDRIP), it emphasized DRIPA’s mandate to collaborate with Indigenous groups to align provincial laws with UNDRIP. “We are concerned about the Court’s mild treatment of DRIPA in its decision, but this ruling unmistakably changes the status quo,” said Gitxaała Sm’ooygit Nees Hiwaas (Matthew Hill) in a statement. “Future reforms to B.C.’s

mineral tenure system must align with UNDRIP — there’s no turning back.” The B.C.-based Association for Mineral Exploration welcomed the ruling for allowing the modernization of the Mineral Tenure Act while the mineral industry and Indigenous partners have clarity through 2024. President and CEO Keerit Jutla emphasized in a statement the association’s goal “to ensure the mineral claim staking process remains competitive and efficient while respectful of the rights of Indigenous Peoples.” Jutla also noted the Supreme Court’s decision not to order an injunction of the online registry used to grant mineral tenure rights and no change to the staking process for the next 18 months. “We know there is an opportunity for a more inclusive process that provides shared benefit as we unlock the minerals and metals necessary for a low-carbon future.” TNM

BC court ruling on consultation and claim-staking ‘only decision’ possible, says Indigenous adviser by Blair McBride In the wake of a landmark court case that will force a revamp of British Columbia’s claim-staking regime, the mining industry and Indigenous groups say a fair accommodation of both their interests is possible. Allen Edzerza, a member of the Elders Council of the Tahltan Nation in northwestern B.C. told The Northern Miner the Sept. 26 court ruling was expected because it affirmed what previous cases on Indigenous land title had recognized. “In my view, it was the only decision they could come up with,” he said. “We have un-surrendered title and rights in British Columbia…The issuance of legal interest in lands and resources impacts the title, and as the court has pointed out mining exploration does impact title and offers First Nations the opportunity to benefit from their lands.” Edzerza, who is a member of the B.C. First Nations Energy and Mining Council, has worked as an adviser and negotiator with the B.C. and Yukon governments on Indigenous mineral rights, and also is the founder of junior explorer Cheona Metals. He compared the significance of the September decision with other Supreme Court cases going back 50 years, such as Calder in 1973, Delgamuukw in 1997 and Haida in 2004. Those cases found that Aboriginal title exists as a legal right, that title can’t be extinguished by the provinces and that the Crown has a duty to consult with Indigenous groups if their title faces potential infringement. “So the courts have been saying Aboriginal people were here when the Europeans came and were never conquered,” he said. ‘Harmful’ and outdated Act Throughout the Mineral Tenure Act (MTA) modernization process, Edzerza will be paying close attention to how the province approaches its free entry system of registering mineral claims. He calls that system “harmful” to Aboriginal title. “The Mineral Tenure Act basically was developed during the gold rush era in the late 1800s and early 1900s,” he said. “The legislation has never been updated to reflect the court decisions I talked about… I find that dishonourable that the government hasn’t aligned those laws with those court decisions or with the [UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples] UNDRIP.” However, on the industry side of the issue, consulting with third parties before staking claims risks proponents losing their intellectual property before the claim is secure, as former AME president and CEO Kendra Johnston explained at the AME Roundup last January. “Prospectors and miners in Canada have been saying that forever,” Edzerza countered. At the same time, he believes the act can be modernized so that most interests of both the mining and

Allen Edzerza. APPLE INC.

Indigenous communities are considered. “The province and First Nations could determine what lands are open for staking, much like the oil and gas tenure system or the registration of a mineral claim grants the right to explore and does not grant a legal interest in the lands or resources,” he said. Seeking win-win balance The AME, over the next 18 months, hopes the consultation process for modernizing the MTA benefits all sides and not at the expense of the industry or a strong investment climate. President and CEO Keerit Jutla said the roadmap of the modernization is up to the province, but the basics must include a strong industry and Indigenous participation. “One thing we advocate is engaging early and engaging often with Indigenous peoples and those Indigenous groups in which these exploration activities are occurring on traditional lands,” he said. “One way of reconciling or seeking to build a bridge is developing strong, early mutually beneficial relationships with some of these nations and some of these mineral exploration proponents.” Jutla said he looks forward discussing the nature and depth of that engagement with Indigenous peoples over the next year and a half. A spokesperson for B.C.’s Ministry of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation said in an emailed response to questions about its strategy and timeline that it shares the priority of First Nations in modernizing the act in line with UNDRIP. The government, it said, is committed to modernization in consultation and cooperation with title and rights holders, as well as with industry stakeholders. “The province of British Columbia is committed to ensuring that B.C. remains a world-leading jurisdiction in mining,” it said.

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Grid Metals reduces China risk for lithium project in Manitoba SITE VISIT

| Company aims to build Canada’s third lithium mine at Donner Lake

BY COLIN MCCLELLAND

Left: The True North mine in Manitoba Below: A map of Grid projects.

rid Metals (TSXV: GRDM; US-OTC: MSMGF) has got a plan B to start producing battery metals in case Ottawa torpedoes its leading option with China’s Sinomine Resources. Toronto-based Grid is in talks to spend $4.65 million for the idled True North gold mine held by 1911 Gold (TSXV: AUMB), Grid president and CEO Robin Dunbar said on a site visit in October. The mill’s 450,000-tonne annual capacity would handle ore from Grid’s Donner Lake hard rock lithium project in southeast Manitoba. Buying True North, which operated for decades as San Gold’s Rice Lake mine, is a backup for a deal Grid is negotiating with Sinomine’s Tanco mill. There’s concern after the federal government ordered Chinacontrolled companies including Sinomine to divest some holdings last year. “We would like to not be totally reliant on a deal with Tanco,” Dunbar said. “True North, it’s a little further away for trucking ore, but we would own that and it will be slightly larger.” Grid, with a stock market value of $19.3 million, wants to start building Canada’s third lithium mine next year at Donner Lake 180 km northeast of Winnipeg. It would fast-track 5-6% spodumene concentrate to market via Tanco’s mill by 2025. Sinomine has applied to quintuple the size of the mill to process 1 million tonnes of ore a year, which may turn the province into a lithium hub and attract a hydroxide plant to create battery-grade metal. Like others in the industry, Grid has pivoted away from other projects — nickel in its case — to take advantage of the increased interest in lithium to feed the green energy transition. But with further processing now still needed in China, the project highlights the predicament of the industry relying on the Asian giant at several stages, even right in Canada. “A key question is what is Tanco going to do to become Canadian,” said Dave Peck, Grid vice-president of exploration and new development. “They’re going to have to over time.” Hydroxide plant? With Donner Lake, the potential later development of Grid’s Falcon West lithium project 100 km east of Winnipeg, and a much larger proposed Tanco mill increasing spodumene concentrate production, Dunbar said Sinomine and maybe others are considering building a lithium hydroxide plant in Manitoba. “There’s a big margin in a hydroxide plant,” he said. “They’re looking at how to do that because they think there’ll be lots of concentrate producers but very few hydroxide producers.” That might nix the need for processing in China, but it would be years down the line and the Donner Lake project faces more immediate challenges. A scoping study released on Oct. 25 says preparing the True North site would cost $50 million, but there’s been no preliminary economic assessment or prefeasibility study.

GRID METALS

Left: Tanco VP exploration and development, Dave Peck, left; and CEO Robin Dunbar. COLIN MCCLELLAND

There’s concern over the federal government strategy that forced Sinomine to sell Vancouver-based Power Metals (TSXV: PWM) last year. There’s also the potential of new battery technology to disrupt the industry and the unknown

stance of a leftist NDP provincial government elected just last month. “The NDP has union support in the northern part of the province where there’s a lot of mining and there’s some big revenue producers for the government in the

Thompson nickel belt like Hudbay Minerals (TSX: HBM; NYSE: HBM),” Dunbar said. “But there’s also the other side of the NDP, which is the environmental lobby.” Wab Kinew, sworn in on Oct. 18, is Manitoba’s first Indigenous premier. “First Nations communities that might benefit tangibly from future development, jobs, skills training, opportunities and economic progress will be putting some pressure on the new government to support these things,” Peck said. Good relations Grid has a Donner Lake exploration agreement with the Sagkeeng First Nation, though it will need an impact benefit agreement to start production, Peck said. Relations

with provincial regulators are good and the company expects a mining permit within a year, he said. Toronto-based Li Equities Investments (formerly Lithium Royalty), which owns 15% of Grid, holds a quarter of the project. It hosts 6.8 million inferred tonnes grading 1.39% lithium oxide (Li2O), according to an initial resource estimate in July. It’s envisioned as a “modest-sized” open-pit operation to start, Grid says. The 612-sq.-km Falcon West lithium project has historical assays including 12.2 metres at 2.2% Li2O and 10.5 metres at 2% Li O. Grid expects to start its drilling there this year. Negotiations with Tanco, 35 km from Donner Lake, began a year ago and a final agreement is still to be signed, Dunbar said. The plan envisions splitting profit 50/50 on sales of 5-6% spodumene concentrate from 200,000 tonnes a year of Donner Lake material. Concentrate output would be around 40,000 2

Grid continued on P44 >

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American Eagle Gold flying high on NAK copper-gold discovery SITE VISIT BY HENRY LAZENBY

xplorer American Eagle Gold’s (TSXV: AE; US-OTC: AMEGF) NAK copper-gold discovery in British Columbia may be early stage, but the project has both investors and its own geologists excited. During a late September visit to the project, 80 km northwest of Smithers, project geologist Neil Prowse showed The Northern Miner core shack tables decked in freshly drilled core. “Look here and along all the way to here — visually, it looks like we’ve again intersected bornite and chalcopyrite — those high-grade copper ores most sought after by copper explorers,” Prowse said as he traced his finger along a bluegrey line of high-grade copper mineralization. While last year’s drilling highlighted significant depth potential and larger, albeit lower grade, near-surface mineralization than previously known, a different interpretation is now emerging. “Last season, by drilling deep, we discovered high-grade mineralization on the NAK property, transforming its reputation from a near-surface, lower-grade deposit to a potential high-grade mineralization hub,” Prowse said at the site, where a single drill was closing out the summer drilling program. Prowse is bullish about the summer’s 7,000-metre drilling campaign’s findings, showing the team is on the right track. They also got two shots in the arm from recent investments by a local copper major. Strong summer results The summer 2023 drilling expanded on the 2022 program with the eastwest step-out drilling, giving the team a glimpse of the potential true scale of the NAK deposit. The geologist says the project showcases signs of a vast system. Previous shallow drills identified a near-surface copper-gold system spanning more than 2.3 sq. km. On Sept. 19, the company reported impressive results from hole NAK23-11, which showed an intersection of 102 metres grading at 1.04% copper equivalent from 317 metres depth within a broader 473-metre intercept grading 0.62% copper equivalent. On Sept. 14, the company reported that hole NAK23-09 (known as the ‘Teck Hole’) uncovered a new mineralized zone 650 metres east of the previous drilling areas, intersecting 117 metres of 0.4% copper equivalent from 16 metres depth and opening up further discovery potential for the project. According to company president and CEO Anthony Moreau, the Teck hole drew excitement because it is located at a similar distance from the known porphyry stock as the area where American Eagle drilled in 2022, and it lies within the high chargeability halo and on the fringes of the magnetic high. Geophysically speaking, its characteristics mirror those of the western step-out drill hole NAK23-08. “In essence, the Teck hole represents an exceptional geophysical target with the capability to intro-

| Drilling at NAK hints at vast porphyry system

duce significant scale to the project,” Moreau said. And scale is what the industry wants. Industry insiders often comment that B.C.’s new porphyry discoveries tend to lack scale despite the province hosting world-class porphyry copper mines such as Teck Resources’ (TSX: TECK.A/ TECK.B; NYSE: TECK) Highland Valley mine near Merritt. These results build on the Aug. 9 release of hole NAK23-08, which showed 776 metres at 0.5% copper equivalent. This hole revealed that the northern trending mineralized zone is broad and extends significantly to the west from surface to depth. Moreau said the hole highlighted the project’s potential, adding that they’ve just started understanding how mineralization behaves at depth. American Eagle also reported 900 metres of 0.5% copper-equivalent from 25 metres depth in the North Copper Zone in hole NAK23-12 on Oct. 17. The intercept, which included 540 metres at 0.61% copper-equivalent from 344 metres, is the “most consistently mineralized interval over such a

Trays of drill core at American Eagle Gold’s NAK project in northwestern B.C. AMERICAN EAGLE

American Eagle Gold project geologist Neil Prowse. HENRY LAZENBY

Perhaps most telling of the company’s discovery momentum is the endorsement from Teck.

wide length,” the company said. It ended in high-grade mineralization of 1% copper-equivalent and remains open in all directions. The NAK deposit is in the Stikine Island Arc Terrane of B.C. and linked to the Eocene-aged Babine Intrusive Suite, which also hosts several other copper-gold deposits such as Bell (from where hydropower is available), Granisle, Morrison, Hearne Hill and Dorothy/Duke copper-gold deposits. Some of the NAK project’s core samples showcase rich mineralization, featuring elements like bornite, which holds 60% copper by weight, and hypogene chalcoc-

ite, with an impressive 80% copper content. “These samples hint at a robust porphyry system, making us optimistic about the project’s future,” Prowse added. Perhaps most telling of the company’s discovery momentum is the endorsement from Teck, which, unusually for its business strategy, chose to invest in American Eagle twice in two months this summer to take a 19% stake in the company. “Having this investment from Teck actually supports us and gives us a lot more credibility than if we were just doing it on our own,” Moreau said. Despite coming off its recent high at 33.5¢ per share, just before press time in Toronto at 22¢, American Eagle traded 633% above its year-earlier level, having touched 2¢ on the way up. It has a market capitalization of $21.6 million. Summer momentum During The Northern Miner’s tour of NAK in late September, the, a multi-use Babine camp, which is shared by various forestry and mining teams was empty. But at the back of the camp in the core shack, the small geology team under

ITL Diamond Drilling operators Kyle Sochaski and Ryan Stabner were eager to demonstrate part of the drilling process. HENRY LAZENBY

Prowse’s watchful eye quietly carried on with the business of sending samples out to the assay laboratory. Prowse said the company was preparing to drill the last holes of the season before it would withdraw from the site, despite the team being able to work the NAK property year-round. “We want to review all the data we’ve gathered this season and develop high confidence that we’ll continue to hit high-grade sulphides at depth with each new hole when we return next year,” Prowse said. So far, the company has been releasing a steady news flow of drill results this summer as it expands the previously known margins of the deposit. Prowse said each release of assay results represents a considered step towards tracing the margins of an underexplored porphyry intrusion. On the social engagement front, the company signed an expanded five-year exploration agreement with the Babine Lake Nation. Confirming scalability From Babine camp, the visit then went about 60 km up the Jinx forest

service road to the active drill rig on site, where ITL Diamond Drilling operators Kyle Sochaski and Ryan Stabner were eager to demonstrate part of the drilling process. About 100 metres away, another person cleared space in the scrub for the last drill pad of the season. Prowse said the company will study and interpret the summer program’s drill results in the winter months before deciding on its 2024 priority targets. Moreau anticipates at least one more year of detailed drilling before calculating an initial resource. Delineating a copper-gold discovery at NAK has become a personal goal for the CEO. “My uncle, the late Gary Artmont, who was part of the team that mapped and discovered the Grasberg copper-gold mine in Indonesia — one of the world’s most profitable mines — convinced me to take on the project,” he said in a separate interview. “He (Gary) once commented that NAK was the second-best geophysical target he had ever seen in his career. Take it with a grain of salt, and let our results speak for themselves.” TNM

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Friedland mocks lithium but touts battery tech CANADIAN MINING SYMPOSIUM

| Ivanhoe founder vows to kill hydroxide, carbonate demand with new process

BY COLIN MCCLELLAND

obert Friedland, billionaire founder and executive cochair of Ivanhoe Mines (TSX: IVN), criticized lithium mining at a London conference, ridiculed the West’s green energy transition and urged prayer to end the IsraelHamas war. Researchers at Ivanhoe-backed start-up Pure Lithium in Boston are going from lithium brine to lithium metal in a step that could radically transform the electric vehicle battery market valued at around US$50 billion a year, Friedland told The Northern Miner’s Canadian Mining Symposium on Oct. 13. “We’re going to kill this lithium hydroxide and carbonate business,” he told the closing keynote session. “The current generation of batteries is going to be toast. It’s good for another three to four years,” he said. “They’re not going to be made out of the crap that’s being promoted by Canadian junior mining companies. I would short every lithium company.” Friedland, who made his first fortune from the Voisey’s Bay nickel project in Newfoundland in the 1990s, says Pure Lithium boasts Donald Sadoway, an emeritus professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Stanley Whittingham, the 2019 Nobel lau-

Northern Miner Group president Anthony Vaccaro, left, speaks with Ivanhoe Mines executive co-chair Robert Friedland at CMS. THE NORTHERN MINER

reate for chemistry who’s known as the father of the lithium-ion battery. They’re cooperating on a new type of battery made from lowgrade brine that is inexpensive to manufacture and can handle 500 cycles of charging without losing capacity, the financier said. “Once you have lithium metal on one side of the battery, you don’t need nickel, cobalt or graphite,” Friedland said. “All you guys are dead. Nickel, cobalt, graphite – out the window. You can use iron phosphate which is common as chips and that’s what you want, a battery to be made out of common material.” Dylan and Xiaoping Known for his wide-ranging chats and sometimes cranky demeanour, Friedland sat with The Northern

Miner Group’s president, Anthony Vaccaro, for a rap or rant instead of a speech, quoting Bob Dylan and Deng Xiaoping along the way. He mentioned how windmills kill eagles, the electrical demands of Google searches and a US$20trillion price tag to upgrade the grid. The world must have copper but does it really need gold? He said the Israel-Hamas conflict could easily escalate. “This is the most dangerous moment we’ve seen in our lifetime,” said Friedland, who’s 73 and lived through the Cuban missile crisis in 1962. “The situation that we see in the Middle East today is definitely enough to make you want to go home and pray.” Another of his targets was the West’s focus on new energy. Ludicrous, he said, when the

world’s most populous countries, India and China, declared they won’t reach net-zero carbon emissions until 2060 or 2070. And that today people still need fossil fuels for food, shelter and even the plastic in electric cars. Plus, there won’t be enough nickel to supply all the batteries needed even as cars like Teslas are built using an electrical grid that depends on coal, he said. “We can’t use expensive and rare materials like nickel just because there isn’t enough of it,” he said. “The metal doesn’t exist, not in a way that’s green or sustainable. It’s like trying to get the contents of the Hoover Dam through a garden hose.” Metal factions In the United States, Friedland sees two tribes. One wants green metals to ease global warming. The other, with an eye on wars in Ukraine and Israel, wants metals to replenish armouries of copper shells and make tanks electric so they’re less visible to heat-seeking missiles. “Can you imagine how much nickel we need for those batteries?” he said. “This huge clash is coming between the army, navy and air force wanting nickel, copper, cobalt, platinum, vanadium, rhodium, scandium — you name it — and the greening of the world economy. We’re heading for a train

wreck here and the miners have this unbelievable burden that the whole thing depends on the miners.” At times, Friedland praised China for its communal identity and a stronger supply chain than the U.S. where “the pump won’t work because the vandals took the handle,” he said, referencing Dylan. Elsewhere, he criticized the Asian country, whose Zijin Mining owns with Ivanhoe the giant Kamoa-Kakula copper mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo, for “nuking” Indonesia to mine nickel. Companies are selling supplies of metals to cope with inflation and high interest rates while oil at US$150 a barrel could put Donald Trump back in the White House, he said. The world needs better trade relations to cut protectionism, and even mines in sensitive places like Northern Dynasty Minerals’ (TSX: NDM; NYSE: NAK) Pebble copper project in Alaska could be developed one day, but overall mining needs a better image. “We need to communicate the centrality and importance of mining to anything humanity wants to achieve on the good side,” Friedland said. “We need to bring women into that enterprise, to understand it and lead it in a way that we have a chance to get to the mass media and humanize it as an activity.” TNM

Catherine McLeod-Seltzer blazes a trail from the board room to the drill bit CANADIAN MINING SYMPOSIUM

| ‘So much has changed’ Kinross independent chair says

BY HENRY LAZENBY

mong the few women in mining in her early years in the industry, Catherine McLeod-Seltzer often found herself in rooms full of grey-haired men. Yet, she has shattered glass ceilings in the industry, leaving an indelible mark on the global mining landscape. As the independent chair of Kinross Gold (TSX: K, NYSE: KGC), one of the world’s long-lived gold majors, her story recounts perseverance, vision, and a passion for geology and exploration, The Northern Miner’s Canadian Mining Symposium heard Oct. 13 in London. “Back in 1985, around the beginning of my career, women were not allowed on the floor of the Vancouver Stock Exchange. So much has changed since then,” she told TNM’s editor-in-chief, Alisha Hiyate, during a keynote fireside chat. McLeod-Seltzer has faced her fair share of challenges at Kinross, from navigating the complexities of the COVID-19 pandemic to geopolitical crises like Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The latter prompted Kinross to pull out of Russia amid international sanctions, costing it about 350,000 oz. of gold produc-

Northern Miner editor-in-chief Alisha Hiyate, left, speaks with Kinross Gold chair Catherine McLeod-Seltzer at CMS in London. THE NORTHERN MINER

tion in 2022. Yet, under her leadership, the company has weathered these storms and found growth opportunities, as seen in the $1.8-billion acquisition of Great Bear Gold’s Dixie project in Ontario last year, where Kinross released an initial resource in February and is working on a preliminary economic assessment for mid-2024. The company sees the project as an analogue for the decades-operating Hemlo mine, which has so far churned out more than 21 million oz. of gold.

ESG passion McLeod-Seltzer also discussed how mining companies’ ESG programs are much more than a corporate buzzword, resulting in real improvements in communities. With Bear Creek Mining (TSXV: BCM), which she co-founded and chairs, McLeodSeltzer discussed how the company has helped increase local incomes completely unrelated to mining. Bear Creek, which struck silver in the southern Peruvian Andes, worked with local women to improve the quality of the alpaca

wool they produced and helped them build relationships directly with buyers — cutting out the middlemen and more than tripling their revenues. And because of the company’s social program, local health and sanitation outcomes improved. She said this clearly demonstrated that mining was not just about extracting resources but also about adding tangible social value. McLeod-Seltzer believes in the noticeable impact ESG can have on the ground. “It’s an exemplification of how the mining industry, often seen through skeptical eyes, can genuinely transform lives.” Today, she is a staunch advocate for diversity in gender, race and skill sets. Her straightforward belief is that a diverse boardroom leads to better ideas essential for growth and innovation. “I’ve been a bit of a trailblazer, but I feel like I’m not alone on the trail. There are so many talented women in the industry today,” she notes. Value via the drill bit McLeod-Seltzer believes the industry’s ultimate alchemy of value creation lies in exploration. Drawing from her career successes, she emphasized that the significant leaps in asset valuation

come from discovery, referencing instances where mere months of drilling led to exponential share value growth. In 1999, McLeod-Seltzer shared The Northern Miner’s Mining Person of the Year award — which was then still called “Mining Man of the Year” — with her business partner David Lowell, for their success in building Arequipa Minerals. The company discovered and sold its Pierina deposit in Peru to Barrick Gold (TSX: ABX; NYSE: GOLD) for $1.1 billion in 1996. Such instances underline her conviction that while subsequent stages, like metallurgical studies and technical evaluations, certainly add worth, they primarily reinforce and underpin the value initially unearthed by the explorer’s drill bit. As someone with long experience in the industry, McLeodSeltzer is optimistic about gold’s future. Drawing parallels with the economic conditions of the 1970s, she believes that the precious metal remains an attractive haven, especially amidst current global economic uncertainties. “I think there’s potential for something to break,” she said. “And when we see that happen, that’s where gold shines.” TNM

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Giustra sees gold juniors like ‘a kid in a candy store’ CANADIAN MINING SYMPOSIUM

| Gold finders and developers ‘overlooked by generalist investors’

BY HENRY LAZENBY

estern investors have been “asleep at the wheel” with seizing on investments in the exploration and junior gold sector, entrepreneur and philanthropist Frank Giustra told The Northern Miner’s Canadian Mining Symposium on Oct. 12 in London. In an interview with TNM’s Editor-in-Chief, Alisha Hiyate, Giustra lamented the West’s fixation on other sectors, making mining pale in an investment size comparison. “We’re focused on other things like tech stocks and crypto… but there’s incredible value out there in gold mining,” he said. Coupled with the phenomenon are concerns for junior mining companies struggling with access to financing, with the broader market showing little interest in the mining sector. “Even gold mining companies and developers, despite having value, are overlooked by generalist investors,” according to Giustra, who is also the CEO of Fiore Group. Yet, despite the challenges, Giustra’s tone took an optimistic turn when discussing the cyclical nature of the gold market, describing present opportunities as akin to being “a kid in a candy store.”

Northern Miner editor-in-chief Alisha Hiyate, left, speaks with Fiore Group CEO Frank Giustra. THE NORTHERN MINER

For those who are currently able to invest and are interested in the sector, Giustra sees a playground of possibilities. He highlighted the value waiting for astute and patient investors. Giustra noted many companies (which he refrained from naming) show healthy profit margins, strong cash flows, and promising mine lives. Yet, the market largely overlooks them. The financier has recently become interested in early-stage gold exploration, investing in Blackwolf Copper & Gold (TSXV: BWCG), which has properties in Alaska and B.C. He’s also backing West Red

Lake Gold Mines (TSXV: WRLG; US-OTC: WRLGF), which is hoping to revive the recently shuttered Madsen gold mine in northern Ontario’s storied Red Lake mining camp. Global reset Drawing from decades of experience in the financial sector, Giustra shared his insights on the shifting dynamics of the global economy and the potential dominance of gold as a pivotal asset in that economy. He emphasized how current geopolitical trends may affect the

very fabric of the world’s monetary system. “There’s a shift that’s been going on from a U.S.-centric system to a multi-polar world,” Giustra said, implying significant economic consequences in the pipeline. At the heart of this shift, he believes, is the ‘de-dollarization’ phenomenon and the potential for the U.S. dollar to lose its esteemed reserve currency status. One of the cornerstones of Giustra’s argument is the increasing accumulation of gold by countries like China and Russia. “The U.S. had historically revalued gold, notably in 1933 and 1971, and we’re witnessing a similar scenario unfolding now,” he said. Giustra pointed to the relentless gold purchases by Eastern nations, particularly stressing China’s proactive role: “It’s in the East that people are buying the gold and investing in gold mines.” Giustra catapulted to mining fame by running prominent mining finance house Yorkton Securities before helping to build multiple gold producers, including Wheaton River Minerals, which later became Goldcorp and Endeavour Mining (TSX: EDV). Philanthropist at work Apart from his renowned business acumen, Giustra’s philanthropic

endeavours took centre stage. His work encompasses everything from poverty alleviation to refugee resettlement. His approach is unique: “For me, it’s always looking for a very difficult, complex problem and trying to figure out a new model that will address that problem or at least mitigate it.” Perhaps the most striking takeaway from the interview was Giustra’s views on wealth disparities. He asserted, “The wealth gap between the rich and poor is getting very, very wide, and it’s causing issues. I don’t think it’s healthy that you have multi, multi billionaires and then the rest.” He urged a more egalitarian approach to wealth, emphasizing the societal responsibilities of the ultra-wealthy and the impossibility of actually spending vast amounts of cash. “Pretend you have a billion dollars. and see how much you can spend with that billion. And you won’t get very far, you’ll still have a lot left over,” he said, referencing the 1980s movie Brewster’s Millions. “Good for you for making billions of dollars. Live a great life and make sure your children, your grandchildren, are taken care of. But for God’s sake, you have a bunch there that should be used as Andrew Carnegie once said, for the betterment of society. That’s my belief.” TNM

State should ‘stay out of the way,’ Garofalo says CANADIAN MINING SYMPOSIUM

BY BLAIR MCBRIDE

nvestors must back junior explorers to reverse the global trend of falling gold production while governments should give the industry leeway, Gold Royalty (NYSE: GROY) CEO David Garofalo says. The Gold Royalty chairman and CEO, who is also co-chair of GoldMining (TSX: GOLD; NYSE: GLDG) sat down with The Northern Miner’s podcast host Adrian Pocobelli on Oct. 13 during the second day of TNM’s Canadian Mining Symposium in London. In a wide-ranging conversation, Garofalo shared insights from his more than 30 years of working in the industry. He analyzed issues including the exploration landscape, the role of government in mining and how better management of water can benefit the industry and the environment. Garofalo, who also led Goldcorp from 2016 to 2019, claims that gold reserves in the ground among major producers are down by 40% since 2012, leading to more consolidations and ultimately the industry eating itself. “The industry just simply isn’t able to produce eight to 10 million oz. discoveries every year that each of those companies require,” he said. “They’re having to cannibalize it up, basically play Pacman, but it’s been a zero-sum game for the industry for a very long period of time.” In the late 1990s, Barrick Gold

| Gold veteran urges focus on water management as key to social licence shrugged at the alleged promise of technology as a paradigm-shift for mining, saying the only technological revolution he has seen in his tenure is heap leaching in the 1990s.

(TSX: ABX; NYSE: GOLD) and Newmont (NYSE: NEM; TSX: NGT) were struggling to maintain 5 to 6 million oz. of production, Garofalo said, and they’re still wrestling to attain what he called a suboptimal production rate. Speaking about what the Canadian government can do to spur healthy exploration, Garofalo said bluntly that it should “stay out of the way.” The long lead times for mine development, unclear regulations and overlapping government jurisdictions all drive away investment, he said. Court ruling Garofalo noted the Supreme Court of Canada ruled on Oct. 13 that the federal Impact Assessment Act is unconstitutional. The law, enacted in 2019 handles federal regulations on environmental and social impacts of natural resource projects. “They said they really don’t have the jurisdiction to do what they’re doing at the federal level. It’s a provincial jurisdictional matter. Hallelujah,” Garofalo said. “I hope it actually takes hold and that we have a streamlined one level of government to deal with because it’s complex enough dealing with the multiple layers of social engagement.” And juniors should be allowed to do what they do best: grassroots exploration, which he said he did while at Hudbay Minerals’ (TSX: HBM; NYSE: HBM) and at Goldcorp.

TNM podcast host Adrian Pocobelli, left, speaks with Gold Royalty CEO David Garofalo. THE NORTHERN MINER

“We constantly rotated that capital and put it to work with juniors that had good stories in good districts where we thought we had tuck-in potential. And that will allow the juniors to start to replenish the pool,” he said. While he noted that the flowthrough stock structure in Canada is effective at incentivizing grassroots exploration, it doesn’t work as well if there isn’t a sufficiently robust capital market. Nationalism His conversation with Pocobelli then segued into the resource nationalism associated with the

response to Glencore’s (LSE: GLEN) US$8.2-billion offer for Teck Resources (TSX: TECK.A/ TECK.B; NYSE: TECK) this year. Garofalo simply responded that it’s an “argument of convenience to wrap yourself in the Canadian flag,” saying that companies will come and go in a country like Canada with such a strong mining industry. “[It’s] like a very deeply rooted bush,” he said. “You trim the top off, it grows back, the roots are too deep. I can’t think of any other industry where we export talent, where the rest of the world looks to us for leadership.” The Gold Royalty boss likewise

Crucial water Instead, he holds more hope in smart water management for the sake of better mine development, communities and the environment. Water-intensive mines, he said, risk sparking friction with rural communities especially ones where water is scarce. And tailings dam failures, while rare, are catastrophic for people, the environment and the industry’s image. He recalled, after years in the industry when the concept of recycling water was taken less seriously, realizing the high social costs in neglecting the value of water, and launched the Zero Water initiative at Goldcorp. “I figured if we measure it, we’ll manage it. We had less than 50% recycling. By the time I left, in 2019, we were up to about 80% recycling of our water,” he said. That progress is encouraging, but the industry still isn’t where it needs to be, which is at 100% recycling of water, Garofalo said. “We need to be seen as effective water stewards. I guarantee you that will pave the way to getting development up and running much more quickly, getting the permitting, getting the social licence to operate.” TNM

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Ex-Teck CEO Lindsay supports coal unit sale to boost stock CANADIAN MINING SYMPOSIUM

BY COLIN MCCLELLAND

on Lindsay, who led Teck Resources (TSX: TECK.A/ TECK.B; NYSE: TECK) for 17 years, backed the company’s case behind selling coal assets to recoup billions in valuation. It would help Teck’s Quebrada Blanca 2 open-pit mine in northern Chile, which is undervalued by more than half, Lindsay told The Northern Miner’s Canadian Mining Symposium in London on Oct. 12. The mine could be valued at seven times earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) if owned by a copper-specific competitor such as Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE: FCX) compared with three times EBITDA as it sits in Teck’s portfolio, he said. “You’re literally leaving billions and billions of market value on the table if you kept the company in that structure,” said Lindsay, who left Teck’s CEO post in May. “It became imperative to split the coal from metals.” The coal unit spinoff should be completed by year-end, the company said in early October. It’s weighing a US$8.2 billion offer

| Resource nationalism bad, persistence good, veteran tells conference

from Glencore (LSE: GLEN) and interest from India’s JSW Steel (NYSE: JSTL) that may be snagged on sour Ottawa-New Delhi politics, as well as attention from FrancoNevada (TSX: FNV; NYSE: FNV) founder Pierre Lassonde. The effort hasn’t been straightforward after Teck shareholders said they would reject an initial separation plan proposed in February and the company spurned two offers from Glencore to buy the entire company. Lindsay, who is now chairman of Manulife, talked up the metallurgical coal business, said nationalism has little place in mining and was waiting to see more government action on critical minerals. Also, he championed persistence, dreams and opportunity to thrive in the industry. The long-term coking coal price is forecast to increase because major suppliers, such as BHP (NYSE: BHP; LSE: BHP; ASX: BHP), Anglo American (LSE: AAL) and Glencore, face headwinds of higher royalties and declining resources while steel demand grows, Lindsay said. All the while, investment funds holding some US$60 trillion skirt coal because of its polluting rep-

Former Teck CEO Don Lindsay speaks at CMS. THE NORTHERN MINER

utation despite demand for it in making steel that’s vital for decarbonization. Teck’s coal business generated US$35 billion in EBITDA since it began in 2008, Lindsay said. “It’s only going to get better because that same investment limitation as well as for institutions

mean there’s less capital available, so steelmaking coal supply is going to go down,” he said. “The global population is still growing, demand for steel is going up and it’s still going to be blast furnaces, particularly in China. So that business is looking incredibly valuable.”

Flag-waving The Canadian nationalism that greeted Switzerland-based Glencore’s bid for Teck has little place, he said, when mining is global and Glencore employs more Canadians than Teck. It may be the country’s largest diversified miner, but most of its assets are overseas except for coal. If Canada restricted ownership, we should wonder how other countries would treat Canadian companies like Teck and Barrick Gold (TSX: ABX; NYSE: GOLD), Lindsay said. The industry is going through faster cycles of deeper depths and higher heights than it has, requiring endurance and steady decision-making to pounce when circumstances permit, he said. The roughly US$7.8 billion Quebrada Blanca 2 took 15 years to develop and the project should have been acquired by Xstrata (now part of Glencore) and Anglo American, he said. “We were able to sneak in there,” Lindsay said. “We didn’t know it was going to become 8 billion or 10 billion tonnes, one of the largest resources in the world, but that’s like the mining industry, and particularly exploration. It’s all about a licence to dream, right?” TNM

How to solve ‘everyone needs us but no one likes us’ CANADIAN MINING SYMPOSIUM

| TMX panel on ESG discusses difficult choices to boost financing

BY COLIN MCCLELLAND

he industry must confront its dark past of disasters to attract new investors and offer project stakes to local towns to improve environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. Those were some of the recommendations flowing from a panel on ESG sponsored by TMX Group at The Northern Miner’s Canadian Mining Symposium on, Oct. 12-13 in London. The main events affecting the general public’s attitude to mining are tailings disasters, human rights abuses, harassment and artisanal mining conflicts, panelist Kevin D’Souza, chief sustainability officer at Denver-based Resource Capital Funds, told the opening day session. “We’re in an industry that’s made a lot of mistakes,” D’Souza said. “We have to own that. We’ve got to talk about it and say here’s what we’re doing about it. If we keep avoiding that conversation, we’re not going to attract new investments.” The difficulty of financing projects is a leading concern among juniors as commodities such as gold outperform the shares of companies that dig it up. Some project developers view ESG as a way to improve the mining industry’s negative image and draw investors away from strong sectors such as technology stocks. The panelists said successful ESG needs to be embedded in corporate culture from the top, seek achievements instead of ratings, be applied to local circumstances without a

Graham Dallas, TMX Group, left, moderates an ESG panel with Antti Grönlund, Appian Capital Advisory, Jonathan Cordero, Eurasian Resources Group and Kevin D’Souza, Resource Capital Funds. THE NORTHERN MINER

cookie cutter, avoid greenwashing and go beyond building schools and hospitals to help communities. “The idea of having equity with Indigenous groups is going to happen at some point, probably in British Columbia first,” D’Souza said. “That’s going to move the needle.” Social integration The term social licence is outdated, Antti Grönlund, managing director of London-based Appian Capital Advisory, said on the panel. In practice it becomes merely community toleration of a project when it should be about greater social integration and listening to opinions before invoking a plan, he said.

Improving the industry’s image requires convincing the public that pro-climate is pro-mining, said panelist Jonathan Cordero, head of corporate development at Eurasian Resources Group. It has projects in Kazakhstan, Brazil and a string of central African countries. “The best projects in the world are in what we believe are difficult jurisdictions like Congo, Zambia and Zimbabwe,” Cordero said. “As long as we don’t come together and acknowledge that these countries that require the most attention get the attention, we will fail in our energy transition.” Miners and investors must probe ESG strategies with four questions, D’Souza said.

1 Does the company view ESG as a

value-creation driver? (Is it part of its business model or is it an add-on?) 2 Has the company determined what is truly material to them? (They must understand their risks and opportunities.) 3 Can they operationalize it? (Do they really do this on the ground or is it just on paper?) 4 Have they articulated their own story? (Do they control their own narrative?) Industry motto “We have to talk differently and stop just telling people how good we are in our own self-interest because literally that’s telling turkeys to

vote for Christmas,” D’Souza said. “Otherwise, we’re going to be sitting here and again saying the same things: everyone needs us, but no one likes us.” “That could be the motto of the industry,” moderator Graham Dallas quipped. Dallas is head of business development for Europe, Middle East and Africa at the Toronto Stock Exchange, which is owned by TMX Group. Cordero noted how Eurasian Group is deploying an autonomous ground vehicle in Saudi Arabia to take and analyze samples, a technology that could attract investors. “We’ve seen a few examples where this happened, where explorers that have a stronger AI angle were able to tap into Silicon Valley, for instance.” Similarly, some manufacturers have been showing consumers how minerals make up their products but first must be mined, Grönlund said. ESG ratings are a blunt instrument that’s just somebody’s opinion, said D’Souza, who recalled working at Barrick Gold (TSX: ABX; NYSE: GOLD) when it boasted about giving X many dollars per ounce to the community but didn’t celebrate what was achieved. “It was crazy and meaningless” and wasn’t aligned with the company’s core values, he said. ESG seems easy because everyone knows something about it, he said. “Bit like cooking. We can all talk about it, but which one of us is a master chef?” TNM

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

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Sustainability is the key to funding innovation, Dundee panel hears CMS

| Capital-intensive mining sector needs to be more ‘investible’ to pension funds, says Osisko’s Roosen

BY ALISHA HIYATE

s the mining sector faces mounting ESG pressures, innovation is becoming more imperative. But without money to help mining lighten its environmental footprint, it can’t happen, a panel at The Northern Miner’s Canadian Mining Symposium in London, U.K., heard on Oct. 13. “There’s only two types of projects – the ones you can finance and all the rest,” Sean Roosen, chairman and CEO of Osisko Development Corp. (TSXV: ODV; NYSE: ODV) told a panel sponsored by Dundee Sustainable Technologies and moderated by Chris Hinde, director of Pick & Pen. “The innovation that we need in this space is making our projects more investible to a lot of pension funds because we need large capital. We are consumers of big capital. And on the technical side the innovation comes slow because, in the mining industry, adoption of technology has been generally expensive and somewhat painful.” Roosen, chairman of Osisko Gold Royalties (TSX: OR; NYSE: OR) one of the co-founders of the original Osisko Mining, which found and developed the Canadian Malartic mine in Quebec, said some innovation is underway at mines. Ore sorting will cut in half the amount of waste going into the tailings pond at Osisko Development’s Cariboo gold project in B.C., while use of road headers — electric underground tunnelling machines

Moderator Chris Hinde with Stephen Mullowney of TRX Gold, John McConnell of Victoria Gold, Sean Roosen of Osisko Development Corp., and Jean-Philippe Mai of Dundee Sustainable Technologies. THE NORTHERN MINER

— avoids drilling and blasting. Operations are also using more autonomously operated equipment. “The problem we have is that the finance world has absolutely no interest in R&D per se, or being part of an investment in a tech case,” he noted. Meanwhile, the engineering and development side is often “oblivious” about approaching and handling the finance side. “Philip Morris gets an 84 ESG score. Tesla gets a 36, and the companies that supply all the metals to make a Tesla averaged an eight. So somewhere along the line, we are not getting our message across in a manner that’s acceptable.” Even the application of existing technology in a new setting can be seen as high risk. John McConnell, president and CEO of Victoria Gold (TSX: VGCX), shared his experience developing the Eagle

gold mine as the first heap-leach operation in the Arctic. “Certainly, we had many doubters. but eventually we found Osisko (Gold Royalties) and Orion (Mine Finance),” McConnell said. “They came in and did a lot of due diligence and, in the end, we were able to convince them that heap leaching in the north wasn’t a problem and they helped us arrange the financing. But in other areas of the operation, say mining as an example, we went with very much tried and true equipment that we knew would work in the Arctic. That made the financing much easier.” Stephen Mullowney, CEO of TRX Gold Corp. (TSX: TNX; NYSE-AM: TRX) noted that new technology usually needs to be tested in larger mining operations, for example, when a mine using traditional processes runs into problems in their orebody and

then looks to new technologies for a solution. “A single asset producer, a small cap company, they can’t do that. That’s not financeable until it’s proven out through — traditionally — a larger enterprise doing it.” Communication precedes adoption Another barrier to innovation is a lack of understanding of new technology. “I like to look at metallurgical processes that I understand. If I can understand it, then I can sell it,” Mullowney said. As an innovator that has developed two novel metallurgical processes, Dundee Sustainable Technologies’ president and CEO Jean-Philippe Mai says that far from being a ‘black box,’ the company is very open and takes the time to explain how its technology works.

“We are very aware that adoption comes through understanding.” In Dundee’s case, all of the “novelty” of its solutions comes from chemistry. Dundee’s CLEVR process extracts gold from ore without using cyanide, which is conventionally used in gold processing but has been banned in some jurisdictions. Its GlassLock process removes and stabilizes arsenic from ore during processing to ensure it can’t be released into the environment. The processes don’t rely on novel equipment, Mai says — an important point in terms of reducing the risk of adoption. “Everything that you see in our plant is equipment that’s already being used in the mining industry [on a] larger scale or a different application.” Dundee has two industrial-scale demonstration facilities that have handled hundreds of tonnes of concentrate. But it’s still had trouble reaching mining companies with the message that its processes work. Perhaps the best way to secure financing for new technology, increase adoption and advance mining’s social acceptance, Roosen said, is to focus on innovation that will move the needle on sustainability. In fact, Roosen suggested Dundee should market its technology as a water management solution since water is crucial to First Nations communities and to the whole concept of ESG. “ESG has come along and created this environment where probably the number one R&D technology that needs to be effective is water management,” he said. TNM

Quebec smooths a path for prospectors CMS

| Policy and fiscal supports for exploration power Quebec discovery surge

BY HENRY LAZENBY

he Quebec government’s clear policy support for mineral exploration and mining has incubated a layer-by-layer data accumulation culture leading to a spate of lithium discoveries, a recent industry conference heard. Understanding historical data, combined with the government’s unique practice of making publicly available countless reams of geological survey data are the critical enablers for exploration success in Quebec, said Osisko Gold Royalties (TSX: OR; NYSE: OR) chair Sean Roosen during the Quebec-government-sponsored panel at the October Canadian Mining Symposium in London. Roosen, credited with the discovery of the Canadian Malartic deposit, Canada’s largest open pit gold mine, pointed to looking at where things have worked in the past for understanding the future, particularly in the lithium business. He touched on the value of accumulated data from gold exploration in the same rocks that led to discoveries like Corvette in the James Bay Lowlands. “This layer-by-layer work from the past contributes to the quick succession of discoveries

Adrian Pocobelli speaks with Osisko Gold Royalties chair Sean Roosen; Normand Champigny, CEO of Quebec Precious Metals; and Jocelyn Douhéret, the director for mining policies at the Natural Resources and Forests ministry. THE NORTHERN MINER

in Quebec,” he said. While interest and investment in Quebec’s mineral potential, especially in lithium extraction, are surging, Jocelyn Douhéret, the director for mining policies at the Natural Resources and Forests ministry, attributes the surge in activity to a range of incentives and streamlined government interfaces as another key enabler. Quebec is stirring activity with tax incentives that reduce costs, a thriving mining ecosystem that ensures accessibility, and efforts to improve the industry’s image. Normand Champigny, CEO of Quebec Precious Metals (TSXV:

CJC; US-OTC: CJCFF), added that this ecosystem didn’t develop overnight but has resulted in a rich mining culture in Quebec. He credits regualtory stability across Quebec as playing a significant role in this ecosystem’s sustainability. He contrasts the comparative strength of Quebec’s rules against other jurisdictions, especially as he has experience working in South America. Fiscal incentives Douhéret shed light on Quebec’s supportive fiscal environment for explorers. Combined with federal credits, companies can receive back up to 50% of their expenditures.

For example, if a company spends $1,000, they could get back about $500. This system has been set up to counterbalance the higher exploration costs in certain areas. “Our tax credits, especially in the northern part of Quebec, are designed to propel exploration activities, including those for critical minerals like lithium,” he said. The province’s funding structure features Investment Quebec, which sometimes partners in funding with the province’s $402-billion pension plan, the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec. Resources Quebec, a unit of Investment Quebec, oversees mining funding from the $1 billion Natural Resources and Energy Fund, and $600 million held by Resources Quebec. The Société Québécoise d’exploration minière, known as Soquem, also funds about $15 million a year in exploration. The smaller Diversification of Exploration Investment Partnership (Sidex) is separate from Investment Quebec, with a funding budget of about $7 million a year. Sidex has aided many lithium projects in a hotspot east of James Bay, making up almost half of Canada’s more than 400 mostly early-stage lithium projects. Quebec’s regulatory framework and rich mining culture enhance

the ‘accessibility’ and ‘acceptability’ aspects of its strategy. This foundation ensures a favourable investment environment, especially in the burgeoning lithium market. “The mining ecosystem in Quebec has been nurtured over time, making it robust and resilient,” Champigny told the panel. Tackling talent challenges The panel also heard about challenges with talent acquisition. “The challenge is to get younger generations interested. Many now prefer their digital screens over the allure of mining,” Roosen commented. Educational initiatives are bridging this gap. Champigny, an advocate of the Mining Matters initiative, shared its vision. “Educating children, especially from Indigenous communities, about minerals and mining is paramount. We aim to inspire them to see the potential in mining,” he said. The lithium boom has prompted the government to sharpen its communication efforts as part of the policy strategy to attract investment, Douhéret said. “We are focusing on better communication about critical minerals in Quebec. Lithium is playing a crucial role in our strategy,” he said. TNM

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Bring new openness to innovation, diversity, future-of-mining panel says TRENDS

| Leaders tout few approaches that tap creativity, save money

BY BLAIR MCBRIDE

he future of the industry depends less on creating everything anew and more on using what is already known in new ways, mining leaders said on Oct. 12 in London. Innovation and an openness to diverse thought will be key drivers of change in the decades to come, a “Future Of Mining” panel told The Northern Miner’s Canadian Mining Symposium. “Mining is the transition [to green energy]”, Ana Cabral, co-founder and CEO of Sigma Lithium Resources (TSXV: SGML; NASDAQ: SGML), said in response to moderator Courtney Adler’s question about what role the industry will play. Adler is risk leader at global accounting firm EY, which sponsored and organized the panel. “Without mining there is no transition,” Cabral said. “Unfortunately, mining hasn’t behaved in line with the energy transition into green. Mining has been quite brown over the last few decades.” The mining industry may be at a pivotal juncture balancing new demands for green metals with increased calls for environmental accountability. How mining can take advantage of its enhanced role to replace fossil fuels, improve its image, adopt new technologies, protect the environment and increase diversity were some of the topics covered during the discussion. The industry will have to adopt more qualities of the tech sector, such as becoming more environmental and cost-conscious, espe-

Moderator Courtney Adler, Risk Leader with Ernst & Young LLP, left, Martino De Ciccio, Deputy CFO of Endeavour Mining; Ana Cabral, co-chair and CEO of Sigma Lithium Resources, and Don Lindsay, former CEO of Teck Resources speak on the panel. THE NORTHERN MINER

cially as critical mineral miners further integrate themselves with the electric battery supply chain, Cabral said. “It’s a volume business. It’s not about owning your little niche and driving prices up. It’s more about iron ore than rare earths. The car makers are now tech companies,” she said. “We need to be more tech than base industry.” Image change But as mining takes a more prominent role in the multi-faced transition to zero emission technologies, the industry faces public skepticism. How, asked Adler, can mining improve its negative perception? Transparency and educating the end user are how Endeavour Mining (TSX: EDV; LSE: EDV) is doing its part, the company’s Deputy CFO Martino De Ciccio said. Endeavour’s gold products

are traceable with QR codes back to where the metal was mined at their projects in West Africa. “Jewellers and designers come to our Ity mine to see the difference we’re making. Ninety-five per cent of our workforce is local. This needs to be sustainable,” De Ciccio said. He also explained that Endeavour’s mines buy only 20% of the food grown locally so local food supply chains don’t become dependent on mines and risk collapsing when they close. Turning to the role of technology in the future, Adler asked the panel what sustainable innovations have been deployed in protecting the environment. Cabral, who was named The Northern Miner’s Mining Person of the Year for 2022, said Sigma has done a lot in that area, but without inventing anything new. She explained that Sigma’s

approach to innovation is comparable to walking into a room full of lego blocks and building something with them in ways that nobody had considered. She likened that to the company’s achievements of producing spodumene concentrate with no carbon emissions, 100% recycling of water and no tailings ponds. “As an industry we need to be doing that all the time. We need to walk the talk. In 2019, I was hammered by decisions… that were obvious for us in terms of environmentally friendly policies. Like drystack tailings. It cost almost nothing to do those innovations.” Innovation approaches Don Lindsay, former CEO of Teck Resources (TSX: TECK.A/ TECK.B; NYSE: TECK) agreed. “Innovation isn’t necessarily about technology, it’s someone having an

idea on how to do something better,” he said. Lindsay offered the example of a $25-million fund he set up during his tenure at Teck to hire 250 experts from tech companies who didn’t necessarily have mining backgrounds. He asked them to send him ideas to reduce environmental footprints or improve efficiency. Their input faced resistance from mill operators at the Highland Valley Copper mine in British Columbia, but eventually some of their ideas were put into action. “We targeted 2-3% increase in recovery and throughput and the next day it was 3-4% and that alone was worth $50 million. That builds the excitement and they wanted to go to sites and other companies [and make improvements],” Lindsay said. On the importance of diversity De Ciccio said he believes different ways of thinking come from the regions where miners operate. From its over 90% local workforce, Endeavour tries to promote as many employees as possible to higher levels. That means that 70% of its department heads are local people in West Africa. There may be industry labour shortages in the United States, Australia and Canada, but not in Africa, he said. “Five to ten years from now I would expect people who were training at our mines to be running mines in the U.S., Canada and elsewhere. That will drive change as well,” he said. “You have people with different values and training, even if they haven’t gone to Ivy League schools.” TNM

Raising capital now biggest risk for miners TRENDS

BY FRIK ELS

lobal mining and metals executives still view environment, social and governance (ESG) as the top risk facing their business over the next 12 months, but access to capital has now also become a major worry, according to a new report from EY. Paul Mitchell, Global Mining & Metals Leader at the management consulting firm says the latest ranking of the top 10 business risks for mining and metals in 2024 highlights the complex operating environment miners will face next year. “Responses to these risks are now clearly embedded into the strategies of the best operators — particularly environmental, social and governance and licence to operate — and will remain priorities for a number of years to come,” he said. Respondents to the survey, based on interviews with 150 executives, say scrutiny from all stakeholder groups is increasing, particularly around ESG issues. Mining firms that get ESG right will enjoy “significant benefits, including improved access to capital, a healthier talent

| Little flow seen of energy transition growth capital into mining

pipeline and stronger licence to operate,” the survey says. While a “healthier talent pipeline” has become less of a worry for mining executives (now 10th on the list of top risks), “improved access to capital” is now considered the second most important priority for major miners after ESG as the massive outlays required by the green energy transition become a firm boardroom agenda item. Growth capital not growing A renewed focus on growth capital could mark something of a turning point for the mining industry. Average shareholder returns by the top 30 miners have increased by a compound annual growth rate of 22% from 2019 to 2022, according to EY. Despite a return to mega-profits at the top tier, the focus has remained on dividends and capital discipline, not gearing up for growth. Over the past 20 years, expansion capital spending across the industry has typically run above 20% of top line profits, which is to be expected in an industry with

depleting assets and falling grades. The last couple of years have seen this metric slip to around 10% as companies continue to favour shareholder returns over building new mines. So far however, growth capital for the energy transition does not appear to be flowing into mining, with the report finding that iron and steel, gold, and coal companies have attracted the most capital since 2022. Not exactly Mining 2.0 money. The report states that capital raised through debt and equity in the first seven months of 2023 remained steady ($196 billion compared with $192 billion in the same period of 2022) and according to the authors “this trend is expected to continue into 2024.” There is no doubt lithium and nickel are attracting attention as mainstream investors and outside capital jump on the electric car bandwagon, but steep price falls for these commodities this year may see many cool on EV raw materials sooner than expected. It’s also noteworthy that money raised for copper — the crux of the energy transition — is down

28% in 2023 while specialty metals investment is down by almost 50%, despite the many “critical minerals” lists drawn up by countries over the last few years. In the first seven months of 2023, mining and metals companies issued $1 billion of green bonds, down from nearly $4 billion in the same period of the prior year. EY expects to see a continuing trend of linking ESG bonds to specific projects, for example renewable energy, biodiversity and investing in local communities, rather than large overall targets. Get the balance right Building new mines has become a trickier proposition with new ESG requirements adding significantly to capex costs — and not just for greenfield projects. The financial woes of Codelco struggling to lift output from a decades low at its existing operations serves as a warning to the rest of the industry. Recent volatility has exacerbated the problem of capital productivity that has long concerned the mining sector, adding that apart from increased input costs, higher interest rates are pushing up the cost of

capital, EY says. A review of 132 development projects requiring more than $1 billion of capital investment showed nearly one in five faced cost overruns, with an average blowout of $500 million. EY says miners “should be mindful of the need for older projects to meet newer ESG requirements, which may include electrification, green energy and low water usage, to win financing.” It also highlights the challenge miners face to “balance returns with responsibilities” and quotes one executive who said: “new mines need to be carbon neutral from the outset,” and another who said brownfield projects can no longer be developed without green power supply. “As miners adapt models and make more difficult investment decisions, they will need to make sure they bring investors along on the journey,” the executive said. “With interest rates unlikely to decline soon, companies may need to work harder to balance sustainable alternatives with economic returns.” TNM

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

www.northernminer.com

donedeals Codelco makes first foray into lithium with $333M deal CHILE

| State miner to acquire Lithium Power International’s Maricunga project

Wheaton buys Mineral Park silver stream for US$115M FINANCING

| Arizona project has 12-year mine life

BY MARILYN SCALES

Lithium Power International’s Maricunga project in Chile. LITHIUM POWER INTERNATIONAL

BY CECILIA JAMASMIE

hilean state-owned copper miner Codelco, the world’s largest copper producer, has reached a deal with Lithium Power International (ASX: LPI) to buy the Australian producer of the battery metal for A$385 million ($333.1 million). The deal reached by the parties which have been involved in negotiations for weeks, involves a cash offer of A57¢ per LPI share, said the Australian company on Oct. 18. Lithium Power sold its Western Australia assets to focus on the development of its flagship Maricunga project. The asset, located within the so-called lithium triangle in northern Chile, is estimated to contain about 1.9 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE). Chile has given Codelco a key role in a new public-private model for the sector, announced in April, which calls for public-private partnerships for future lithium projects. Acquiring the Australian miner, with its key Chilean asset, would strengthen the copper giant’s new role in the country’s lithium industry. The buyout is Codelco’s first of this kind

and requires LPI shareholder approval for the deal to proceed, with a vote expected in January 2024. Finding a copper-lithium balance Chile is already the world’s No. 2 producer of lithium after Australia and holds the world’s largest known deposits of the coveted battery metal. Some analysts have questioned whether Codelco, which has no experience as a lithium miner, can tackle the challenge of boosting its own production while kick-starting Chile’s lithium industry. The miner this year has seen financials deteriorate and posted its lowest production in nearly 25 years, with copper output in the first half of 2023 totalling 633,000. Over the past five years, its output has fallen 17% and is expected to keep dropping until 2025. Moody’s Investors Service in early October cut its investment-grade credit rating by one notch and assigned a negative outlook. Codelco chairman Maximo Pacheco said the acquisition is an example of how the company will execute its strategy of becoming “a globally relevant supplier of critical metals to enable the energy transition.” The state miner said it would fund the acquisition from within its existing financials. TNM

Orion invests US$17M into Dakota Gold PRECIOUS METALS

| Up to US$300M on offer

BY JACKSON CHEN

akota Gold (NYSE: DC) closed an equity investment of US$17 million in October from Orion Mine Finance, after the two signed a new strategic partnership deal that could deliver up to US$300 million in total. Under the agreement sealed on Oct. 12, , a fund managed by Orion will purchase over 6.6 million common shares of Dakota Gold at US$2.55 per share. Upon closing on Oct. 20, Orion held 7.8% of the issued shares of the South Dakota-focused junior. Orion has also agreed to provide up to US$300 million in financing support for the construction and development of Dakota Gold’s assets, or for the acquisition of new assets by the company. Orion also has the right to match the terms of any future financings of Dakota Gold. It has also committed to purchasing a 1% net smelter return royalty over certain public lands covered by Dakota Gold’s projects

that are administered by the U.S. Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management. The royalty excludes the company’s private land, where it’s currently active with four drills at the Maitland and Richmond Hill projects, as well as certain claims forming part of the Blind Gold project. Dakota Gold will receive total consideration of US$1 million for the royalty. The company’s mineral properties cover 186 sq. km of land centred around the historic Homestake mine, currently under option from Barrick Gold (TSX: ABX). The option agreement, valid until 2024, provides for the opportunity to acquire 17.2 sq. km. of surface rights along with access to 145 years of mining data. The company believes the potential exists for the project and its remaining infrastructure to be repurposed for future gold operations, contingent on successful exploration in surrounding project areas such as Richmond Hill and Maitland, also acquired/ optioned from Barrick. TNM

heaton Precious Metals (TSX: WPM; NYSE: FWB) has agreed to invest US$115 million construction of the Mineral Park polymetallic project in Arizona in return for a stream covering all of its silver production. The money will be paid in three installments of US$25 million and a final installment of US$40 million to Waterton Copper. “Waterton Copper is delighted to have Wheaton Precious Metals’ support,” said Isser Elishis, executive chair. “Waterton is investing approximately US$600 million to optimize Mineral Park including significant capital investments in new primary crushers, secondary and pebble crushing circuits, and new higher-power SAG mills, which are expected to result in decades of operational excellence.” Payable silver is calculated using a fixed payable factor of 90%. Mineral Park, located near Kingsman, northwestern Arizona has a 12-year mine life, with the potential to extend production to over 20 years. Attributable production is

Mineral Park project in Arizona. WHEATON MINERAL PARK

forecast to average at least 690,000 oz. of silver per year for the first five years, rising to an average of 740,000 oz. over its entire life. The project is owned and operated by Origin Mining, a subsidiary of Waterton Copper, which is managed by private equity firm Waterton Global Resource Management. Mineral Park is in the second phase of construction with completion expected by the end of the first quarter 2025. Large scale open pit copper mining began in 1963 and continued into 2014. Origin purchased the property in 2015. TNM

Stellantis ups stake in McEwen Copper, takes close to 20% of Argentina Lithium FINANCING

| Both deals in preproduction juniors

BY NORTHERN MINER STAFF

tellantis, the automaker behind Chrysler and Alfa Romeo among others, is on a copper and lithium investment spree. In October, the company made a second investment into McEwen Copper, which holds the Los Azules copper project in Argentina, bringing its stake up to 19.4%. The US$120-million private placement financing for 1.9 million shares followed a $207-million investment in McEwen Copper and its parent company McEwen Mining (TSX: MUX; NYSE: MUX) in February, that gave it a 14.2% interest in McEwen Copper. Both deals were made in Argentinian pesos. The latest share purchase came on the heels of a September deal with Argentina Lithium & Energy (TSX-V: LIT; US-OTC: PNXLF). In return for US$90 million, Stellantis received just under a 20% stake in the junior, which holds four early-stage lithium brine projects in Argentina. Stellantis’s deal with Argentina Lithium includes a seven-year offtake agreement for up to 15,000 tonnes of lithium annually based on market prices, the companies said in a news release. Stellantis gets a seat on the lithium company’s board. “We are delighted to have Stellantis as a partner in the future development of our lithium projects in Argentina,” Nikolaos Cacos, Argentina Lithium president and CEO, said in the release. “We share a vision to build a sustainable lithium mining operation for the future.” Stellantis is among automakers such as General Motors and Tesla who are striving to secure battery metal minerals as the green energy transition from fossil fuels gathers pace. Some analysts are predicting a lithium shortfall within a few years as electric vehicle output ramps up. Argentina is in the South American lithium triangle including Chile and Bolivia that

has even considered forming a cartel like OPEC to market the light metal. The deal is to invest Argentinian pesos to the equivalent of about US$90 million in a fully-owned subsidiary of Argentina Lithium & Energy. That investment amount can later become 19.9% of the parent company if certain conditions are met, the company said. Argentina Lithium & Energy holds the Rincon West, Antofalla North, Pocitos and Incahuasi brine projects. None have yet advanced beyond exploration to studies. Rincon West is located west and north of Rio Tinto’s (NYSE: RIO; LSE: RIO; ASX: RIO) adjacent Rincon project. The Antofalla North project is about 500 metres north of an Albemarle (NYSE: ALB) project. It has stated the lithium resource there could rank among the country’s largest. General Motors is investing US$650 million into Lithium Americas’ (TSX: LAC; NYSE: LAC) Thacker Pass project in Nevada. Tesla has several offtake agreements with producers while CEO Elon Musk has mulled entering the battery metal mining business itself. Ford has inked contracts with lithium suppliers while Volkswagen and Honda are boosting recycling to lessen dependence on mining. McEwen Mining controls 47.7% of McEwen Copper, which holds a 100% interest in the Los Azules copper project in San Juan, Argentina, and the Elder Creek gold project in Nevada. Los Azules is one of the top 10 largest undeveloped copper deposits in the world. It hosts indicated resources of 10.9 billion lb. copper in 1.2 billion tonnes grading 0.4% copper and inferred resources of 26.7 billion lb. in 4.5 billion tonnes grading 0.31% copper. A preliminary economic assessment published in June estimated a $2.7-billion after-tax net present value (8% discount) at US$3.75 per lb. copper. The initial price tag was pegged at US$2.5 billion and the mine life at 27 years. TNM

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

donedeals [CONTINUED FROM P18] Rinehart buys 18% in Azure Minerals to block SQM takeover M&A

BY CECILIA JAMASMIE

ancock Prospecting, owned by Australia’s richest woman Gina Rinehart, has acquired 18% of Azure Minerals (ASX: AZS) in a strategic move aimed at checking Chilean lithium giant SQM’s (NYSE: SQM) A$1.6 billion ($1.4 billion) bid for the junior. The stake, just short of the 20% level that would require a mandatory takeover offer, may be enough to challenge the current bid. The Oct. 27 news came less than two weeks after Rinehart thwarted Albemarle’s (NYSE: ALB) attempt to buy Liontown Resources (ASX: LTR) by gradually building a 19.9% blocking stake in the Western Australia-based miner. Shares in Azure, which is developing the Andover lithium and nickel-copper-cobalt project in the Pilbara region, are more than 15 times higher than they were at the end of 2022. They jumped as much as 44% on Oct. 27 to A$3.52, their highest price since June 2008, to close at A$3.50. The stock’s valuation has been boosted by news in June of “exceptional” drilling results at Andover, which Hancock referred to as

| Australia’s richest woman also stymies Albemarle bid for Liontown “encouraging.” The iron ore miner, however, noted more work was required to estimate a mineral resource and evaluate its potential. “Consistent with early stage projects that are pre-resource, while Andover shows good prospects, it has a long path and significant risks to navigate before its ultimate potential is known,” Hancock stated. Azure announced on Oct. 26 it had signed a binding deal with SQM. The two-layered takeover agreement encompasses a scheme of arrangement priced at A$3.52 a share, but if that fails the Chilean lithium giant will launch a conditional off-market takeover bid at A$3.50. Under the terms of its main offer structure, SQM can withdraw its offer if a single shareholder secures more than 19% of the target miner. Rinehart’s move into the lithium sector shows that she is aware of the changing market for iron ore, her main source of wealth. While China’s demand slows down, the commodity is still profitable — Hancock’s Roy Hill Holdings reported on Oct. 27A$3.3 billion in operating cash flow for the year ending in June, most of which went to dividends.

Flurry of lithium deals SQM has been expanding its portfolio beyond Chile to secure its leading position in the fast-growing battery metals sector. As with other top lithium producers, SQM sees mergers and acquisitions as a more effective way to expand capacity than building new greenfield projects. A decline in valuations for some lithium producers is making them prime targets for investors trying to find entry points into the clean energy transition and EV supply chain trade. If successful, SQM’s bid for Azure would mark the miner’s second incursion into Australia’s lithium sector in a matter of days. On Oct. 23, the company announced it had grabbed a 30% stake in junior explorer Pirra Lithium and that it would ultimately increase its stake to 40% by injecting A$3 million to fund exploration. SQM also holds a 50/50 interest with Wesfarmers (ASX: WES) in the Mt. Holland lithium project, which is expected to come online by the second half of 2024 and produce up to 50,000 tonnes a year of lithium hydroxide. Other recent company moves in Australia include an earn-in deal

Drilling at Azure Minerals’ Andover project. AZURE MINERALS

Denison Mines raises $75M to advance Wheeler River URANIUM

| Funds to support Phoenix in-situ recovery (ISR) operation in Saskatchewan

with Tambourah Metals (ASX: TMB) covering the explorer’s Julimar North project in Western Australia, and smaller farm-ins

across the country with companies including Kalamazoo Resources (ASX: KZR) and Dart Mining (ASX: DTM). TNM

TSX.V: AMX Access Road / Property Transformer Electrical Station

Denison Mines’ Wheeler River camp in Saskatchewan. DENISON MINES Core Shack

BY MARILYN SCALES

enison Mines (TSX: DML; NYSE: DNN) closed a US$55-million bought deal financing on Oct. 16 to support the development of its Phoenix in-situ recovery (ISR) uranium project in Saskatchewan. The deal, completed with a syndicate of underwriters led by Cantor Fitzgerald, saw Denison issue 37 million shares prices at $2.03 apiece. The company’s Phoenix ISR project is part of its Wheeler River project on the southeastern edge of the Athabasca Basin in Saskatchewan. The company said in a release that with the financing, it will have enough cash to advance Phoenix to a final production decision.

Wheeler River is a 90%-10% joint venture between Denison, the operator, and JCU (Canada) Exploration. The project is host to the high-grade Phoenix and Gryphon uranium deposits, discovered by Denison in 2008 and 2014, respectively. In August, Denison filed a feasibility study for ISR at Phoenix and a cost update to the 2018 prefeasibility study for conventional underground mining of the basement-hosted Gryphon uranium deposit. The company believes that based on the respective studies, both deposits have the potential to be competitive with the lowest-cost uranium mining operations in the world. Permitting efforts for the planned Phoenix ISR operation began in 2019, with a draft environmental impact statement sub-

mitted for regulatory and public review in October 2022. Assuming the use of ISR methods, total measured and indicated resources at the Phoenix deposit are 280,200 tonnes averaging 11.4% uranium oxide (U3O8) and containing 70.5 million lb. U3O8. A further 5.6 million tonnes at 2.6% U3O8 are included in the inferred resource. News of the financing came just days after Denison announced a $15-million strategic investment for F3 Uranium (TSXV: FUU; US-OTC: FUUF) as it advances its Patterson Lake North (PLN) property on the southwestern edge of the Athabasca Basin. Denison shares traded at $2.14 apiece at press time in Toronto, valuing the company at $1.9 billion. Its shares traded in a 52-week range of $1.28 and $2.41. TNM

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projectupdates Equinox nears Greenstone’s golden finish line DEVELOPMENT

| Greenstone mine build to lift Equnox output 40% 10%. The stock remains a top pick for Haywood, with “excellent leverage to gold” Shares were up 30% in the year to date at press time versus gold up 10%.

BY HENRY LAZENBY

quinox Gold (TSX: EQX; NYSE: EQX) is in the final stages of completing its $1.2-billion Greenstone mine build in northern Ontario, which is slated to pour first gold under budget and on schedule by the middle of 2024.r A$385 million ($333.1 million). Completing the mine in Geraldton will transform the company’s production profile, adding about 240,000 oz. gold to Equinox’s forecasted 590,000 oz. this year. “Investing in Greenstone was a no-brainer for us. It’s got everything you would ever look for in a mine,” Rhylin Bailie, Equinox Gold’s vice-president for investor relations, told The Northern Miner. “[And achieving production next year] will be transformational for Equinox because Greenstone is adding another 240,000 oz. of production per year and will be our biggest mine by far.” After construction started at Greenstone (formerly known as Hardrock) in October 2021, it’s now more than 90% complete, Bailie said. She pointed out that Equinox places strategic value on Greenstone because all the ingredients for a successful, long-lived mining operation were in place in Ontario. The mine is fully permitted and has strong support from First Nations in Ontario, considered one of the top mining jurisdictions

Equinox Gold’s Greenstone mine in northern Ontario. EQUINOX GOLD

globally, with sufficient infrastructure to service the operation. “It’s like watching your baby graduate,” she said. “It’s very exciting to see the progress at site as we advance toward production.” Bailie is confident the commissioning of Greenstone will translate into a higher share price and company valuation. “We fully expect to start climbing our way up the valuation ladder over the next few years as we execute on each of our development projects. But the big step-change is going to come in the first half of next year

with Greenstone,” she says. Greenstone, which is 60%-40% owned by Equinox and Orion Mine Finance Group, will be Equinox’s first gold mine in Canada and one of the country’s largest, with production at about 400,000 oz. per year (100% basis) in the first five years and 350,000 oz. average over the 14-year life of the mine. The project features an initial open pit mine and a 27,000-tonne-per-day carbon-in-pulp processing facility. The deposit contains 3.3 million oz. of gold attributable to Equinox in 81.2 million tonnes of proven

FOR JV OR SALE • 50 contiguous 20 acre placer mining claims in Southern Arizona. • Grandfathered water rights to 1,600 foot commercial ground water well. • 103 acre-feet per annum non-exempt metered well. • 125 acre mineral patent private land (potential mill site). Exploration complete and satisfies us that we have an expected 50-year mine life with ore reserves grading 56% iron and 4% ilmenite (TiO2) based on a 25,000 tpd mining operation. Sample-Leonard Water Rights, LLC is actively seeking to joint venture with a mine operator that has the expertise and funding ability to develop this property to its maximum potential as a source of iron products for the domestic steel industry. The Sample/Leonard partners will also consider outright purchase offers for our greenfield project in Southern Arizona.

Managing Partner, David J. Leonard Sample-Leonard Water Rights, LLC, P.O. 19101, Tucson, AZ 85731 Direct line 323-359-0084 or email davidleonardlaw@gmail.com

and probable reserves grading 1.27 grams gold per tonne. Its portion of measured and indicated resources exclusive of reserves totals 9.5 million tonnes grading 2.9 grams gold, containing 881,000 ounces. Haywood Securities mining analyst Kerry Smith said in an Aug. 1 note to clients that Greenstone will be a key value driver for the company. With a full year of production from Greenstone expected in 2025, Equinox’s production will jump about 40% to around 835,000 oz. in the analyst’s model, with consolidated cash costs dropping about

Growing gold ounces Following Greenstone, Castle Mountain in California stands as Equinox’s next significant expansion, which might add another 180,000 oz. gold to its production base. “We have grown our production from 25,601 oz. gold in 2018 and have the assets in place in our pipeline to produce more than 1 million oz. gold in the coming years,” Bailie said. Under the leadership of Ross Beaty, the company has come a long way. Since 2017, the company built its portfolio with strategic acquisitions, buying names like the Mesquite mine in California from New Gold (TSX: NGD; NYSE AM: NGD) and slurping up miners such as Leagold Mining and Premier Gold. It now has seven operating mines from Brazil through Mexico, the U.S. and soon, one in Canada. The team has a successful mine building track record with Castle Mountain, and at Aurizona and Santa Luz in Brazil. Equinox shares traded at $6.39 per share at press time, within a 12-month range of $3.23 and $7.89. It has a market capitalization of $2 billion. TNM

Atlantic Lithium gets go-ahead for Ghana’s first battery metal mine WEST AFRICA

| Ewoyaa mine life pegged at 12 years

BY CECILIA JAMASMIE

tlantic Lithium (ASX: A11) has the green light to develop Ghana’s first lithium operation after its local subsidiary received a mining permit for its flagship Ewoyaa project. The 15-year permit allows the Australian miner’s unit Barari DV Ghana Ltd. to start building a lithium mine in the country’s Cape Coast region, around 100 km southwest of the capital city Accra. The decision comes after Atlantic Lithium’s almost six years of exploration and is part of Ghana’s strategy to tap into the global move towards electric vehicles (EVs) and renewables. The Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources has increased the royalty rate to 10% from the standard 5% and the state’s interest in the project to 13% from 10%, it said in a statement. As part of the deal, Ghana’s sovereign wealth fund, the Minerals Income Investment Fund, will acquire 6% in Ewoyaa and 3.06% in Atlantic Lithium, which will be required to list on the Ghana Stock Exchange. The company will work on developing a lithium processing plant to maximize the

economic benefit of a mineral it has often shipped to China for processing, the ministry added. “The mining lease is a major endorsement of the viability of the project and a landmark de-risking milestone in its advancement towards production,” Atlantic Lithium chairman Neil Herbert said in a statement. “The government of Ghana, which is eager to build upon its mining history that spans back over a century and diversify away from its long-standing gold production, has remained incredibly cooperative throughout our application process and we wholeheartedly welcome their support.” Half of the lithium produced at Ewoyaa will be sent to a refinery of U.S.-based Piedmont Lithium (NASDAQ: PLL; ASX: PLL), which is the Australian firm’s second-largest shareholder and has agreed to provide most of the funds for building the mine. Atlantic Lithium aims to produce a total of 3.6 million tonnes of spodumene concentrate, or 350,000 tonnes annually, over 12 years from the site. That would make it the world’s 10th-biggest project, according to the company. Atlantic has a market capitalization of over US$200 million. TNM

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

IMAGE: ADOBE STOCK/PETERSCHREIBER.MEDIA

mining, metals & markets

contents 22

Global gold funds data

Capital raisings

ETF assets

Drill results

Warrants & shorts

Market data

Market news

Mining events

*Data may not be comprehensive and is provided on a best-efforts basis as of press time. Investors are responsible for their own due diligence.

Delivering fit-for-purpose solutions across the entire mining life cycle

Our fit-for-purpose solutions encompass the skills of qualified geologists, geostaticians, analytical chemists, mineralogists, metallurgists, process engineers and mining engineers brought together to provide accurate and timely mineral and process evaluation services across the entire project life cycle. WWW.SGS.COM/NATURALRESOURCES NAM.NATURALRESOURCES@SGS.COM

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

www.northernminer.com

gold funddata TOP GOLD FUNDS BY DOMICILE SEPT. 30, 2023 | SUM OF ASSETS IN $ USD

$11.43B UNITED STATES | TOP FUNDS (USD) Rank

Fund Name

First Eagle Gold Fund

7.70B

UNITED KINGDOM | TOP FUNDS (USD)

LUXEMBOURG | TOP FUNDS (USD)

Sum of Assets 2023-09-30

Rank

Fund Name

$2.31B

BlackRock Global Funds World Gold Fund

$2.45B $1.90B $0.86B $0.80B $1.58B

Rank

Fund Name

$3.82B

BlackRock Gold & General Fund

$1.07B

LF Ruffer Gold Fund

$0.65B

Sum of Assets 2023-09-30

Invesco Gold and Special Minerals Fund (USA)

$2.07B 2

BAKERSTEEL Precious Metals Fund

$0.68B

Fidelity Select Gold Portfolio

$1.88B

Ninety One Global Gold Fund (UK)

$0.30B

Konwave Gold Equity Fund

$0.54B

Franklin Gold and Precious Metals Fund (USA)

$1.01B

$0.30B

Ninety One Global Gold Fund (Lux)

$0.53B

Quilter Investors Precious Metals Equity Fund

Sprott Gold Equity Fund

$0.93B

CPR Invest - Global Gold Mines

$0.52B

SVS Sanlam Global Gold & Resources Fund

$0.05B

CANADA | TOP FUNDS (USD) Rank

Fund Name

1 2

FRANCE | TOP FUNDS (USD) Sum of Assets 2023-09-30

Rank

Fund Name

Sum of Assets 2023-09-30

RBC Global Precious Metals Fund

$0.53B

Crédit Mutuel CIC Global Gold

$0.31B

Dynamic Precious Metals Fund

$0.38B

Rothschild & Co. Thematic Gold Mines

$0.18B

CI Precious Metals Fund

$0.20B

Ixios Gold Fund

$0.13B

Dynamic Strategic Gold Class

$0.15B

Amundi Actions Or

$0.08B

Mackenzie Precious Metals Fund

$0.12B

Tocqueville Gold

$0.05B

IRELAND | TOP FUNDS (USD) Rank

Fund Name

Jupiter Gold & Silver Fund

CREDIT: JAMES ALAFRIZ

Sum of Assets 2023-09-30

$0.89B

Source: mineralfunds.com

WORLD’S LARGEST GOLD EQUITY FUNDS: ASSET ALLOCATION AVERAGE ASSET ALLOCATION OF THE TOP 10 GOLD EQUITY FUNDS GLOBALLY

57.4%

Canadian Equities

55.6%

14.4%

Australian Equities

13.7%

9.0%

USA Equities

8.4%

South African Equities

4.5%

UK Equities

4.2%

5.6%

5.3%

China Equities

0.8%

Mexican Equities

0.5%

Cash & Bullion CREDIT: JAMES ALAFRIZ

0.8%

0.1%

9.2%

July 31, 2023

December 31, 2022

8.2%

Source: mineralfunds.com

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

capitalraisings 1

NEW PACIFIC

$17.0M

$97.7M

LTD.

1 LTD

$160.0M

1 1 2

$606.9M

NICKEL INDUSTRIES LTD

122

$1,140.8M RAISED 1 –

2 2

Rank

Company

Ticker

Final Amount (USD)

Closed Date

Nickel Industries Ltd

ASX NIC

$606,905,343

Sep 22

n/a

Other

Ivanhoe Electric Inc.

NYSE-AM: IE

$160,000,002

Sep 18

BMO Capital Markets | J.P. Morgan

Exploration | Working Capital

29Metals Ltd

ASX: 29M

$97,725,170

Sep 28

Jarden Securities Pty Ltd|Macquarie Capital (Australia) Limited

Exploration | Working Capital

4 CREDIT: NICHOLAS LEPAN/JAMES ALAFRIZ

Reunion Gold Corporation

Agents

Activites Grade

TSXV: RGD

$51,785,173

Sep 26

TSX: NUAG

$26,021,649

Sep 29

Eight Capital | Raymond James Ltd.

Exploration | Working Capital

E3 Lithium Ltd.

TSXV: ETL

$17,030,925

Sep 26

Echelon Wealth Partners Inc. | Eight Capital

Development | Exploration

Alligator Energy Ltd

ASX: AGE

$16,549,346

Sep 28

Bell Potter Securities | Taylor Collison

Exploration | Working Capital

Thesis Gold Inc.

TSXV: TAU

$16,477,204

Oct 10

Clarus Securities Inc. | Cormark Securities Inc. | PI Financial Corp.

Exploration | Working Capital

Cyprium Metals Ltd

ASX: CYM

$15,481,873

Sep 18

Canaccord Genuity (Australia) Limited

Exploration | Working Capital

Lavras Gold Corp

TSXV: LGC

$10,183,762

Sep 29

n/a

Exploration | Working Capital

C A N A D A

’ S

F I R S T

M I N I N G

P U B L I C A T I O N

Canadian Mining Journal’s 2024 Media Kit and Editorial Calendar is now available. Contact Robert Seagraves at rseagraves@canadianminingjournal.com or George Agelopoulos at gagelopoulos@northernminer.com or call 1-416-510-6891 to request your copy.

www.canadianminingjournal.com/advertise

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

www.northernminer.com

capitalraisings CAPITAL RASINGS | 2- ONTH ROLLING A ERAGE C

2023 TD

$6.0B

$2,500M

$2,000M

$1,500M

. 2022

$1,000M

$500M

$0M

NOV

DEC

JAN

FEB

MAR

APR

MAY

JUN

JUL

AUG

SEPT

OCT

11/22–09/23

$530.82M

$792.63M

$567.86M

$545.17M

$756.93M

$598.43M

$771.78M

$698.64M

$276.05M

$526.97M

$1,169.49M

$68.31M

11/21–09/22

$1,332.23M

$1,567.01M $322.73M

$941.02M

$2,089.91M $695.66M

$570.18M

$657.29M

$380.66M

$362.09M

$377.51M

$1,573.53M

Correction: The October 2023 capital raisings data contained some misstated figures that were higher than actual. We apologize for the errors.

www.northernminer.com/tag/podcast/

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

ETFassets TOP TEN: MOST ACTIVE GOLD ETFs Oct. 15, 2023 $54.98BSPDR Gold Shares

TOTAL GLOBAL GOLD ETFs

$26.55B iShares Gold Trust

$184.45B

$14.64B Invesco Physical Gold ETC

Source: mineralfunds.com Note: These are consolidated volumnes for all exchanges on which the ETF trades. Data year-to-date ending Oct. 15, 2023 CREDIT: NICHOLAS LEPAN/JAMES ALAFRIZ

$13.92B

iShares Physical Gold ETC

$9.41B

Xetra-Gold

$6.04B $5.90B $4.41B $4.18B $3.11B

Zurcher Kantonalbank Gold ETF Sprott Physical Gold Trust SPDR Gold MiniShares Trust WisdomTree Physical Gold Credit Agricole Amundi Physical Gold ETC

$41.32B Remaining Gold ETF Market

METALS & MINING SNAPSHOT Silver

Battery + Energy Metals Base Metals Platinum Group Metals Precious Metals

Gold

Miners Leveraged Silver Gold Base Metal Platinum Group Metals Currency Hedged Metals

Energy & Transition Metal Miners

TOTAL ETFS

CREDIT: ADAM BEREZUK

199

$914,905,770

$270,994,299,712

8.6%

$249,445,145,673

Precious Metals Miners

Base Metals Miners

Source: mineralfunds.com

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

www.northernminer.com

drillresults TNM DRILL DOWN: TOP ASSAYS OF THE MONTH Our TNM Drill Down features the top 10 gold, copper and lithium assays of the past month. Drill holes are ranked by grade x width, as identified by Mining Intelligence. Sept. 16 –Oct. 15, 2023

All data supplied by Mining Intelligence for the period of September 16 — October 25, 2023 for public companies from exploration stage to production. * indicates reverse circulation; otherwise all holes are diamond drill holes. Reported lengths are not necessarily true widths. Only the best hole per property is shown. Grade x widths calculations may differ slightly due to rounding.

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

warrants&shorts TSX WARRANTS

Name

Symbol

Subsciption Terms

Expiry Date

Name

Symbol

Subsciption Terms

Expiry Date

Aris Gold Corporation

ARIS.WT.B

One Warrant to purchase of one Common Share of the Issuer at $2.21 until expiry.

04-30-2024

Novo Resources Corp.

NVO.WT.A

One Warrant to purchase one common share of the Issuer at $3.00 until expiry.

05-04-2024

Gran Colombia Gold

GCM.WT.B

One warrant to purchase one common share of the Issuer at $2.21 until expiry.

04-30-2024

Aris Gold Corporation

ARIS.WT

One Warrant to purchase one Common 07-29-2025 Share of the Issuer at $2.75 until expiry.

Novo Resources Corp.

NOVO.WT.A One Warrant to purchase one common share of the Issuer at $3.00 until expiry.

05-04-2024

Aris Gold Corporation

ARIS.WT.A

One Warrant to purchase 0.5 of one Common Share of the Issuer at $2.75 until expiry.

07-29-2025

TSX VENTURE WARRANTS

Name

Symbol

Subsciption Terms

Expiry Date

Name

Symbol

Subsciption Terms

Expiry Date

Osisko Development Corp.

ODV.WT

One warrant to purchase one common share at $10.00 per share.

12-01-2023

Total Helium Ltd.

TOH.WT.A

One warrant to purchase one common share at $0.75 per share.

05-01-2025

Giyani Metals Corp.

EMM.WT

One warrant to purchase one common share at $0.60 per share.

12-03-2023

Caldas Gold Corp.

CGC.WT

One warrant to purchase one common share at $2.75 per share.

07-29-2025

Hot Chili Limited

HCH.WT

One warrant to purchase one common share at $2.50 per share.

01-31-2024

Rock Tech Lithium Inc.

RCK.WT

One warrant to purchase one common share at $4.50 per share.

08-19-2025

Silver Mountain Resources Inc.

AGMR.WT

One warrant to purchase one common share at $0.70 per share.

02-02-2024

Lion One Metals Limited LIO.WT

One warrant to purchase one common share at $1.25 per share.

11-11-2025

Millennial Lithium Corp. ML.WT

One right to purchase one common share at $4.80 per share.

02-11-2024

Silver Mountain Resources Inc.

AGMR.WT.A One warrant to purchase one common share at $0.45 per share.

02-09-2026

Star Royalties Ltd.

STRR.WT

One warrant to purchase one common share at $1.00 per share.

02-19-2024

Osisko Development Corp.

ODV.WT.B

One warrant to purchase one common share at $8.55 per share.

03-02-2026

Aurania Resources Ltd. ARU.WT.A

One warrant to purchase one common share at $4.25 per share.

04-01-2024

Denarius Silver Corp.

DSLV.WT

One warrant to purchase one common share at $0.80 per share.

03-17-2026

Giga Metals Corporation GIGA.WT

One warrant to purchase one common share at $0.60 per share.

04-23-2024

Aurania Resources Ltd. ARU.WT.B

One warrant to purchase one common share at $2.20 per share.

10-21-2026

American Lithium Corp. LI.WT

One warrant to purchase one common share at $0.30 per share.

05-11-2024

Freeman Gold Corp

FMAN.WT.U One warrant to purchase one common share at US$0.65 per share.

11-29-2026

Millennial Precious Metals Corp.

MPM.WT

One warrant to purchase one common share at $0.50 per share.

06-16-2024

Osisko Development Corp.

ODV.WT.A

One warrant to purchase one common share at $14.75 per share.

03-02-2027

Mexican Gold Corp.

MEX.WT

One warrant to purchase one common share at $0.12 per share.

07-15-2024

Elevation Gold Mining Corporation

ELVT.WT.A

One warrant to purchase one common share at $0.70 per share.

03-24-2027

Giga Metals Corporation GIGA.WT.A

One warrant to purchase one common share at $0.45 per share.

02-08-2025

Osisko Development Corp.

ODV.WT.U

One warrant to purchase one common share at US$10.70 per share.

05-27-2027

LithiumBank Resources LBNK.WT Corp.

One warrant to purchase one common share at $2.00 per share.

02-16-2025

www.northernminer.com

TSX SHORT POSITIONS

TSX VENTURE SHORT POSITIONS

Short positions outstanding as of October 15, 2023 (with changes from September 30, 2023)

Largest short positions

Company

Ticker

Short position

Change

Company

Ticker

Short position

Change

Ivanhoe Mines Lundin Mng Suncor Energy Denison Mines Kinross Gold B2Gold Corp Barrick Gold i-80 Gold Equinox Gold Taseko Mines IAMGOLD Calibre Mng Fortuna Silvr Osisko Mng Inc New Gold

IVN LUN SU DML K BTO ABX IAU EQX TKO IMG CXB FVI OSK NGD

22572105 13033048 12676675 12380820 11618570 11606733 10016747 9677166 8943931 8796699 7305912 6612944 6424520 5998413 5940635

702261 1223172 -429681 1099942 -1318157 -578951 344139 -557875 1046146 -312057 -928894 -244764 404560 235986 924902

EnCore Energy Arbor Metals New Found Gold Giga Metals Artemis Gold NGEx Minerals Skyharbour Res Baselode Egy GoviEx Uranium Surge Battery Silver Mount Hercules Sil ALX Resources IsoEnergy Ltd Critical Elem

EU ABR NFG GIGA ARTG NGEX SYH FIND GXU NILI AGMR BIG AL ISO CRE

3568576 1381128 1234623 1131090 1125088 1124581 1027773 1020462 1002066 946771 923320 816374 610499 590828 499290

1155623 964581 204889 -38672 -37107 -32987 220465 -479496 -53625 528708 860628 9441 550841 120556 82158

Largest increase in short position

Meridian Mg GoldMining Uranium Roylty Arizona Metals Lundin Mng

MNO GOLD URC AMC LUN

4577046 2504597 2765623 1756248 13033048

Largest increase in short position

4547372 1922753 1619876 1533116 1223172

Largest decrease in short position

Argonaut Gold HudBay Min Fission Uran First Quantum Nexgen Energy

AR HBM FCU FM NXE

3363776 5899153 4814517 4959202 4928786

EnCore Energy Arbor Metals Silver Mount ALX Resources Surge Battery

EU ABR AGMR AL NILI

3568576 1381128 923320 610499 946771

1155623 964581 860628 550841 528708

Largest decrease in short position

-2809940 -2138612 -1781044 -1733725 -1732677

Blue Sky Uran F3 Uranium Aston Bay Silver X Argentina Lith

BSK FUU BAY AGX LIT

67539 330671 247468 85204 165552

-1618824 -1478386 -1292057 -1058452 -908914

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

www.northernminer.com

marketdata

$2,500.00 $2,000.00 $1,500.00 $1,000.00

Commodity Prices 12-Month Trend

$500.00 $0.00

GOLD PRICE (US$ PER OZ.)

$2,500.00 $4.50 $2,000.00 $4.00 $3.50 $1,500.00 $3.00

$1,000.00 $2.50 $2.00 $500.00 $1.50 $1.00 $0.00 $0.50

$2,500.00 $2,000.00 $0.00

Oct.22

Nov.22

Dec. 22

Jan. 23

Feb. 23

Mar. 23

Apr. 23

May 23

Jun. 23

Jul. 23

Aug. 23

Sept. 23

Oct. 23

Nov.22

Dec. 22

Jan. 23

Feb. 23

Mar. 23

Apr. 23

May 23

Jun. 23

Jul. 23

Aug. 23

Sept. 23

Oct. 23

Nov.22

Dec. 22

Jan. 23

Feb. 23

Mar. 23

Apr. 23

May 23

Jun. 23

Jul. 23

Aug. 23

Sept. 23

Oct. 23

Nov.22

Dec. 22

Jan. 23

Feb. 23

Mar. 23

Apr. 23

May 23

Jun. 23

Jul. 23

Aug. 23

Sept. 23

Oct. 23

$1,500.00

$2,500.00 $1,000.00

SILVER PRICE (US$ PER OZ.)

$500.00 $2,000.00

$30.00 $4.50 $0.00

$1,500.00 $25.00 $4.00 $3.50

$20.00 $1,000.00

$3.00 $15.00 $2.50

$500.00 $2.00 $10.00 $4.50 $1.50 $4.00 $0.00 $5.00 $1.00 $3.50

$0.50 $3.00 $0.00 $2.50 $0.00

$2.00Oct.22 $1.50

$1.00 $0.50

COPPER PRICE (US$ PER LB.)

$0.00

$4.50 $30.00 $16.00

$4.00

$25.00 $14.00 $3.50 $30.00 $20.00 $3.00 $12.00 $25.00 $2.50

$15.00 $10.00

$20.00 $2.00

$10.00 $8.00 $1.50 $15.00

$1.00

$5.00 $10.00 $6.00

$0.50

$5.00 $0.00 $4.00 $0.00 $0.00

$2.00 Oct.22 $0.00

NICKEL PRICE (US$ PER LB.)

$30.00

$16.00 $16.00

$14.00

$25.00 $14.00 $12.00

$20.00 $12.00 $10.00

$15.00 $10.00 $8.00 $6.00

$8.00 $10.00 $4.00

$6.00 $5.00 $2.00

$4.00

$0.00 $0.00

$2.00

Oct.22

$0.00

COMMODITY PRICES | Prices current Oct. 15, 2023

$16.00 $14.00 $12.00 Aluminum: US$0.98/lb. $10.00 Cobalt: US$14.84/lb. $8.00 Gold: US$1920.18/oz. $6.00 Iron Ore 62% Fe CFR China-S: US$119.00 $4.00 Nickel: US$8.37/lb. $2.00 Silver: US$22.60 per oz. $0.00 Zinc: US$1.10 per lb.

Coal: Central Appalachia, 12,500 Btu, 1.2 S02-R,W: US$71.25 Copper: US$3.59/lb. Iridium: US$4,750/tr oz. Lead: US$0.96/lb. Rhodium: Mid-mkt US$5,050/tr. oz. Tin: US$11.21/lb.

NORTH AMERICAN STOCK EXCHANGE INDICES

CANADIAN GOLD MUTUAL FUNDS

52 weeks

Index Name S&P/TSX Composite S&P/TSXV Composite S&P/TSX 60 S&P/TSX Global Gold DJ Precious Metals

Oct. 27

High

Low

18737.39 520.51 1124.58 280.45 220.58

20843.21 644.49 1255.49 345.05 278.90

18692.06 514.36 1122.19 220.91 181.31

LEGEND A - ASX C - CSE L - LSE

N - NYSE O - US OTC Q - NASDAQ

Coal: Powder River Basin, 8,800 Btu, 0.8 S02-R, W: US$14.00 Copper: CME Group Futures Dec 2023: US$3.64/lb.; Jan 2023: US$3.65/lb. Lithium carbonate: US$22,675/tonne Ruthenium: Mid-mkt US$450 per oz. Uranium: U3O8, Trading Economics: US$69.07 per lb.

T - TSX V- TSXV X - NYSE-AM * Price in US$

Fund Name

Oct. 27 ($)

Oct. 20 ($)

Change ($)

Change (%)

YTDChange (%)

MER (%)

TotalAssets (M$)

BMO Prec Mtls Fd A BMO ZGD BMO ZJG CANL Prec Mtl Fd A CI Gld+ Gnts CovC A CI Pre Met Fd A CIBC Prec Metal Fd A Dyn Prec Metls Fd A Harvest HGGG Horizons GLCC iShares XGD MacGlbPrcMtlFdA NBI PrecMetFd Invt NP Silver Equ A NPT Go&PrMinFd A RBC GblPreMetFd A TD Prec Mtl Fd Inv

23.62 71.44 65.74 16.26

23.77 71.56 65.67 16.45 10.53 47.03 14.38 10.98 25.81 23.88 17.62 13.81 17.28 5.39 42.06 46.77 48.23

-0.14 -0.12 0.07 -0.19 -0.20 -1.73 -0.10 -0.50 -0.54 -0.43 -0.40 -0.15 -0.34 -0.05 -0.24 -0.41 -0.22

-0.60 -0.16 0.10 -1.15 -1.93 -3.68 -0.72 -4.59 -2.10 -1.79 -2.30 -1.09 -1.98 -1.01 -0.58 -0.89 -0.46

-6.81 -6.12 -5.82 -9.52

2.40 0.62 0.62 2.60

61.56 46.50

-6.59 -6.97 -9.17 -7.31 -8.74 -8.12 -9.85 -7.97 -25.51 -11.62 -12.51 -7.26

2.31 2.25 2.69 0.68 0.79 0.61 2.61 2.19 2.95 3.11 2.08 2.26

14.28

13.66 5.33 41.81 46.36 48.01

131.81 0.73 174.60 47.42 426.82 14.19 909.97 106.99 21.08 518.72 102.95

NEW 52-WEEK HIGHS AND LOWS OCT. 23-27, 2023

28 New Highs Abitibi Metals Akwaaba Mining American Clean* Bedford Metals Cdn Palladium Cdn Palladium* Condor Res Discovery Harb Dixie Gold Dixie Gold* Dynacor Gld Mn Founders Metal

Gold Bull Res Golden Harp Helius Mineral Hercules Sil Hercules Sil* Independence G Independence G* Kinross Gold Leviathan Gold Leviathan Gold* Lexston Mining Resolve Vent United States S*

Uranium Energy* Volcanic Gold* Xplore Res 75 New Lows AbraSilver Res* Alcoa* American Lith American Lith* Americas Silvr Americas Silvr* Ameriwest Lith* Amex Expl

Anglo American* Arianne Phosph* Atlas Salt Axmin Inc* Banyan Gold Brookmount Exp* Chevron Corp* Cosa Resources Defiance Silvr Defiance Silvr* Desert Mtn Egy Discovery Silv Discovery Silv*

Eloro Res Eloro Res* Emerita Res Endeavr Silver Endeavr Silver* Frontier Lith Generation Min* Getchell Gold Hannan Metals* i-80 Gold Irving Res* KO Gold Largo Res

Largo Res* Libero Copper* Lithium Amer Lithium Amer* Lithium Corp* Lithium South Lithium South* Lynas Corp* Majuba Hill* Marathon Gold Marathon Gold* Meridian Mg Minaurum Gold*

Mineworx Tech* Newcrest Mg Nexco Res Nighthawk Gold Novo Res Oroco Res* Platinex Inc Platinum Gp Mt Platinum Gp Mt* Puma Expl Revival Gold * Rock Tech Lith Sayona Mining* Sibanye-Stillw*

Sigma Lithium* Silver One* Skeena Res Snow Lake Res* Targa Explor* Ucore Rare Mtl Ucore Rare Mtl* US Critical Usha Res Vista Gold* Wallbridge Mng Wallbridge Mng* Wealth Mnrls Wealth Mnrls*

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

marketnews Oct. 23-27, 2023

Stocks enter correction territory as gold gains

For the week of Oct. 23-27, stock markets in Canada and the United States fell, entering correction territory with a 10% decline since peaks in July. The S&P/TSX Composite Index fell 309.35 points or 1.6% to close at 18,737.39, its lowest in more than a year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 518.82 points or 1.6% to 32,417.59 and the S&P 500 declined 99.67 points or 2.4% to 4,117.37. The TSX Venture Exchange rose 1.58 points or 0.3% to 520.51. Gold gained US$9.90 an oz. to US$1,982.9 per ounce. Largo Resources dropped 17% to $3.14 on the TSX after reporting Oct. 17 a one-quarter decline in July-through-September vanadium pentoxide production

TSX hits lowest level in a year, S&P 500 worst since May

to 2,906 tonnes. That followed a chemical plant accident and delays in ramping up a new magnetic separator in the crushing area at its Maracas Mechen mine in Brazil. In New York, Nouveau Monde Graphite fell 19% to US$2.23. It said on Oct. 25 it had hired construction company Pomerleau to prepare the sites of the Matawinie mine and the Bécancour battery plant in Quebec. Nouveau Monde says it plans to reduce a $1.4-billion capital cost estimate for the project determined during higher inflation. On the TSX Venture, Sigma Lithium gained $4.64 to $38.58. It said Oct. 16 it had delivered its third 20,000-tonne shipment of lithium.

By Colin McClelland

TORONTO STOCK EXCHANGE

TORONTO VENTURE EXCHANGE

Most Active Issues

VOLUME (OOOs)

Suncor Energy Marathon Gold Barrick Gold Kinross Gold B2Gold Corp First Quantum Lundin Mng Denison Mines Nexgen Energy Capstone Mng

SU MOZ ABX K BTO FM LUN DML NXE CS

WEEK

Most Active Issues

VOLUME

WEEK

VOLUME

HIGH

LOW

CHANGE

(OOOs)

HIGH

LOW

23706 46.44 18517 0.58 15339 23.21 14488 7.54 12973 4.59 11466 30.68 8008 8.91 7472 2.25 7176 8.39 7075 4.97

44.37 0.49 21.97 7.08 4.29 27.32 8.50 2.01 7.49 4.55

45.06 0.57 22.67 7.37 4.50 27.96 8.79 2.12 7.99 4.70

- 1.44 + 0.07 - 0.50 + 0.04 - 0.08 - 2.02 + 0.10 + 0.05 + 0.31 - 0.17

Hercules Sil BIG 19755 GR Silver GRSL 16143 Cons Lithium CLM 11264 Winshear Gold WINS 9814 Surge Battery NILI 9432 GoviEx Uranium GXU 6216 F3 Uranium FUU 4895 Opus One Gold OOR 4622 Sienna Res SIE 3999 Contact Gold C 3790

1.00 0.06 0.07 0.28 0.73 0.18 0.40 0.03 0.07 0.02

0.61 0.04 0.05 0.20 0.59 0.15 0.36 0.00 0.06 0.02

0.88 + 0.25 0.05 + 0.01 0.06 - 0.01 0.28 + 0.08 0.64 - 0.04 0.15 - 0.02 0.38 - 0.01 0.02 + 0.01 0.06 unch 0.00 0.02 unch 0.00

Greatest Percentage Change WEEK

VOLUME

(OOOs)

HIGH

LOW

CHANGE

Niocorp Dev NB 90 Euro Sun Mg ESM 2361 Gold Mountain GMTN 779 Goldgroup Mng GGA 75 Marathon Gold MOZ 18517 Champion Iron CIA 2850 Starcore Intl SAM 2 New Gold NGD 4627 Sierra Metals SMT 1655 Loncor Res LN 139 Golden Mnls AUMN 621 Condor Gold COG 162 Mountain Prov MPVD 2564 Nickel Creek NCP 2903 Largo Res LGO 187 Minco Silver MSV 46 Wallbridge Mng WM 2170 Western Potash WRX 185 Eloro Res ELO 233 Fortune Min FT 1043

7.14 0.05 0.11 0.04 0.58 6.16 0.13 1.66 0.41 0.39 3.30 0.31 0.30 0.03 3.73 0.22 0.11 0.15 1.92 0.04

5.23 0.04 0.09 0.00 0.49 5.24 0.00 1.42 0.00 0.32 1.37 0.00 0.20 0.02 3.07 0.00 0.09 0.00 1.60 0.03

6.77 0.05 0.10 0.04 0.57 5.98 0.13 1.66 0.40 0.38 1.57 0.23 0.23 0.02 3.14 0.19 0.10 0.13 1.64 0.04

+ 31.7 + 25.0 + 17.6 + 14.3 + 14.0 + 13.3 + 13.0 + 12.9 + 12.7 + 11.9 - 40.3 - 29.2 - 27.0 - 20.0 - 17.4 - 15.9 - 13.6 - 13.3 - 13.2 - 12.5

Medallion Res MDL Antioquia Gold AGD Dixie Gold DG Lightspeed Dis LSD.H Angold Res AAU Falcon Gold FG Goldsource Min GXS Arctic Star ADD Tajiri Res TAJ Blind Creek BAG Stuve Gold STUV South Atlantic SAO E-Tech Res REE Saville Res SRE Optegra Vents OPTG African Energy CUCO Record Res REC Avaron Mining AVR Western Gold WGLD Akwaaba Mining AML

VOLUME CLOSE

CHANGE

90 2747 2180 2059 2850 1266 4061 93 3312 7176 5206 6061 17 11466 23706 1558 621 363 109 1014

6.77 60.36 14.95 54.08 5.98 30.85 7.28 6.01 17.79 7.99 76.96 50.15 50.58 27.96 45.06 28.44 1.57 19.86 9.91 5.37

+ 1.63 + 1.19 + 0.93 + 0.86 + 0.70 + 0.59 + 0.51 + 0.39 + 0.34 + 0.31 - 4.52 - 3.80 - 3.57 - 2.02 - 1.44 - 1.16 - 1.06 - 0.96 - 0.90 - 0.69

Sigma Lithium Bravo Mining EnCore Energy Brunswick Expl Hercules Sil Sailfish Rylty Bedford Metals Dixie Gold Goldsource Min Vizsla Silver Nouveau Monde Canadian North Artemis Gold Callinex Mines Highwood Asset Rock Tech Lith E3 Lithium Founders Metal Fireweed Met IsoEnergy Ltd

LOW

870 1657 1958 36 278 2192 155 1048 681 28 10 2 1 388 63 1963 30 83 43 13

0.02 0.02 0.28 0.04 0.10 0.05 0.37 0.02 0.02 0.02 0.09 0.02 0.03 0.01 0.07 0.03 0.03 0.05 0.10 0.19

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.05 0.00 0.28 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.02 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

0.02 + 200.0 0.02 + 200.0 0.25 + 163.2 0.04 + 133.3 0.10 + 100.0 0.04 + 60.0 0.36 + 56.5 0.02 + 50.0 0.02 + 50.0 0.02 + 50.0 0.04 - 55.6 0.02 - 50.0 0.03 - 50.0 0.01 - 50.0 0.06 - 45.0 0.02 - 42.9 0.03 - 40.0 0.04 - 38.5 0.08 - 38.5 0.14 - 32.5

SGML BRVO EU BRW BIG FISH BFM DG GXS VZLA NOU CNRI ARTG CNX HAM RCK ETL FDR FWZ ISO

LOW

CHANGE

Vale* VALE 132983 13.69 12.32 13.49 + 1.08 Barrick Gold* GOLD 96694 16.87 15.84 16.33 - 0.56 Newmont Corp* NEM 83494 39.13 36.70 38.97 + 0.17 Chevron Corp* CVX 79092 164.43 143.96 144.35 -22.48 Kinross Gold* KGC 72176 5.47 5.12 5.31 - 0.03 Cleveland-Clif* CLF 66937 16.35 14.14 16.04 + 1.45 Freeport McMoR* FCX 55815 34.71 33.08 33.67 - 0.21 Hecla Mining* HL 36662 4.36 3.98 4.14 - 0.12 Alcoa* AA 31586 24.21 23.07 23.51 - 0.50 Sibanye-Stillw* SBSW 31584 5.49 4.86 5.15 - 0.37

VOLUME

HIGH

CHANGE

(OOOs)

WEEK HIGH

LOW

Cleveland-Clif* CLF 66937 16.35 14.14 16.04 Vale* VALE 132983 13.69 12.32 13.49 IAMGOLD* IAG 28933 2.60 2.31 2.58 Eldorado Gold* EGO 12522 11.07 9.91 10.78 United States S* X 24413 33.74 31.32 33.59 Rio Tinto* RIO 22152 64.14 59.80 63.75 Nexa Resources* NEXA 214 5.58 5.30 5.53 Nexgen Energy* NXE 24402 6.10 5.45 5.75 Arch Resources* ARCH 1591 154.95 146.55 152.92 Southern Copp* SCCO 5697 74.06 69.08 71.53 Nouveau Monde* NMG 2470 3.21 2.11 2.23 Chevron Corp* CVX 79092 164.43 143.96 144.35 McEwen Mng* MUX 2144 7.70 6.75 7.09 Teck Res* TECK 30074 39.29 34.90 36.13 Endeavr Silver* EXK 9687 2.42 2.17 2.26 Natural Res* NRP 138 72.55 65.11 66.79 CONSOL Energy* CNX 17284 23.04 21.14 21.20 Sibanye-Stillw* SBSW 31584 5.49 4.86 5.15 Nutrien* NTR 7957 58.54 55.06 55.49 Mosaic* MOS 15594 34.70 32.90 33.09

CHANGE

+ 9.9 + 8.7 + 7.1 + 5.6 + 5.5 + 5.3 + 2.6 + 2.5 + 2.1 + 1.9 -19.2 -13.5 - 8.4 - 8.2 - 7.8 - 7.6 - 6.9 - 6.7 - 6.6 - 6.6

Greatest Value Change VOLUME

(OOOs)

WEEK HIGH

Greatest Percentage Change

(OOOs)

WEEK

(OOOs)

WEEK

Greatest Value Change

NB WPM ELD NGT CIA LIF CG CGG AGI NXE NTR TECK.B TECK.A FM SU EDV AUMN ALS MUX SKE

CHANGE

Greatest Percentage Change

VOLUME

Niocorp Dev Wheaton Prec Eldorado Gold Newmont Corp Champion Iron Labrador IOR Centerra Gold China Gold Int Alamos Gold Nexgen Energy Nutrien Teck Res Teck Res First Quantum Suncor Energy Endeavour Mng Golden Mnls Altius Mnrls McEwen Mng Skeena Res

NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE

WEEK

VOLUME

(OOOs)

CHANGE

84 77 1083 1921 19755 103 58 1958 155 413 695 28 803 30 19 1020 846 1800 499 548

38.58 3.00 4.47 1.09 0.88 1.27 0.68 0.25 0.36 1.52 3.11 2.60 5.13 2.06 5.40 1.18 2.68 1.04 1.09 3.61

+ 4.64 + 0.58 + 0.33 + 0.25 + 0.25 + 0.20 + 0.18 + 0.16 + 0.13 + 0.11 - 0.63 - 0.30 - 0.30 - 0.25 - 0.25 - 0.23 - 0.22 - 0.22 - 0.19 - 0.17

Rio Tinto* Arch Resources* United States S* Cleveland-Clif* Southern Copp* Vale* Eldorado Gold* Wheaton Prec* IAMGOLD* Newmont Corp* Chevron Corp* MartinMarietta* Natural Res* Nutrien* Teck Res* Mosaic* CONSOL Energy* Franco-Nevada* Suncor Energy* Agnico Eagle*

RIO ARCH X CLF SCCO VALE EGO WPM IAG NEM CVX MLM NRP NTR TECK MOS CNX FNV SU AEM

WEEK

(OOOs)

CHANGE

22152 1591 24413 66937 5697 132983 12522 8889 28933 83494 79092 1694 138 7957 30074 15594 17284 2210 18749 13880

63.75 152.92 33.59 16.04 71.53 13.49 10.78 43.53 2.58 38.97 144.35 399.03 66.79 55.49 36.13 33.09 21.20 137.47 32.47 48.79

+ 3.19 + 3.18 + 1.75 + 1.45 + 1.33 + 1.08 + 0.57 + 0.40 + 0.17 + 0.17 - 22.48 - 10.72 - 5.50 - 3.91 - 3.24 - 2.32 - 1.58 - 1.46 - 1.42 - 1.01

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

www.northernminer.com

miningevents n November November 1-2 ZIMEC 2023 — Zambia VENUE: Garden Court Hotel, Kitwe MORE INFORMATION: zimeczambia.com November 1-4 New Orleans Investment Conference VENUE: Hilton New Orleans Riverside MORE INFORMATION: neworleansconference.com/ November 2-3 Mining Investment North America — Toronto VENUE: Hilton Hotel Downtown Toronto MORE INFORMATION: www. mininginvestmentnorthamerica.com November 6 Nova Scotia Mineral Resource Forum – Halifax VENUE: Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 MORE INFORMATION: eventbrite.ca/e/novascotia-mineral-resource-forum-tickets681010650187?aff=oddtdtcreator November 6-7 2023 Central Canada Mineral Exploration Convention — Winnipeg VENUE: Victoria Inn Hotel MORE INFORMATION: ccme-convention.ca/ convention22/ November 7-8 Red Cloud Fall Mining Showcase – Toronto VENUE: Sheraton Centre Toronto Hotel MORE INFORMATION: redcloudfs.com/ fallminingshowcase2023/ November 13-15 2023 Precious Metals Summit — Zurich VENUE: Park Hyatt Zurich MORE INFORMATION: www.precioussummit.com/ event/2023-precious-metals-summit-zurich/ November 13-15 Mali Mining and Petroleum Conference — Bamako, Mali VENUE: Centre International de Conference de Bamako MORE INFORMATION: jmpmali.com November 19-21 Capital Projects Symposium — Vancouver VENUE: Westin Bayshore MORE INFORMATION: capitalprojects2023.cim.org

November 28-30 Pathways to Net Zero Mining – Toronto VENUE: Marriott Downtown at CF Toronto Eaton Centre MORE INFORMATION: toronto.energyandmines. com November 28-30 Mines and Money @ Resourcing Tomorrow — London VENUE: Business Design Centre MORE INFORMATION: minesandmoney.com/ london/ November 29-30 Canadian Mineral Processors BC/Yukon Conference – Vancouver VENUE: Sutton Place Hotel Vancouver MORE INFORMATION: cmpsoc.ca/events/2023-bcyukon-canadian-mineral-processors-regionalconference/

n February February 5-2 Mining Indaba – Cape Town, South Africa VENUE: Cape Town International Convention Centre MORE INFORMATION: miningindaba.com/home February 25-28 Mine Exchange – Phoenix, Arizona VENUE: Phoenix Convention Center MORE INFORMATION: smeannualconference.org

n March n December December 3-8 American Exploration and Mining Association Annual Meeting VENUE: Nugget Casino Resort in Sparks, Nev. MORE INFORMATION: www.miningamerica.org/ annualmeeting/ December 11-12 Asia-Pacific Deep Sea Mining Summit 2023 — Singapore VENUE: Marina Bay Sands MORE INFORMATION: www.asia.deepsea-miningsummit.com/ December 11-12 Direct Lithium Extraction 2023 Exhibition and Conference — Los Angeles VENUE: Marriot Redondo Beach MORE INFORMATION: www.direct-lithiumextraction-show.com/ December 18-19 International Conference on Geotechnical and Geological Engineering — Istanbul, Turkey VENUE: Virtual MORE INFORMATION: waset.org/conferences-indecember-2023-in-istanbul

November 20-21 121 Mining Investment — London VENUE: ETC Venues MORE INFORMATION: www.weare121. com/121mininginvestment-london/

2024

November 20-23 Quebec Mines+Energie 2023 — Quebec City VENUE: Quebec City Convention Center MORE INFORMATION: mrnf.gouv.qc.ca/en/quebecmines/

January 9-11 Future Minerals Forum – Riyadh, Saudi Arabia VENUE: King Abdulaziz International Conference Center MORE INFORMATION: futuremineralsforum.com/

November 24-25 German Gold Show — Frankfurt, Germany VENUE: Westin Grand Frankfurt MORE INFORMATION: deutschegoldmesse.online

January 21-22 Vancouver Resource Investment Conference — Vancouver VENUE: Vancouver Convention Centre West Building MORE INFORMATION: cambridgehouse.com/ vancouver-resource-investment-conference

n January

U.S. MINE SALARIES, WAGES AND BENEFITS REPORT Stay competitive by comparing your wages, benefits, and bonuses to those of other mining companies READ MORE

January 22-25 AME Roundup — Vancouver VENUE: Vancouver Convention Centre East MORE INFORMATION: roundup.amebc.ca

March 3-6 PDAC - Toronto VENUE: Metro Toronto Convention Centre and Fairmont Royal York Hotel MORE INFORMATION: pdac.ca/convention

n April April 17-18 MMEC 2024 — Mozambique International Mining and Energy Conference and Exhibition VENUE: Joaquim Chissano International Conference Centre in Maputo MORE INFORMATION: mmec-moz.com April 29-30 Energy Transition Metals Summit – Washington, D.C. VENUE: TBA MORE INFORMATION: events.northernminer.com/ energy-transition-metals-summit-2024/

n May May 12-15 CIM Convention and Expo 2024 VENUE: TBA MORE INFORMATION: cim.org/events/ May 12-15 Minefill 2024 VENUE: TBA

MORE INFORMATION: minefill2024.cim.org

n August August 19-22 63rd Annual Conference of Metallurgists VENUE: Halifax Convention Centre, Halifax, Nova Scotia MORE INFORMATION: metsoc.org/2024

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

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ONTARIO Argonaut Gold mulls Mexican asset sale to sharpen focus on flagship Magino mine PRECIOUS METALS

| Company poured first gold at Ontario mine in June

BY BLAIR MCBRIDE

s it nears commercial production at its Magino mine in Ontario — its first in Canada — Argonaut Gold (TSX: AR) is considering a path leading away from its aging assets in Mexico, where it’s been active since 2009. Argonaut poured first gold at Magino on June 14. The site, located about 40 km northeast of Wawa, had been mined periodically since the mid-1920s, producing 114,319 oz. metal from 803,135 tonnes of ore that graded 4.43 grams gold per tonne. The company was targeting commercial production by the end of the third quarter, Argonaut CEO Richard Young told The Northern Miner in an interview in September, though it hadn’t made a declaration about production by press time in mid-October. Its mill start-up has also been delayed by about a month. “We expected first pour in May rather than June. But the mine and mill are coming along,” said Young, who became CEO last December. The delay was “typical” for commissioning, he said, citing modifications made as rock was put into the crushing and grinding facilities. “You just want to make sure they get all that right.” Magino is expected to produce between 72,000 and 81,000 oz. of gold in 2023 at cash costs of US$850 to US$950 per oz. Next year, its first full year of production, that will rise to 148,000 oz. of gold at a cash cost of US$868 per ounce. Its mine life is pegged at 19 years. Argonaut’s Mexican gold-silver mines have shorter lives. La Colorado in Sonora state, which Argonaut acquired in 2011, will reach its end in 2027. El Castillo (acquired in 2009), and San Agustin (acquired in 2013) – both in Durango – will wrap up in 2023 and 2024, respectively. Across all its operations the company expects to produce 200,000 to 230,000 gold-equivalent oz. this year at all-in sustaining costs of US$1,625 to US$1,725 per ounce. Magino hosts proven and probable reserves of 63.3 million tonnes grading 1.16 grams gold per tonne for 2.4 million oz. gold, according to a March resource update. Measured and indicated resources (inclusive of reserves) total 150.8 million tonnes grading 0.94 gram gold for 4.5 million ounces. Argonaut is now focused on reviewing mill optimization, for which it hired Ausenco Engineering to do a debottlenecking study. It’s also working on an expansion that will nearly double throughput. The addition of a second ball mill and gyratory crusher will see throughput rise to between 17,000 and 20,000 tonnes per day from 10,000 tonnes per day. Argonaut expects the expansion will be completed in 2026. “At 20,000 tonnes per day, [the] reserve grade results in about 250,000 oz. of gold per year,” Young said, adding Ausenco’s ini-

Construction at Argonaut Gold’s Magino mine northeast of Wawa in Ontario. ARGONAUT GOLD

Argonaut Gold CEO Richard Young at the Magino mine site. ARGONAUT GOLD

tial estimate for the expansion is about US$75 million. In addition, the company is working to upgrade 750,000 oz. of measured and indicated resources and 250,000 tonnes of inferred resources into reserves over the next 12 to 15 months. “[We want to take] advantage of some of the work that our neighbours have done at Island Gold next door to see how their program has progressed and see whether or not we can glean anything from their program at depth,” Young said. The Island mine, owned by Alamos Gold (TSX: AGI; NYSE: AGI) is located just east of Magino and hosts 4.2 million proven and probable tonnes grading 10.8 grams gold per tonne for 1.5 million oz. contained metal, with a mine life of 17 years. Through its expansion plan at Magino, Argonaut aims to become the lowest-cost producer in Canada within three years, targeting US$576 per oz. in all-in sustaining costs, doubling milling capacity to 2,400 tonnes per day and more than doubling annual production to 287,000 ounces. Young said Magino could also become one of the 10 largest gold operations in Canada. “It’s a unique opportunity to own one of those mines not owned by a senior,” he said. “We believe that ultimately, we’ll have 4-million-plus ounces in reserve open pit, [and] a mill expansion. And so, the value of the... asset might be close to double that.” Adios to Mexico? Argonaut is looking to sell all its assets in Mexico, which since 2009 have been its production mainstay. Those operations include the

exploration stage Cerro del Gallo project in Guanajuato state. Argonaut sold its development stage gold-silver Ana Paula project in Guerrero state to Heliostar Metals (TSXV: HSTR) for US$30 million in cash and shares in December 2022. “The [Mexican] assets now

are higher cost, mature and have shorter mine lives,” Young said. “They don’t fit in with our overall goal of being a low-cost mid-tier gold producer with long life assets. Those assets may be better off in someone else’s hands and the proceeds from a sale would allow us to strengthen our balance sheet which

I think shareholders will be very supportive of.” Young said assessments of Argonaut’s asset base and their costs revealed more growth potential at Magino and the Florida Canyon mine in Nevada. Argonaut continued on P44 >

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NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

www.northernminer.com

Canada Nickel’s Crawford feasibility pegs capex at US$3.5B, mine life at 41 years NICKEL

| Project’s carbon capture tech to store 1.5M tonnes of carbon per year

BY MARILYN SCALES

new feasibility study for Canada Nickel’s (TSXV: CNC; US-OTC: CNIKF) Crawford nickel sulphide project outlines an operation with US$3.5 billion in capital costs for its first and second stages, and an after-tax net present value (at an 8% discount) of US$2.6 billion. The study, released on Oct. 12, slightly improves Crawford’s economics compared to a 2021 preliminary economic assessment (PEA), which did not include tax credits anticipated from carbon capture and storage. With carbon capture tax credits, the feasibility study puts the after-tax internal rate of return at 18.3% (compared to a 17.1% IRR and NPV of US$2.5 billion in the PEA). Base case economics include the Critical Minerals Investment Tax Credit, announced by the federal government earlier this year. Canada Nickel expects that tax credit plus Carbon Capture tax credits to exceed $1 billion over the project life.The project has an initial life of 41 years over three phases. Total production is estimated at 3.5 billion lb. of nickel, 53 million lb. of cobalt, 490,000 oz. of palladium and platinum, 58 million tonnes of iron, and 6.2 million lb. of chromium. Annual earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) are estimated at US$811 million, and the free cash flow at US$546 million. Uniquely, Crawford will be a net negative contributor to global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, thanks to its ability to capture and store 1.5 million tonnes per year of carbon. There will also be room to capture and store 30 million tonnes of carbon from third parties. “This bankable feasibility study is a significant milestone for Crawford and a major step forward in demonstrating the value of our Timmins Nickel District and its potential to anchor a Zero Carbon Industrial

“In four years, (Canada Nickel) has come a long way, but there remain significant milestones, including permits, completing a financing package, and making a production decision by mid2025.” PIERRE VAILLANCOURT, MINING ANALYST, HAYWOOD CAPITAL MARKETS

Cluster in the Timmins-Cochrane region,” said Canada Nickel CEO Mark Selby. “Crawford is poised to be a leader in the energy tran-

Drill core at the Crawford nickel project north of Timmins, Ont. CANADA NICKEL

sition through the large-scale production of critical minerals, including nickel and cobalt, and is expected to become the sole North American producer of chromium, while also supporting Canada’s climate objectives through industrial-scale carbon capture and storage.” In a note to clients, Haywood Capital Markets mining analyst Pierre Vaillancourt noted the company’s plans for production and as a CO2 storage centre won’t be easy or happen quickly. “We now look for (Canada Nickel) to put the pieces together, including financing, partners and governments, while the company advances the operating plan.”

Red Pine exploration RedInvestor Pine exploration Update Investor Update

RED PINE EXPLORATION September 2023

September 2023

TSX-V: RPX | OTCQB: RDEXF TSX-V: RPX | OTCQB: RDEXF

TSX-V: RPX | OTCQB: RDEXF

REDPINEEXP.COM

Capex increases Vaillancourt noted that the capex for the first phase of the project has increased by 63% compared to the PEA to more than US$1.9 billion, with the second phase up 194% to US$1.6 billion. The final phase doesn’t require any further capital investment. “In four years, (Canada Nickel) has come a long way, but there remain significant milestones, including permits, completing a financing package, and making a production decision by mid-2025, with a goal of first production by the end of 2027. For now, we like the optionality, but also recognize the potential of the district,” Vaillancourt wrote.

Study details The company plans to use its in-process tailings (IPT) method of carbonization, which involves injecting a concentrated source of CO2 into tailings inside the mill. The carbon is geologically sequestered in the tailings while they’re in the processing circuit, rather than after. The concentrator will include a conventional milling circuit, including crushing, semi-autogenous and ball milling, desliming, nickel flotation, magnetic separation of the tails, and IPT carbonation. The flowsheet has been optimized from what was anticipated in the PEA. It is expected to deliver improved recoveries of all base metals, improved concentrate grades, and carbon storage. Both a nickel concentrate (34% nickel, 0.79% cobalt, and 4.1 grams per tonne palladium and platinum) and an iron ore concentrate (55% iron, 0.3% nickel, and 2.6% chromium) will be produced. Crawford will consist of two separate open pits of about equal tonnages of ore. The production fleet — drills, shovels, and trucks – will be electrically powered. According to Canada Nickel’s numbers, the Crawford deposit has the world’s second-largest nickel reserves: 8.4 billion lb. of nickel. The proven and probable reserves total 1.7 billion tonnes grading 0.22% nickel, plus copper, palladium, and platinum. Crawford also has the world’s second largest nickel resources. Inclusive of reserves, the measured and indicated resources are 2.4 billion tonnes at 0.24% nickel, containing 13.3 billion lb. of nickel. There is also an inferred resource of about 1.7 billion tonnes grading 0.22% nickel, for 8.2 billion lb. of nickel. Canada Nickel shares were down 2.5% to $1.18 before press time in Toronto, valuing the company at $167.3 million. Its shares traded in a 52-week range of $1.09 and $2.20. TNM

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GLOBAL MINING NEWS

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

ONTARIO SNAPSHOT:

Six companies in discovery and development mode BY NORM TOLLINSKY

From the nickel hotbed of the Sudbury Basin to the highgrade gold of Red Lake and newer critical metal discoveries in between, Ontario hosts some of the world’s most productive mining camps and prospective mineral regions. Here are six companies exploring for gold, nickel, lithium and palladium in Ontario. n Generation Mining

Generation Mining (TSX: GENM; US-OTC: GENMF) is advancing its flagship Marathon palladium-copper project in northwestern Ontario, located 10 km north of Marathon in and 300 km east of Thunder Bay. On Sept. 14, the Toronto-based company reported an invitation from Ontario’s Ministry of Mines to submit a closure plan for Marathon, one of several permitting milestones the company has reached over the last couple years. An updated feasibility study for the project released in March estimates production of 2.1 million oz. of palladium, 517 million lb. of copper, 485,000 oz. of platinum, 158,000 oz. of gold and 3.2 million oz. of silver (3.6 million oz. of palladium-equivalent) over a 12.5-year mine life. The study estimates a net present value of $1.2 billion at a discount rate of 6%, a 25.8% internal rate of return and a 2.3-year payback based on a price of US$1,800 for palladium and US$3.70 per lb. for copper. Initial capital costs are estimated at $1.1 billion. Approximately 58% of the revenue will come from palladium and 29% from copper. The project envisions three open pits and an on-site 25,200-tonneper-day ore processing facility to produce a copper-palladium concentrate which will be delivered to a third-party facility for further downstream processing. Throughput is expected to increase to 27,700 tonnes per day following the completion of a powerline upgrade scheduled for year two of the operation. In November 2022, Generation received approval from both levels of government to proceed with the project subject to certain conditions. The company had filed its Environmental Impact Statement with the federal-provincial Joint Review Panel in early 2021, with public hearings concluding last May. The company acquired a 51% interest in the project from Sibanye-Stillwater (NYSE: SBSW; JSE: SSW) in 2019 and a 100% interest in January 2022. A production decision is dependent on the receipt of additional permits. On Sept. 13 Generation an-

A drone view of Generation Mining’s Marathon palladium-copper project near the namesake town in northwestern Ontario. GENERATION MINING

nounced an agreement to sell its rights and interests in the molybdenum-tungsten Davidson property near Smithers, B.C. to Moon River Capital (TSXV: MOO.P) for $630,000 in cash and 9 million common shares of Moon River. Generation Mining has a market capitalization of $62.4 million. n Laurion Mineral

Exploration

Northwest of Marathon, Laurion Mineral Exploration (TSXV: LME; US-OTC: LMEFF) is focused on its flagship 57.4-sq.-km Ishkoday gold and polymetallic property. On Oct. 11, Laurion announced the acquisition of 53 mineral claims encompassing 10 sq. km immediately to the west of Ishkoday. The claims were acquired from two arms-length parties for 142,857 shares at a deemed price of 70¢ apiece representing an aggregate purchase price of $100,000. The vendors were also granted a 1% net smelter royalty on gold and base metal production from the property. The previous week, Laurion began a 3,675-metre drill program at Ishkoday. This summer, the Toronto-based company completed a sensor-based ore sorting test of material from a large surface stockpile. In June, Laurion concluded that sorting technology “may very well improve the economics of the project and result in a more compact processing facility,” provided the company is able to define additional resources to warrant a processing plant with a capacity of over 1,000 tonnes per day. A 2013 technical report estimated the stockpile contained 144,070 tonnes grading 1.59 grams gold per tonne in the indicated category. Ishkoday is located 60 km west of Geraldton and 10 km north of the Trans-Canada Highway along Provincial Road 801. The prop-

erty contains the past producing Sturgeon River mine, which operated from 1936 to 1942, producing 73,439 oz. of gold and 15,922 oz. of silver from 145,123 tonnes of ore grading 17 grams gold per tonne. In 2020, Laurion acquired the adjacent Brenbar property hosting the historic namesake mine which is thought to be on strike of the Sturgeon River mineralization. Laurion Mineral Exploration has a market capitalization of $165.1 million. n Magna Mining

Magna Mining (TSXV: NICU; US-OTC: MGMNF) holds the past producing Crean Hill nickel project in Sudbury.

On July 31, the Sudbury-based company released a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) for Crean Hill revealing a 15-year mine life in a base case scenario. Initial capital costs were estimated at only $81 million and minimal permitting would be required before starting advanced exploration development. That scenario, which would see the sale of material to a thirdparty mill in Sudbury, has an after-tax net present value (NPV) of $230.4 million based on an 8% discount rate and an internal rate of return (IRR) of 23.4%. An alternative processing scenario, which would require the construction of a mill at Magna’s Shakespeare project, 37 km west of Crean Hill, generates an NPV of

$516.1 million based on an 8% discount rate and an IRR of 38.4%. The scenario would also extend the mine life to 19 years and increase the total mined resource to 28.2 million tonnes from 20.1 million tonnes. The Crean Hill mine was operated by Inco from 1900 to 2002, with mining focused on contact style nickel-copper mineralization. Following closure, Lonmin Canada entered into an option agreement for the property and completed approximately 90,000 metres of drilling focused on the low sulphide, high PGM potential of the footwall host rocks. Ontario continued on P34 >

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

SPECIAL FOCUS ONTARIO

Once executed, the transaction will increase Winsome’s ownership of Power Metals from 9.9% to 19.5%. The Decelles project consists of 669 claims covering an area of 384-sq.-km near Val-d’Or and Rouyn-Noranda while the Mazerac property holds 259 claims across 147 sq. km, located 30 km east of Decelles. According to Power Metals chairman Jonathan Moore, the company’s strong cash position allows it to expand its exploration activity to the two Quebec properties. Power Metals has a market capitalization of $40 million.

> Ontario from P33

Magna assumed ownership of Crean Hill by purchasing Lonmin Canada for $19 million in September 2022. The Shakespeare project, which has an existing NI 43-101 resource, and permits for the construction of a 4,500 tonne per day mill and the recommencement of open pit mining, was acquired by Magna in 2017 through the purchase of Ursa Major Minerals. Magna’s portfolio also includes the Shining Tree project, 100 km north of Sudbury and the P-4 project, 5 km northeast of Shakespeare. A forthcoming technical study will incorporate diamond drilling completed by Magna since its acquisition of Crean Hill and further analysis of an integrated mining complex with the Shakespeare project. Recent drill results reported Aug. 15 and Sept. 21 at Crean Hill include an intersection of 4.2% nickel, 0.9% copper, and 1.4 grams platinum, palladium and gold per tonne over 7 metres. Magna Mining has a market capitalization of $77.4 million.

n Red Pine

Exploration

Red Pine Exploration (TSXV: RPX; US-OTC: RDEXF) continues to report “mineralization of significance” beyond the footprint of existing resources at its flagship 100%-owned Wawa gold project in northeastern Ontario, including one drill result of 5.1 grams gold per tonne over 19.8 metres from hole SD-23-446 reported Sept. 21. Another encouraging result of 10.92 grams gold over 28.1 metres, including 209.1 grams gold, 49.9 grams gold and 28 grams gold — all over 1 metre — from hole SD-23442 was reported on Sept. 14. The 70.3-sq.-km property located 2 km southeast of Wawa has a 2019 indicated resource of 1.3 million tonnes grading 5.47 grams gold per tonne for 230,000 oz. and an inferred resource of 2.7 million tonnes grading 5.39 grams gold for 471,000 ounces. “The footprint of a new resource contained within a shallow optimized open pit and encompassing our existing resource continues to take shape,” commented Red Pine president and CEO Quentin Yarie. The results from Red Pine’s 20,000-metre 2023 drill program will be included in an updated resource anticipated for the second or third quarter of 2024. On Aug. 29, the Toronto-based company announced a 1.5% net smelter return royalty agreement with Franco-Nevada (TSX; FNV; NYSE: FNV) for its Wawa gold project in return for immediate cash proceeds of $6.75 million to be used for continued exploration and ongoing working capital. “On the back of this non-dilutive financing and with over $10 million cash on hand, we are well positioned to deliver on our exploration goals, including ongoing infill and expansion drilling, an updated mineral resource estimate defining the open pit exploration target and a potential preliminary economic assessment,” Yarie said. As of Sept. 21, Red Pine had two drill rigs on-site and was producing over 4,000 metres of core per month. Red Pine Exploration has a market capitalization of $25.2 million.

n West Red Lake

n Power Metals

Power Metals (TSXV: PWM; US-OTC: PWRMF) is a Vancouver-based company with a 100% interest in the Case Lake lithium, cesium and tantalum property 100 km north of Kirkland Lake in northeastern Ontario. High-resolution airborne magnetic and LiDAR surveys over the Case Lake property were completed in June and were followed by a fieldbased prospecting and mapping program which identified the discovery of new 10 to 15-metre wide spodumene bearing pegmatites with grades as high as 1.12% lithium oxide (Li2O). A 15,000-metre drill program is planned for this fall. The Case Lake pegmatite swarm consists of six spodumene dikes on the Henry Dome and the West Joe dike on a new tonalite dome collectively forming a mineralization trend that extends for 10 km. Previous drilling of 15,700 metres from 2017 to 2022 produced intersections as high as 14.7% cesium monoxide over 1 metre in the West Joe spodumene pegmatite, according to results reported Nov. 13, 2018. Other high-grade lithium and

Checking out a mineralized vein at Laurion Mineral Exploration’s Ishkoday site. LAURION MINERAL EXPLORATION

tantalum intervals included 3.88% Li2O and 232 parts per million (ppm) tantalum over 0.8 metre and 3,783 ppm tantalum and 2.53% Li2O

over 1 metre in hole PWM-18-124. Power Metals entered into an agreement with Australia-based Winsome Resources (ASX: WR1)

on Aug. 24 to acquire a 100% interest in the latter’s Decelles and Mazerac lithium properties in northwestern Quebec.

www.northernminer.com

Gold Mines

Vancouver-based West Red Lake Gold Mines (TSXV: WRLG; USOTC: WRLGF) holds its flagship Madsen mine and Rowan project in the prospective Red Lake gold district of northwestern Ontario. In an Oct. 3 project update, the company announced that it plans to put Madsen back into production in 2025. West Red Lake assumed ownership of the property on June 16 after former owner Pure Gold suspended operations on Oct. 24, 2022, and was granted creditor protection a week later. West Red Lake also announced that a 35,000-metre drill program

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

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THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

Above: At West Red Lake Gold Mines’ Madsen project in northwestern Ontario. WEST RED LAKE GOLD MINES Below: A drill shack at Power Metals’ Case Lake lithium project. POWER METALS

A drill rig at Red Pine Exploration’s Wawa project in northeastern Ontario. RED PINE EXPLORATION

for the nearby Rowan project would start in early 2024, and the completion of a PEA for its portfolio of properties in the district. It also plans to complete a resource estimate for Rowan as well as its Wedge deposit 2 km southwest of Madsen by the end of 2024. Ore from Rowan and Wedge will

provide additional feed for the new 800-tonne-per-day Madsen processing facility. Over the next 12 months, West Red Lake also plans 3,200 metres of underground development to support underground drilling. The Madsen property has two portals and ramp access to 525 me-

The Shakespeare project is located in the Sudbury region of Ontario. MAGNA MINING

tres below surface. The operation also has an existing 1,275-metre shaft, headframe and hoist that were last operational in 2013. A resource estimate for Madsen dated Dec. 31, 2021, reported 6.9 million tonnes grading 7.4 grams gold per tonne for 1.7 million oz. in the indicated category and 1.8 million

tonnes grading 6.3 grams gold for 366,200 inferred ounces. On Oct. 11, West Red Lake reported an intersection of 45.2 grams gold per tonne over 2 metres, 12.81 grams gold gold over 2.3 metres and 33.47 grams gold over 1.4 metres at Rowan. An earlier assay result from Sept. 12 reported

70.8 grams gold over 8.3 metres, including 1,120.19 grams gold over 0.5 metre. The 31-sq.-km property, which includes the Rowan, Mount Jamie and Red Summit past producing mines, currently has an inferred resource of 827,462 oz. in 2.8 million tonnes grading 9.2 grams gold. The Wedge deposit, adjacent to the past producing Starrat-Olsen mine, has an indicated resource of 313,700 tonnes grading 5.6 grams gold per tonne for 56,000 oz. and an inferred resource of 431,100 tonnes grading 5.7 grams gold for 78,700 oz. West Red Lake Gold Mines has a market capitalization of $114.2 million. TNM

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

www.northernminer.com

specialfocus

SOUTH AMERICA Explorers in Colombia keep spending amid Petro government’s leftist rhetoric REGULATORY

| Rules easing for critical mineral projects, artisanal miners offered legalization

“I personally believe Colombia is the future for transition metals and other metals in mining for the Americas because of its good regulations and its quicker permitting timeline.”

BY BLAIR MCBRIDE

ore than a year after Colombia’s leftist president Gustavo Petro took power, investment by public companies is rising along with their exploration activity, despite initial concerns the government would restrict mining. Elected to office last August, Petro’s administration has considered imposing taxes on oil and mineral exports, stricter environmental licensing and prioritizing small-scale mining over that of large multinational operations. Ari Sussman, chairman of Colombia-focused Collective Mining (TSXV: CNL) told The Northern Miner that the business community was initially nervous over Petro’s energy platform that targeted a reduction in fossil fuels and coal, two major sectors of the country’s resource economy. “[Petro] said we don’t want any more coal mining in the country. If you’re producing right now, you’re okay, but we’re not going to grant licences for exploration of coal anymore,” Sussman recalled. “That was interpreted as ‘we don’t want any mining’…There’s bark and there’s bite. The bite is what matters.” As examples of that “bite,” Sussman pointed to Auxico Resources’ (CSE: AUAG; US-OTC: AUXIF) mining title certificate, granted in

ARI SUSSMAN, CHAIRMAN, COLLECTIVE MINING

Max Resource’s Cesar project in northeastern Colombia. MAX RESOURCE

early October for its Minastyc rare earths project in eastern Colombia after receiving an environmental licence for small-scale open pit mining in June; and Aris Mining’s (TSX: ARIS; US-OTC: TPRFF) permit in July to develop the underground extension of its Marmato gold mine. Collective’s flagship is the Guay-

Examining cores at Collective Mining’s Guayabales project. COLLECTIVE MINING

abales copper-gold-silver project in the western department of Caldas. Exploration and working capital of US$21.9 million at Guayabales comprised most of this year’s US$25.9 million in first quarter spending by public Canadian companies in Colombia, according to data from Mining Intelligence, part of The Northern Miner Group. Capital raisings in the quarter totalled almost as much as the previous three quarters combined. When Petro took office in the third quarter of 2022, capital raisings for exploration came to US$4.4 million, rising to US$9.6 million in the year’s final quarter.

Now

2020

Ore Waste

Tımes change. Has your mine plan? .com

Legalizing artisanal miners The Collective chairman also dismissed fears over the government’s stated priority for traditional, small-scale mining over large, multinational companies. Sussman said the policy aims at formalizing artisanal miners, a process he claims was pioneered by Continental Gold, the company he founded in 2010 and led until it was sold to Zijin Mining in 2020. “Ancestral miners should be formalized and legalized,” he said. “We worked hard with a group of mining companies to help create that law. The key… is if you formalize a small group of miners, the international mining company isn’t liable for them, the government takes the liability once they’re legal.” The formalization push is also not

unique to the Petro government. Former president Iván Duque’s mines minister Diego Mesa Puyo, said in June 2022 that formalization was the administration’s second biggest policy, and touted the induction of 25,000 miners into the formal sector. Sussman said Collective has faced no major challenges to its work under the new government, and in fact says that as a jurisdiction for mining he would rather work in Colombia than in the United States. In the South American country, it takes eight to 12 months to get a mine licensed, whereas it takes 10 to 12 years to get permitted in the U.S., he said. “I personally believe Colombia is the future for transition metals and other metals in mining for the Americas because of its good regulations and its quicker permitting timeline,” he said. “I think it’s a robust place to be.” Max Resource (TSXV: MAX; US-OTC: MXROF), developer of the Cesar copper-silver project in the northeastern department of La Guajira, raised most of its US$20 million for exploration in 2022 before Petro took office. CEO Brett Matich says it still has US$10 million from its 2022 financings, enough for its work until 2024, and with potentially more interest from investors. “We’ve had the same type of activity as what we had prior to this president,” he said.

Indigenous priority Matich is blunt in his summary of the current administration’s attitude towards mining: “You don’t want to be in fossil fuels and the mandate of the government is focused on critical metals…if you’re in a gold mining area, you should have agreements with the Indigenous co-ops.” The co-operatives, or Indigenous ownership councils have a new, prioritized status under Petro, and failure to make agreements with them will stymie exploration projects, Matich says. Ian Harris, CEO of Outcrop Silver & Gold (TSXV: OCG, US-OTC: OCGSF), says that in his 15 years of working in South America, where many leftist governments have held sway, some of the Petro administration’s pronouncements on mining sound familiar. Outcrop’s flagship is its Santa Ana project in Colombia’s northern Tolima Department, for which it raised US$2.5 million last September. It raised another US$4.5 million this May. Business beats bluster Harris says he was in Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador when each of those nations elected left-wing governments. He was senior vice-president of Corriente Resources when it was developing the Mirador copper project in Ecuador, while the government of Raphael Correa suspended mining activity under a rewriting of the constitution in 2008. Chinese firms China Railway Construction and Tongling Nonferrous Metals Group bought Corriente and its Mirador and Panantza-San Carlos projects for $679 million in 2010. “But we still went on to build the Mirador project, which was the first industrial-scale project in the history of that country,” he said. “So, I’ve seen this story before and sometimes out the gate there’s lots of rhetoric, there’s lots of rah rah rah. But at the end of the day, financial, economic pragmatism comes into play.” In July, the government issued a draft decree on mine reorganization to protect Colombia’s ecosystems, but Harris said the resolution wasn’t implemented and would take time to roll out if it had been. In the meantime, Harris said Outcrop’s day-to-day operations haven’t been significantly affected by the policies of the government, and a 5,000-metre resource expansion drilling program continues at Santa Ana. TNM

SPECIAL FOCUS SOUTH AMERICA

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

G2 Goldfields makes new high-grade find at Oko GUYANA

| Teams seeks Aurora gold mine repeat, interest from majors

BY COLIN MCCLELLAND

2 Goldfields (TSXV: GTWO; US-OTC: GUYGF) says it’s discovered the high-grade Ghanie South zone at its Oko project in Guyana as it seeks interest from large miners. Drill hole GDD-68A cut 11 metres grading 37.9 grams gold per tonne from 148 metres downhole, the Toronto-based company said on Oct. 10. The result follows drill hole GDD-06 reported in April that returned 3 metres at 17 grams from 58 metres depth. “These results demonstrate the presence of multiple high-grade zones along trend and the potential for more discoveries throughout the Oko district,” Boaz Wade, vice-president of exploration, said in the release. “We are leveraging our understanding of the Ghanie Central zone to target high grade on other sections of the 1.2-kilometre-long Ghanie trend.” Shares in G2 Goldfields gained nearly 8% to 85¢ apiece in Toronto on the news and remained there closer to press time. The company is valued at $140 million, and the stock has traded within a 52-week window of 51¢ to 96¢. G2 Goldfields CEO Dan Noone was part of the team that developed the Aurora Gold mine into the country’s largest before it was

At G2 Goldfields’ Oko project. G2 GOLDFIELDS

bought by China’s Zijin Mining in 2020 for US$238 million ($328.3 million). Probing the Ghanie trend, just north of and along strike of Reunion Gold’s (TSXV: RGD) Oko West deposit next door, is part of a bid to expand Oko into a takeover target. Barrick Gold (TSX: ABX; NYSE: GOLD) has been exploring in Guyana and Newmont (TSX: NGT; NYSE: NEM) operates the Merian mine in neighbouring Suriname. Cuyuni district Ghanie South is about 300 metres south of Ghanie Main at Oko. It lies in the South American country’s Cuyuni mining district, 60 km west of Bartica, which itself is 60 km south from the Atlantic coast on the Essequibo River. The river’s mouth is some 30 km west of the Guyanese capital of

A surface map of G2 Goldfields’ Oko project in Guyana. G2 GOLDFIELDS

Georgetown. Aris Mining’s (TSX: ARIS) Toroparu project is also in the Cuyuni district. At the 78-sq.-km Oko project, G2 continues to target near surface anomalous zones beside the Oko Main zone and Ghanie trends with shallow drilling. It’s exploring for new targets along the Okoto-Aremu trend. G2 discovered Oko Main in late 2019. It holds 793,000 indicated tonnes grading 8.63 grams for 220,000 contained oz. and 3.3 million inferred tonnes grading 9.25

grams gold for 974,000 oz., according to an initial resource reported in April 2022. The resource lies within 350 metres of surface and remains open down plunge, the company said. In September, G2 reported drill hole OKD-178 at Oko Main cut 6.7 metres grading 32 grams from 477 metres downhole. The hole was located 40 metres north of OKD-121 which returned 3.7 metres at 58 grams reported a year earlier and 40 metres south of OKD-126a that cut 3 metres at

27.8 grams, according to a report last November. The Oko Main has high-grade veins in carbonaceous sediments while the Ghanie zone hosts a magnetite replacement style of mineralization similar to Reunion’s Oko West, according to Noone. “Guyana’s very much a place that the majors want to be,” Noone said during a site visit by The Northern Miner a year ago. “I think it’ll be a lot easier when it comes to exiting or trying to transact with another company on the project.” TNM

JOINT VENTURE ARTICLE

Torq sees double in the Chilean Andes area and at the Cototuda target to determine their scale. With additional drilling looking to build tons, the implications of these new discoveries have the potential to establish the project as an important emerging discovery within the Coastal Cordillera belt. “The scale was already becoming attractive to mid-tier companies and now we’ve got this whole oxide story at the southern part of the project, which could be very important,” the geologist says.

BY NORTHERN MINER STAFF

Torq Resources (TSXV: TORQ) could be on the cusp of discovering not one, but two major copper-gold systems right under the noses of leading mining companies. Working in northern Chile and in hand with one of the country’s most experienced exploration geologists, the company has already found significant mineralization on both sites but must keep drilling to assess their size. Torq fulfils a long-held ambition for CEO, Shawn Wallace, and chief geological officer, Michael Henrichsen, to work in Chile, home to several of the biggest copper mines on the planet. “It is a difficult place to get into as a junior,” explains Wallace. The country’s mineral tenure rules — under which claims can be held indefinitely — mean almost all prospective ground is already staked and tightly held. Accessing potential targets means negotiating deals with wealthy families who have little motive to cede their land. But by bringing in Waldo Cuadra, Torq’s country manager and a 40-year veteran of Chile’s exploration scene, who also played a part in discovering the El Morro copper-gold project, the company acquired a deep knowledge of Chile’s potential as well as good relations with all the key players. Cuadra has brought along many of his long-time associates, including experts in land tenure, community relations as well as geology and geophysics. “They’ve forgotten more about

At Torq Resources’ Margarita IOCG project in Chile. TORQ RESOURCES Chilean rocks than I’ll ever know,” Henrichsen says. The team has hit the ground running with its first project — Margarita — an IOCG (iron-oxidecopper-gold) asset typical of Chile’s coastal mountain range, located close to Capstone Copper’s (TSX: CS) Mantoverde operation. With limited historic drilling and evidence of breccia and extensive alteration, the company’s bet was that they could find sulphide sources of the copper oxides visible at surface. The wager came through in the thirteenth hole, the Falla 13 discovery, which included 90 metres of almost 1% copper and 0.84 gram gold per tonne almost from surface. Follow-up drilling has identified 800 metres of continuous mineralized body with gold levels that are unusually high for this kind of deposit. Drilling of nearby targets, identified through geochemistry, has uncovered two more

discoveries. The latest results, published on Oct. 18, include a hole in a new parallel mineralized structure 200 metres west of the original Falla 13 discovery with one hole returning 42 metres of 1.1 gram gold per ton and 0.48% copper. At the Cototuda target on the southwest of the property, a broad area of copper mineralization has taken the team by surprise with one hole intercepting 132 metres at 0.48% copper. The hope is now that Torq could be on top of a cluster of mineralized bodies similar to those at Mantoverde and Santo Domingo (also owned by Capstone). “To have this second discovery has been an incredibly important step and shows that the property has potential for different bodies,” Henrichsen explains. The company now plans to start drilling to expand upon the latest discoveries at the Falla 13

Santa Cecilia Torq’s bet on Chile does not end there. Following that initial success, Wallace and Henrichsen are working on a second project high in the famous Maricunga belt, once known for gold mineralization but where major porphyry deposits have been found in recent decades. The Santa Cecilia project lies adjacent to two of the largest deposits — Caspiche and Cerro Casale — now owned by Barrick Gold (TSX: ABX) and Newmont Mining (NYSE: NEM) and which contain a measured and indicated resources totalling around 44 million oz. of gold and 11 billion lb. of copper. But while they have been thoroughly drilled out and explored, quirks of the property system in Chile mean the adjacent Santa Cecilia has barely been touched. “It’s like a time machine — while the whole porphyry story in the Maricunga evolved, almost no work was done on this property for 22 years,” explains Henrichsen. Torq’s drilling began last March and results already suggest the

company has struck gold again. Its second hole intersected 557 metres at 0.23% copper, 0.38 grams gold per ton and 56 parts per million molybdenum. So far, the grades encountered demonstrate that the company could be close to a high-grade core — similar to that at Caspiche — which would transform the economics of the project and prick the interest of investors. As well as its geological credentials, the project’s stellar setting is another big attraction. Barrick and Newmont may look at developing a single operation for their giant deposits, which lie 13 km apart across difficult terrain. But synergies could be even greater with Torq’s project, which is within a kilometre of the Caspiche project. “The other thing that we really like about it is that every major mining company on the planet is here, so you have an exit strategy built in,” Wallace said. Torq is now planning its next drill program at Santa Cecilia during the upcoming Southern Hemisphere summer, confident that its project’s potential will be evident to investors. “We believe that everybody will see the merits of Santa Cecilia — they always do — so we very much look forward to drilling again,” says Henrichsen. The preceding Joint Venture Article is PROMOTED CONTENT sponsored by Torq Resources and produced in co-operation with The Northern Miner. Visit: www. torqresources.com for more information.

SPECIAL FOCUS SOUTH AMERICA

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

www.northernminer.com

SOUTH AMERICA SNAPSHOT:

Eight companies hunting for critical and precious metals BY NORTHERN MINER STAFF

South America is endowed with geology steeped in precious, base and battery metals, and the continent has had a storied mining history. Below we showcase eight companies active in the region. n Alpha Lithium

Vancouver-based Alpha Lithium (NEO: ALLI; US-OTC: APHLF) is advancing lithium brine projects in Argentina’s portion of the Lithium Triangle, a lithium-rich region of the Andes that covers parts of Argentina, Bolivia and Chile. Its flagship 100%-owned Tolillar project is one of the last remaining undeveloped salars — salt flats — in Argentina’s Salta province. It is also situated just 10 km from Allkem (TSX: AKE; ASX: AKE) and Livent’s (NYSE: LTHM) Fenix lithium project, which has produced about 20,000 tonnes a year of lithium carbonate chemicals for more than two decades. In September, Alpha Lithium updated a preliminary economic assessment (PEA) for a 25,000tonne per year commercial-scale operation at Tolillar producing battery-grade lithium carbonate chemicals using traditional pond evaporation and direct lithium extraction (DLE). The PEA outlined an initial capex of US$777 million, including a US$179 million contingency, and a 3.7-year after-tax payback period. The study estimated an after-tax net present value (8% discount rate) of US$1.7 billion and an internal rate of return of 25.6%. An average lithium carbonate price of US$23,146 per tonne was used for the analysis, and cash costs added up to US$5,980 per tonne. Also in September, Alpha’s board recommended that shareholders accept a revised takeover bid from TechEnergy Lithium Canada, a subsidiary of Tecpetrol Investments, at a price of US$1.48 per share, a 24% premium to its closing price on Sept. 21. TechEnergy made its first non-solicited approach in May, but it was rejected

Drill rigs at Atlas Lithium’s Minas Gerais site in the namesake state of Brazil. ATLAS LITHIUM

by Alpha as opportunistic. Alpha’s Tolillar project has indicated resources of 3.6 million tonnes lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) and inferred resources of 1.4 million tonnes LCE. The resource also includes 13.2 million indicated tonnes of potassium chloride (KCI) and another 5.3 million inferred tonnes of KCI. The resource was defined over a 102-sq.-km footprint using results from short-term pumping tests and from naturally flowing wells. Alpha’s second project, Hombre Muerto, is 10 km from Tolillar, and Vertical Electrical Sounding surveys indicate significant brine presence, the company says. The company has a market cap of about $262 million. n Atlas Lithium

Florida-based Atlas Lithium (NASDAQ: ATLX) plans to be-

come a lithium concentrate producer and holds lithium and other battery metal rights (nickel, rare earths, titanium and graphite) in Brazil. Its flagship, 100%-owned Minas Gerais hard rock lithium project, spreads across 240 sq. km in the north of that state. The company recently announced a new shallow pegmatite discovery (Anitta 4), following step-out drilling west of the company’s main 2.3-km-long Anitta pegmatite trend. Anitta 4 is located within the project’s Neves area, a cluster of four mineral rights in Brazil’s Lithium Valley. Drill hole DHAB-290 intersected mineralized spodumene starting at 170 metres depth with a cumulative spodumene intersect length of 43.7 metres. Drill hole DHAB-289 yielded a cumulative 18.7 metres of mineralized spodumene from 70 metres depth. Assays are pending. Atlas has identified at least 20

pegmatite outcrops so far. Drilling in some of these targets has returned up to 5.23% lithium oxide (Li2O). (Drill hole DHAB-186 in pegmatite Anitta 3, intersected 5.23% Li2O at a depth of just 9 metres, and DAB-200 returned a cumulative total of 46.7 metres of mineralized spodumene starting at 54 metres depth, including 18.3 metres at an average grade of 1.51% Li2O.The company says metallurgical testwork confirmed the ability to concentrate its lithium samples to a grade of 7.22% Li2O. Last month, Atlas appointed former Allkem chairman Martin Rowley as its lead strategic advisor. Rowley is known for co-founding copper producer First Quantum Minerals (TSX: FM) in 1996, later joining Lithium One as chairman in 2009. Following Lithium One’s merger with Galaxy Resources, Rowley continued as chairman, growing the company until its

Jaguar Mining’s Turmalina mine and mill complex in Brazil’s Minas Gerais state. JAGUAR MINING

merger with Orocobre in 2021, which created Allkem. Atlas owns about 45% of the common shares of Apollo Resources, a private company focused on iron ore, and about 28% of Jupiter Gold (US-OTC: JUPGF), which has gold projects and is developing a quartzite mine. Atlas has a market cap of roughly US$285 million. n Founders Metals

Founders Metals (TSXV: FDR) is a Vancouver-based company with gold projects in South America’s Guiana Shield. Its flagship is Antino in southeastern Suriname, 275 km from the capital city of Paramaribo. Historical alluvial gold mining from pits on the 200-sq.-km property produced over 500,000 oz. gold, the company says. Exploration work has included more

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

SPECIAL FOCUS SOUTH AMERICA

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

the three combined claims. Two of the wells, one 250 metres deep and the other 400 metres deep, will be drilled on the Alba Sabrina claim block, and the other, 250 metres deep, will be located on the Natalia Maria claim block. The results will be used in an upcoming feasibility study. Two previous production wells were installed at the Tramo claim block. Lithium South is working on a feasibility study. A 2019 PEA forecast a mine life of 30 years. The Vancouver-based company has a market cap of roughly $40 million. n Luminex Resources

Digging a trench at Alpha Lithium’s Tolillar Salar in Argentina. ALPHA LITHIUM

than 30,000 metres of historic drilling, which has been compiled into a new database, more than 35,000 auger gold-in-soil anomalies, property-wide aeromagnetic survey data; structural mapping of pits; and an airborne LiDAR topographic survey. The project is fully permitted for surface exploration, drilling and gold mining. The company commenced its first drill program in July and has reported intersects of 12 metres grading 19.22 grams gold from 55 metres in drill hole 23FRDD003; 9 metres of 11.1 grams gold from 83 metres in drill hole 23FR009; 12.2 metres of 8.75 grams gold in drill hole 23GR011 from 76 metres; and 15.5 metres of 30.72 grams gold from 64 metres in drill hole 23FR014. The company has completed more than 3,800 metres of a planned 10,000-metre program of diamond drilling this year. Founders describes the deposit type as a high-grade shear-hosted gold vein system and bulk-tonnage vein stockworks, and notes that the geology at Antino, characterized by folded volcanic and sedimentary assemblages, is similar to two wellknown gold mines in the country, Zijin Mining’s Rosebel and Newmont Mining’s (TSX: NGT; NYSE: NEM) Merian. The project, which lies within the Southern Greenstone Belt that extends into French Guiana, has numerous untested anomalies that have been identified from historic gold-in-soils and geophysical data, and all mineralized zones remain open along strike and at depth. The company has the option to acquire up to a 75% interest in the project over three stages of work, cash and share commitments. Founders has a market cap of roughly $41.8 million. n Jaguar Mining

Toronto-based Jaguar Mining (TSX: JAG; US-OTC: JAGGF) produces gold near the city of Belo Horizonte in Brazil’s Iron Quadrangle, a greenstone belt in Minas Gerais state. The company has built and still owns four mines and three mills. Last year the underground mines at its Turmalina and Caete mine complexes produced a total of 80,968 oz. gold at all-in sustaining costs (AISC) of US$1,483 per oz. gold sold. This year its guidance is set within a range of 84,000-88,000 oz. at AISCs of between US$1,275 and US$1,375 per ounce.

In addition to Turmalina and Caete, the company owns the Paciencia mine, which has been on care and maintenance since 2012, and the Roca Grande mine, on temporary care and maintenance since April 2019. The Turmalina mine and mill complex is about 130 km northwest of Belo Horizonte, and the Caete mine and mill complex is about 50 km to the east of Belo Horizonte. Paciencia sits about 80 km to the southwest of the city. Belo Horizonte is considered Brazil’s mining capital and has a population of 4 million. In September, Jaguar completed the acquisition of the Pitangui project and the remaining interest in the Acurui project from a subsidiary of Iamgold (TSX: IMG; NYSE: IAG). Pitangui is about 110 km from Belo Horizonte — near its Turmalina mine complex — and Acurui is contiguous to its Paciencia property and will be considered a part of the exploration and development package available to restart production at Paciencia. In a presentation at the recent Beaver Creek Precious Metals Summit, the company said that since 2015, its mineral resource inventory inclusive of reserves has maintained a four- to five-year mine life at current production rates, and that it plans to source fresh mill feed through exploration on its land, and potential arrangements with neighbours. The company has a market cap of about $99 million.

n Lithium South

Development

Lithium South Development (TSXV: LIS; US-OTC: LISMF) is focused on its flagship Hombre Muerto North lithium project on the Hombre Muerto Salar in Argentina’s Salta and Catamarca provinces, about 1,400 km northwest of Buenos Aires. The 100%-owned project in the heart of the lithium triangle is adjacent to a US$4-billion lithium plant being built by South Korea’s POSCO, part of the Korean steelmaker’s plan to create a vertically integrated supply chain for making EV batteries. Lithium South recently updated the project’s measured and indicated resource to 1.6 million tonnes of LCE at an average grade of 736 mg per litre lithium, with a low average magnesium to lithium ratio of 3.3 to one. The resource was a combination of the in-situ contained lithium at the Alba Sabrina, Natalia Maria and Tramo claim blocks and was based on a resource expansion drill program completed this year The 57-sq.-km property package consists of nine mining concessions, six on the salar and three off the salar. The company is designing a pilot plant to prove low-risk evaporation technology, and in mid-September it announced it will drill three wells, two at Alba Sabrina and one at Natalia Maria. Long-term pumping tests will determine optimal pumping rates, which will help estimate the overall production potential for

Luminex Resources (TSXV: LR; US-OTC: LUMIF) is advancing its Condor gold-copper project in southeastern Ecuador, about 30 km south of Lundin Gold’s (TSX: LUG; US-OTC: LUGDF) Fruta del Norte, one of the world’s highest-grade operating gold mines. Condor has an indicated resource of 111 million tonnes grading 0.65 gram gold per tonne and 3.6 grams silver per tonne (0.75 gram gold-equivalent per tonne) for 2.3 million oz. contained gold and 12.8 million oz. silver (2.7 million gold-equivalent ounces). Inferred resources add 224 million tonnes grading 0.6 gram gold and 2.5 grams silver (0.72 gram gold-equivalent) for 4.3 million oz. gold and 18.1 million oz. silver (5.2 million gold-equivalent ounces). Following a 2021 PEA and resource update, the company discovered high-grade gold and silver mineralization at Cuyes West, an area west of its Los Cuyes pit. The PEA on Condor North evaluated four deposits (Los Cuyes, Soledad, Enma and Camp) that would provide a 12-year mine life with average annual payable production of 187,000 oz. gold and 758,000 oz. silver. The study estimated an after-tax net present value (5% discount rate) of US$562 million and an internal rate of return of 20.3% using a gold price of US$1,760 per ounce. All-in sustaining costs were pegged at US$839 per oz., net of byproduct credits, and initial capital costs at US$607 million. Elsewhere in Ecuador, Luminex has two separate earn-in agreements with Anglo American (LSE: AAL) and the Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corp. or JOGMEC. Anglo American owns 25% of Luminex’s Pegasus project. Pegasus A is 2 km south of the historic Estero Hondo gold mine, and Pegasus B is adjacent to Salazar Resources’ (TSXV: SRL; US-OTC: SRLZF) Curipamba project.

JOGMEC has the right to earn a 70% stake in Luminex’s Orquideas project, where mineralized outcrops have assayed up to 0.9% copper and 0.66% molybdenum and there are peripheral high-grade gold and base metal veins. The company is drilling about 2,000 metres there this year. The Vancouver-based company has a market cap of about $34 million. n Rio 2

Rio 2 (TSXV: RIO; US-OTC: RIOFF) is focused on its Fenix gold project in Chile’s Maricunga mineral belt, about 160 km northeast of Copiapo. The company completed a feasibility study in September that contemplated a conventional open pit mine and run-of-mine heap leach operation. The study concluded Fenix would produce an average of 91,000 oz. per year during its first 12 years of operation and 54,000 oz. gold annually during its final five years for total life-of-mine production of 1.3 million ounces. The study estimated an after-tax net present value (5% discount rate) of US$210 million and an internal rate of return of 28.5% using a gold price of US$1,750 per ounce. Initial capital costs of US$117 million could be paid back (after-tax) in about 2.8 years after the start of production. (The initial capex estimate excluded pre-construction activities completed to date amounting to about US$29 million). Fenix has measured and indicated resources of 411 million tonnes grading 0.38 gram gold per tonne for 5 million oz. gold and inferred resources of 137 million tonnes grading 0.32 gram gold for 1.4 million oz. gold. The resource was constrained within a US$1,500 per oz. optimized open pit. The company says mineralization remains open at depth and along strike, and further drilling provides an opportunity to increase resources and extend the projected mine life. Over the last 12 months the company wound down pre-construction activities to deal with its administrative appeal to overturn the Chilean authority’s disapproval of the project’s environmental economic assessment. Chile’s Regional Evaluation Commission, which includes 12 governmental institutions, voted for not approving the environmental impact assessment in July 2022. Rio notes that the run-of-mine heap leach operation it envisions South America continued on P40 >

The Hombre Muerto North lithium project at the Hombre Muerto Salar in Argentina’s Salta and Catamarca provinces. LITHIUM SOUTH DEVELOPMENT

SPECIAL FOCUS SOUTH AMERICA

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

www.northernminer.com

Horizonte Minerals in talks to fund nickel project overrun BRAZIL

| Cost to build Araguaia project has risen by more than a third

BY CECILIA JAMASMIE

H Working on a drill rig at Rio 2’s Fenix gold project in northeastern Chile. RIO 2

> South America from P39

would not require crushing or tailings storage facilities, which would minimize Fenix’s overall impact and footprint. Rio filed an appeal in August 2022. The Vancouver-headquartered company has a market cap of roughly $53 million. n Tincorp Metals

Tincorp Metals (TSXV: TIN; USOTC: TINFF), formerly called Whitehorse Gold, changed its name in February to reflect its focus on tin projects in Bolivia. The company has signed agreements to earn 100% of the SF tin project and the Porvenir tin-zincsilver project, both near the city of Oruru in Bolivia’s tin belt. Its 2-sq.-km SF project is in Bolivia’s southwestern Potosi department, 72 km from Oruru and 15 km northwest of the Llallaga deposit, one of the world’s largest tin deposits. The property hosts a historic open pit, as well as smallscale underground workings. Rio Tinto (NYSE: RIO; LSE: RIO; ASX: RIO) explored the project in the 1990s, drilling seven holes and digging exploration trenches. Two of the holes intercepted significant mineralization, with drill hole ESF001 intersecting 236 metres

grading 0.41% tin, 1.12% zinc and 15 grams silver per tonne from a depth of 125 metres; and drill hole ESF002 returned a 180-metre interval grading 0.29% tin, 1.06% zinc and 13 grams silver starting from 94 metres. The Porvenir project, 65 km southeast of Oruru, is 15 km south of Huanuni, the country’s largest tin mine. Like the SF project, Porvenir contains an historic open pit as well as underground workings. Japan’s Dowa Metals & Mining drilled 88 holes (26,959 metres) between 2007 and 2011, identifying more than 19 veins assaying up to 10.2% tin, 28.1% zinc, 6.34% lead and 941 grams silver. Tincorp kicked off its first drill program (seven holes for 2,500 metres) at Porvenir in May. Its inaugural hole, DPOV001, returned 120.4 metres grading 0.6% tin, 1.11% zinc, 6 grams silver and 0.07% copper (284 grams silver equivalent) from 259 metres downhole, including 21.6 metres averaging 2.25% tin, 3.35% zinc, 21 grams silver and 0.2% copper (1,022 grams silver equivalent). Outside Bolivia, the company owns 100% of the Skukum gold project, about 84 km south of Whitehorse. Tincorp Metals, based in Vancouver, has a market cap of about $29 million. TNM

orizonte Minerals (TSX: HZM) said on Oct. 23 that it’s holding talks with major shareholders and lenders to solve the current funding gap for the company’s Araguaia nickel project in northern Brazil. The company, which began building the mine in May last year, warned earlier in October the project costs had increased by more than a third. It also delayed first production to the third quarter of 2024. CEO Jeremy Martin said that construction has continued as planned, with milestones including the installation of rotary kiln sections on support piers, the completion of the furnace shell, and roof installation in progress. As of Sept. 30, Horizonte had spent US$429 million on Araguaia, with US$346 million drawn down from the senior secured project finance debt facility, it said. The company has total liquidity sources of US$253 million, comprising US$131 million undrawn on the debt facility and cash of US$122 million. The project had, by the end of last month, stockpiled 138,000 tonnes of ore averaging 1.92% nickel. The miner said that commissioning a 126-km, 230-kilovolt power transmission line was underway. “Notwithstanding the expected increase in capital, the Araguaia project remains a Tier 1 nickel project with lower quartile C1 cash cost and a long mine life of 28 years, producing a high-grade, low impurity iron/nickel project,” Martin said. The executive noted the company had retained Reta Engenharia to conduct a detailed capital cost

The Araguaia nickel mine is set to produce 29,000 tonnes of the battery metal a year over an estimated 28-year period. HORIZONTE MINERALS

“Notwithstanding the expected increase in capital, the Araguaia project remains a Tier 1 nickel project...” JEREMY MARTIN, CEO OF HORIZONTE NICKEL

and schedule analysis, set to be completed by the middle of the fourth quarter this year. An independent technical advisor, nominated by senior lenders, would then review the updated costs. Horizonte Minerals expects the Araguaia operation, which

includes an open pit and a processing plant, to produce 29,000 tonnes of nickel a year mostly destined to supply the stainless steel market. Horizonte shares traded at 29¢ in Toronto at press time, valuing the company at $79.5 million. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of 27¢ and $2.88. TNM

Court rules in favour of Brazil Potash’s Autazes project LEGAL

| Indigenous support for project, where production is expected to start in 2026, is disputed

BY BRUNO VENDITTI

razil’s Federal Regional Court of the 1st Region ruled in favour of Canadian miner Brazil Potash’s Autazes project in the Amazon on Oct. 17. Federal Judge Marcos Augusto de Souza suspended a lower court decision that ruled that if the land is demarcated Indigenous in the future, then only Brazil’s Congress and federal agency Ibama could authorize mining in the area. Federal prosecutors alleged in a civil action that the Institute for Environmental Protection of Amazonas (Ipaam), a regional agency, which initially granted the permit, didn’t have the right to do so. Prosecutors also claimed that Potássio do Brasil, the Brazilian unit of Brazil Potash, violated the local Indigenous population’s constitutional right of land usage, didn’t conduct sufficient consultation with affected communities and threatened local leaders. Indigenous leaders said that the new decision doesn’t reflect the

A farmer holds granules of fertilizer. BRAZIL POTASH

opinion of the 12,000 people who live in the region. “There is no consensus on this. Especially in the village of Soares, which is the one that will suffer the most impact and unfortunately has been excluded from the dialogue,” said Herton Mura, a member of the Organization of Indigenous Leaders of the Mura People of Careiro da Várzea. “The Federal judge disregarded that the consultation with resi-

dents of the region was not carried out correctly in accordance with the consultation protocol, that the Soares Indigenous land is in the process of demarcation,” Mura said. The Autazes project, however, is supported by the Mura Indigenous Council (CIM), one of the organizations that represent Indigenous peoples in the region. “The company co-opted CIM leaders. It made promises of royalties, promises of improvements

Federal Judge Marcos Augusto de Souza suspended a lower court decision that ruled that if the land is demarcated Indigenous in the future, then only Brazil’s Congress and federal agency Ibama could authorize mining in the area. such as the construction of schools and health centres. These are public policies, not the company’s responsibility,” said Mariazinha Baré,

coordinator of the Articulation of Organizations and Indigenous Peoples of Amazonas (Apiam). CIM denies the allegations and said over 90% of the communities agreed with the project. Brazil Potash also denies any wrongdoing. Adriano Espeschit, the President of Potássio do Brasil, said it heard the concerns of 34 of the 36 villages impacted by the project. The proposed mine and processing facilities in Autazes, 120 km southeast of the capital of Amazonas state, Manaus, would require about three years to build. The $2.5-billion project would be built on low density cattle farm land, deforested several decades ago by prior owners, Brazil Potash said. The orebody is not located under Indigenous land, but is within 10 km of two reserves resulting in the need for consultations with locals. Production is expected to start in 2026 with an initial output sufficient to cover about 20% of Brazil’s potash needs. Project capacity is pegged at 2.2 million tonnes of potassium chloride per year, according to the company. TNM

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

culturesection New kids book aims to get girls into mining BOOKS

| Importance of mining education in focus with Panama protests

BY ALISHA HIYATE

ove over Dora the Explorer — another Latina heroine and adventurer is here and she’s ready to teach kids about mining. Like Dora, Ana likes adventures and problem solving. But she — and the other characters in Ana Gabriela Juárez’s new book “Ana’s Adventures at the Mine: The Secret of La Esperanza” — are based on real people. Ana is modelled on the author, president of CTA Environmental Consultants and founder of WIM Central America, while her grandmother in the book is Canadian Mining Hall of Fame member and geologist, Maureen Jensen. Juárez, who’s based in Toronto but is originally from Guatemala, said she’s always believed it’s important to educate kids about rocks and mining. The idea for the book came to her during the pandemic, when WIM Central America started online mineralogy clubs for kids. “Kids are a really big group of people that sometimes mining companies don’t take into account with their stakeholder groups, but it’s such an important group,” she said. “It’s super interesting because kids, when they understand some-

Ana Juarez.

Ana’s adventures at the mine book cover. CONTRIBUTED IMAGE

thing and get passionate about it, they’re really great advocates.” Juárez said in her experience with mineralogy clubs, which are now meeting in-person, kids love learning around rocks, and sharing what they learn with friends at school and with their families. “We get pictures of them having

their entire families in the living room sitting there and them teaching them about the importance of mining.” Central America mining woes Mining is unwelcome throughout much of Central America, and

one of Juarez’s aims when starting a WIM organization in the region was to change people’s perspective on the industry. “We saw that we had several issues that we needed to work with in our region to promote mining, but also female representation. We cannot be women in mining organizations if we don’t have mining in our countries, right?” Several countries in the region have banned or placed heavy restrictions on mining. A popular backlash against the industry is now unfolding in Panama. In response to huge protests against

Panama’s recent deal with First Quantum Minerals (TSX: FM), for example, the country’s President Laurentino Cortiz on Oct. 27 said he would ban any new mines, including those already in the permitting process. Juárez says that education about mining is key to fostering a better understanding of the industry in Central America and countering deep-seated negative perceptions. The idea for the book came to her when she realized there was no educational literature for kids to read in Spanish that was related to mining. She thought about what her 12-year-old son and his cousins in Guatemala would be interested in. The result is “Ana’s Adventures at the Mine”, which will soon be available in Portuguese, Arabic, French and German, in addition to English and Spanish. The story follows Ana, who finds a truck containing her grandmother’s geology gear with her friends on her birthday. The friends are magically transported to the mining valley of Esperanza where they need to work together to solve a series of challenges. Part of the proceeds go to WIM Central America, and Juárez says the book, aimed at ages 8-13, is already on Amazon’s best sellers list in 38 categories. TNM

Bankable actor Idris Elba takes viewers on global, gold-infused adventure MOVIES

| World Gold Council-sponsored doc attempts to interest a wider audience in the yellow metal

BY HENRY LAZENBY

ctor Idris Elba takes audiences on a global journey about gold in a new documentary from the World Gold Council, Gold: A Story of Beauty, Power, and Transformation. The movie, which premiered on Oct. 5, supports the WGC’s mission to get a wider audience — particularly younger generations — interested in the yellow metal. Gold has faced competition from cryptocurrencies even as it retains its safe haven reputation. From mining the depths of Agnico Eagle Mines’ (TSX: AEM; NYSE: AEM) La Ronde Complex in Quebec, to showcasing its essential role in modern-day technology and medicine, Elba makes the case for “the transformative power of gold” — not just as a metal, but “in its significance to human culture, tradition, and history,” he says in the film. The popular British actor, known for roles in films and shows like Luther and Beasts of No Nation, said filming the documentary opened his eyes to the deeper meanings and facets of gold. Elba explores gold’s diverse cultural touchpoints, such as the traditional importance of gold wedding jewelry in India, and hip-hop artists who think showing off gold-gilded gems at London’s Hatton Garden is equally fashionable.

Elba also explores his heritage in Ghana, his mother’s homeland, a nation that gold built. He joins the grand Ashanti Akwasidae Festival, a vibrant celebration of gold’s significance to the kingdom’s prosperity. In the Americas, the film tells the tale of San Francisco’s gold rush in 1848 that transformed the city; and the SS Central America wreckage, hous-

ing gold and the oldest known pair of Levi jeans, is also featured, highlighting an unexpected link between gold and the creation of one of the world’s most iconic jeans brands. In South Africa, Elba unravels the country’s history interwoven

with gold mining. He spotlights the technological leaps of Gold Fields’ (NYSE: GFI; JSE: GFI) South Deep, one of the world’s deepest profitable underground operations, emphasizing its move to automation that now welcomes more

Left: Idris Elba in Ghana. WORLD GOLD COUNCIL Below: Elba observes mine operations in South Africa. WORLD GOLD COUNCIL

women and generates new job roles than in previous years. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the actor showcases Barrick Gold’s (TSX: ABX; NYSE: GOLD) Kibali mine’s renewable energy innovations and its role in uplifting the local economy. Elba then travels to New Zealand, witnessing firsthand the transformation of a former mine into a thriving ecosystem. A particularly impactful segment covers malaria control initiatives in Ghana. Originally designed to protect mine workers, these efforts have expanded exponentially, now shielding over a million Ghanaians every year from the lethal disease. The film also highlights gold’s critical roles in current technology and medicine, including its application in COVID-19 lateral flow tests and in pioneering space missions. Elba’s expedition reaches its zenith with a mesmerizing visit inside the gold-laden vaults of the Bank of England. The movie premiered the same day the WGC named Sibanye-Stillwater (NYSE: SBSW; JSE: SSW) chief executive Neal Froneman as its new chair, taking over from Wheaton Precious Metals (TSX: WPM; NYSE: WPM) president and CEO Randy Smallwood. It has more than 2 million views on YouTube. Visit journey.gold to watch the entire film. TNM

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

www.northernminer.com

projectupdates [CONTINUED FROM P20] Oroco PEA for Santo Tomas points to ‘robust potential,’ says CEO MEXICO

| Study pegs initial capex at US$1.3B

BY JACKSON CHEN

new preliminary economic assessment (PEA) for Oroco Resource’s (TSXV: OCO; US-OTC: ORRCF) Santo Tomas project in Mexico estimates it could produce total payable copper in concentrate of 4.8 billion lb. over a 20-year life. The study forecasts the project would generate an after-tax net present value of US$1.2 billion, using an 8% discount rate. With an internal rate of return of 17.3% and after-tax payback period of five years from first concentrate production, initial capital costs are pegged at about US$1.3 billion and sustaining and expansion capital costs for the project in Sinaloa, Mexico are pegged at US$1.1 billion. Its average annual cash cost over a 20-year life is calculated at US$1.66 per lb. copper on a byproduct basis. Byproducts total 82.6 million lb. of molybdenum, 26.3 million oz. of silver and

331,900 oz. of gold. The PEA results support a staged open pit mine and processing plant starting at 60,000 tonnes per day in the first year of production, then expanding to 120,000 tonnes per day in the second year. Production is preceded by two years of construction and pre-stripping. “This is a significant start to the process of evaluating Santo Tomas. The PEA firmly demonstrates the economic viability of the Santo Tomas project and justifies its continued development,” Oroco’s CEO Richard Lock stated in a news release on Oct. 17. Shares of Oroco jumped by 9.1% to 73¢ apiece on the news. Santo Tomas comprises 90.3 sq. km of mineral concessions encompassing significant porphyry copper mineralization in northern Sinaloa and southwest Chihuahua. Oroco holds an 85.5% interest in the 11.7 sq. km that comprise the central concessions, plus an 80% interest in the remaining 78.6 sq.

km that surround this core area. The PEA was based on data from more than 43,000 metres of drilling by Oroco as well as over 21,000 metres of legacy drilling in the North and South zones. The results culminated in the project’s updated mineral resource, totalling 561 million indicated tonnes at 0.37% copper-equivalent and 549 million inferred tonnes at 0.34% copper-equivalent. According to Lock, the company has also identified a high probability of additional upside in project economics through the future application of mine and process design improvements, all of which confirm that there is a “substantial resource at Santo Tomas.” “In summary, the Santo Tomas project clearly has robust potential for the development of a large, low-cost open-pit, copper mining operation,” he concluded. Shares in Vancouver-based Oroco traded at 53¢ at press time. The company has a market capitalization of $115 million. TNM

SolGold advances plan to sell flagship Cascabel copper project ECUADOR

| Junior reports five suitors have visited the project, Project has estimated 55-year mine life

SolGold’s Cascabel project in Ecuador. SOLGOLD BY CECILIA JAMASMIE

olGold (TSX: SOLG; LSE: SOLG) said in late October it was making headway with the potential sale of its flagship Cascabel copper-gold project in Ecuador, as it has held talks with more than 20 “highly credible” interested groups. The company, which merged last year with Cornerstone Capital Resources to consolidate 100% ownership of Cascabel, said on Oct. 25 that at least five potential suitors have already completed site visits. It added there were several follow-up visits being scheduled. “External groups evaluating the project are being very diligent in their review as they progress through various stages in their internal processes,” CEO and president Scott Caldwell said in astatement. “In parallel, we continue to advance and de-risk Cascabel to position it as a turnkey asset,” he

said. SolGold noted that work plans for 2024 are now funded, with no additional financing required in the near-term, thanks to a US$86 million combined investment from Osisko Gold Royalties (TSX: OR; NYSE: OR) and Jiangxi Copper. Caldwell reported that, since his appointment to the top job nearly a year ago, he had implemented a “hard reset” for the organization. The executive and Solgold’s chief financial officer, Chris Stackhouse, have tied their compensation to higher share prices and both have made personal investments in the company’s shares. The miner’s headcount has reduced by about 70% since the 2022 financial year. It now has 282 employees, down from 894. On the ground Another key move was Caldwell’s relocation to Ecuador to lead operations on the ground. Shortly after, the company

secured a 25-year licence renewal for the project, located in the Imbabura province of northwest Ecuador. SolGold said its current top priority is to continue advancing an ongoing strategic review, which includes the potential sale of Cascabel and/or SolGold’s Ecuadorian exploration portfolio. According to the prefeasibility study published in April last year, annual production will average 132,000 tonnes of copper, 358,000 oz. of gold and 1 million oz. of silver during Cascabel’s 55-year mine life. The company is working on an updated prefeasibility study, which it will publish by the end of next year’s first quarter. The study is expected to demonstrate a lower risk path for Cascabel with reduced capital intensity. SolGold shares traded at 16¢ a share at press time, for a market value of $465 million. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of 14¢ and 38.5¢. TNM

Freeman Gold’s Lemhi project in Idaho. FREEMAN GOLD

Freeman Gold shares rise on Lemhi PEA | Study points to ‘attractive’ project, even as analyst flags higher capex capex

IDAHO

BY JACKSON CHEN

hares in Idaho-focused junior explorer Freeman Gold (TSXV: FMAN; US-OTC: FMANF) rose as high as 11.5% following the release of an initial preliminary economic assessment (PEA) on its Lemhi project on Oct. 16. The PEA outlines an open-pit operation with estimated annual production of 75,900 oz. of gold over a 11.2-year mine life. Gold output over the first eight years is expected to average over 80,000 ounces. Using a base case gold price of US$1,750 per oz., the project’s after-tax net present value (at 5% discount) is calculated at US$212.4 million with an internal rate of return of 22.8%. At a spot gold price of US$1,932.50 per oz., the NPV increases to US$295.6 million, with the IRR rising to 28.6%. The Lemhi mine would cost US$190 million to build, with lifeof-mine cash costs estimated at US$809 per oz. All-in sustaining cash costs (AISC) are pegged at US$957 per ounce. “Lemhi represents a unique opportunity for the investment community to participate in a deeply discounted gold project that remains open on strike and trades at 6% of after tax NPV at US$1,750 gold and less than 5% at spot price,” said executive chairman Paul Matysek in a release. “This will certainly be attractive to gold mining developers and producers who see value in having an operation almost entirely on patented ground, a sub US$1,000/oz. AISC, a life of mine production over 850,000 oz., that is highly leveraged to gold price in a leading mining jurisdiction.” The production strategy outlined in the PEA, says Freeman, consists of a phased development with an increase in throughput

during the fifth year of operation, with a flowsheet utilizing a carbonin-leach processing facility. Lemhi comprises 30 sq. km in south-central Idaho, hosting a near-surface oxide gold resource of 30 million tonnes grading 1 gram gold per tonne in the measured and indicated categories, plus 7.6 million inferred tonnes at 1 gram gold. Commenting on the PEA in a note, Echelon Capital Partners analyst Gabriel Gonzalez said the study reveals an attractive project whose production and mine life present low operational and jurisdictional risks and should appeal to junior producers or potentially private equity. “In our view, the only downside to the PEA was capex cost inflation, +50% of what was otherwise expected, but in-line in terms of the capex inflation that we see throughout the industry.” Gonzalez noted that with Freeman shares trading at 14¢ each, it would also trade at US$8.81 per oz. compared to its peer group average of $27.58 per oz. and at a market cap of just US$14M. “Raising capital for the project may be restrictive,” he said. “However, given a relatively low-risk jurisdictional and permitting outlook, we believe that Freeman is well placed for a potential re-rating.” Echelon maintains its speculative buy rating and 90¢ per share target price, pending a modeling of the full PEA report, giving effect to the higher capex in its valuation. According to Freeman Gold, its Lemhi deposit is already one of the highest-grade oxide, near-surface gold resources in the U.S. The company is currently focused on growing and advancing the project, which it has been drilling since 2020, towards a production decision. Freeman has a market capitalization of $18.4 million. TNM

THE NORTHERN MINER | NOVEMBER 2023

GLOBAL MINING NEWS

projectupdates [CONTINUED FROM P16] Bravo Mining’s Luanga initial resource grows tonnages by up to 62% BRAZIL

| PGM-gold-nickel project was previously explored by Vale

| New find at Quebec project has starter pit potential

EXPLORATION

BY JACKSON CHEN

razil-focused explorer Bravo Mining (TSXV: BRVO; USOTC: BRVMF) shares surged after the company announced an initial resource estimate for its Luanga palladium-platinum-rhodium-gold-nickel project located in Pará state on Oct. 23. The resource for Luanga showed a substantial increase in tonnes and contained metals at higher palladium-equivalent grades than the historical estimate reported by Vale SA (NYSE: VALE), the project’s previous owner, Bravo said. Indicated resources amounted to 73 million tonnes at 1.75 grams per tonne palladium-equivalent for 4.1 million oz. of palladium-equivalent. Inferred resources total 118 million tonnes at 1.5 grams palladium-equivalent for 5.7 million oz. palladium-equivalent. This represented increases of 38% and 62% in the respective categories over the 2017 historical estimate of 124 million tonnes grading 1.24 palladium, platinum and gold and 0.11% nickel using a cut-off grade of 0.5 grams platinum group metals and gold. The news sent Bravo’s stock up 11.6% to $2.70 apiece. “The delivery of our maiden mineral resource estimate after only 15 months from our IPO is arguably Bravo’s most significant mile-

BY BRUNO VENDITTI

P A drill rig at Bravo Mining’s Luanga project . BRAVO MINING

stone to date. The resource estimate underscores Luanga’s size, grade, and potential open-pittable nature, which is supported by straightforward metallurgy,” said Luis Azevedo, CEO of Bravo Mining. “On top of such attributes, Luanga has the potential to be one of the few multi-million-ounce sources of such critical and scarce PGM and nickel metals outside regions challenged by political instability, infrastructure shortcomings and permitting complexities.” A majority of the Luanga resource is in sulphides, including 89,500 tonnes of nickel in the indicated category and 104,600 tonnes inferred. Oxide material totalled 4.6 million tonnes at 1.43 grams palladium-equivalent per tonne in the indicated category and 10 million tonnes at 1.3 grams palladium-equivalent inferred.

The initial estimate was based on 77,612 metres of drilling across 394 drill holes completed by Bravo and historical owners inside the mineralized envelope at Luanga between 1992 and 2023. According to the company, there is potential to increase Luanga’s oxide resource, as the mineralization remains open at depth along the 8.1-km strike of the deposit. A fully funded, 63,000-metre drill program is underway to follow up the encouraging results beyond the current pit constraints. A trenching program, which Bravo says has proven to be an effective way of assessing oxide mineralization potential, is also set to be completed. Bravo shares traded at $3.00 per share at press time for a market cap of $325 million. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $1.60 and $5.24. TNM

New resource bolsters Arizona Sonoran’s Cactus project | Past-producing site among top 10 copper projects in US by size

UNITED STATES

BY COLIN MCCLELLAND

Patriot Battery Metals discovers new highgrade zone at Corvette

rizona Sonoran Copper (TSX: ASCU) has nearly tripled its measured and indicated resource at the Cactus porphyry project on the site of the past-producing Sacaton mine south of Phoenix. Cactus has 446 million measured and indicated tonnes grading 0.58% copper for 5.2 billion lb. of the metal, according to an updated resource released in mid-October. That compares with 151.8 million measured and indicated tonnes at 0.53% copper in a resource issued in April last year. The upgrade for the combined Cactus, Stockpile and Parks/Salyer deposits is to form the basis for a prefeasibility study expected early next year, the company said. It may consider production of as much as 50,000 tonnes a year of copper cathode. “Our team has completed yet another key milestone in the process of reactivating the Cactus mine,” CEO and president George Ogilvie said in the release. Miners are increasingly probing historical sites to take advantage of improved recovery technology and increased metals demand even as the price of copper was US$3.63 a lb. at press time. It’s fallen below a threshold of US$4 per lb. in April that most developers would like to see. Rio Tinto (NYSE: RIO; LSE: RIO; ASX: RIO) invested $30.5 million for a 7.4% stake last year in the project that may use technology developed by its Nuton unit. But Arizona Sonoran is keen to say it plans to develop the project without a major calling the shots.

Connections, permits The project, ranked by S&P Global in August as one of the top 10 copper developments by size in the United States, aims to be a mid-tier producer with potential for a phased expansion. American Smelting and Refining (Asarco), a unit of Grupo México, operated the Sacaton mine 72 km south of Phoenix near Casa Grande from 1972 to 1984. It processed 38 million tonnes of copper ore through a flotation mill for 400 million lb. copper, 759,000 oz. silver, and 27,000 oz. gold. The site has about US$30 million of infrastructure and is at an advanced permitting stage with access to water and approved water rights, Sonoran says. . Inferred resources are now 233 million tonnes grading 0.47% copper for 2.2 billion lb. of the metal compared with 450 million tonnes at 0.54% copper for 4.9 billion lb. copper in a resource dated April last year. Some parts of the project boast higher grades. Parks/Salyer contains 130 million tonnes at 1.03% total soluble copper and Cactus East holds 41.2 million tonnes at 1.06% total soluble copper within the measured and indicated resources, the company said. . New drilling will focus on the Parks/Salyer southern extensions and exposure to a 4-km trend with pockets of mineralization south of Parks/Salyer in the Gap zone and northeast of Cactus East, Sonoran said. Arizona Sonoran shares traded at $1.45 apiece at press time, valuing the company at $158.1 million. Its shares traded in a 52-week window of $1.49 and $2.40. TNM

atriot Battery Metals (TSXV: PMET) has announced the discovery of a new high-grade zone at the CV13 spodumene pegmatite of the Corvette property in the James Bay region of northern Quebec. Drill samples from the zone range between 3% and 5% lithium oxide (Li2O), the company said in a news release. Highlights included 12.7 metres of 2.46% Li2O from 73.3 metres, including 7.6 metres of 3.82% Li2O in hole 191; and 8 metres at 2.86% Li2O starting at 57.2 metres in hole 195, including 4.3 metres at 5.03% Li2O. The CV13 spodumene pegmatite trend extends over a strike length of around 2.3 km through multiple outcrop exposures, of which about 1.1 km has now been traced continuously by drilling. According to the company, with significant mineralization now delineated further west at CV5 and at CV13, there are now several options for a starter pit. Development at CV5, which has an inferred resource, but lies partly under a shallow glacial lake, could

be delayed to later in the mine schedule. “As we continue to close the distance between CV5 and CV13 through drilling, this newly discovered high-grade zone at CV13, coupled with the large spodumene crystals observed (up to 1.3 metres in drill core), supports the interpretation that both share the same ‘plumbing’ system,” VP of exploration Darren Smith said. The CV5 spodumene pegmatite hosts about 109.2 million inferred tonnes at 1.42% Li2O, according to an initial resource published in July. It also hosts 160 parts per million tantalum, for 1.6 million tonnes of contained lithium oxide, or 3.8 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent, using a 0.4% lithium cut-off grade. Patriot said the estimate ranks CV5 as the largest lithium pegmatite resource in the Americas based on contained lithium carbonate equivalent, and one of the top 10 largest lithium pegmatite resources in the world. Shares of Patriot Battery Metals traded at $11.14 at press time, valuing the company at $1.4 billion. Its shares traded in a 52-week range of $4.69 and $17.74. TNM

Northern Graphite releases Mousseau resource QUEBEC

| Junior acquired project near its Lac des Iles mine last year

Northern Graphite’s Lac des Iles mine is about 80 km from its Mousseau project. NORTHERN GRAPHITE BY MARILYN SCALES

orthern Graphite (TSXV: NGC; USOTC: NGPHF) has released an updated resource estimate for its Mousseau property about 150 km north of Montreal and around 80 km from the company’s producing Lac des Iles (LDI) graphite mine. The resource at Mousseau now totals 2.8 million measured and indicated tonnes grading 7.9% graphite for 223,079 tonnes; and 331,884 inferred tonnes grading 9.2% graphite for 30,714 tonnes. “This report confirms the addition of almost 3 million tonnes of measured and indicated graphite resources to the company’s portfolio and supports our long-term growth strategy of leveraging LDI’s permitted plant and tailings facility to bolster our position as the only significant producer of natural graphite in North America,” said

COO Kirsty Liddicoat in a release. “Early test work indicates concentrate grades of +95% and recovery of 90%. We believe the next phase of drilling will expand resources further at Mousseau.” Formerly known as Mousseau West, Northern acquired the Mousseau property in October 2022. The land package was increased earlier this year with the inclusion of the Mousseau East property. The Mousseau deposit outcrops at surface make it suitable for open pit mining. The deposit is open in several directions and other conductors exist on the property, representing additional exploration targets. The graphite is mainly hosted by calcitic marbles which provide buffering for the low level of sulphides which indicates that like LDI, any tailings would likely be non-acid generating. Northern Graphite shares traded at 24¢ at press time in Toronto, valuing the company at $31.2 million TNM

NOVEMBER 2023 | THE NORTHERN MINER

www.northernminer.com

> GRID from P11

tonnes, Sinomine operations director Joey Champagne said during a site briefing. The Tanco mine started producing tantalum and cesium output in 1968, Champagne said. It stopped tantalum in 2013 but is still producing cesium, which is used primarily in oil drilling. The mill produced lithium from 1993 to 2009 before restarting it two years ago.

International Battery Metals’ lithium extraction plant. INTERNATIONAL BATTERY METALS

> DLE from P7

will likely be the one that can go quickest to market, he said. That isn’t E3’s own technology simply because it hasn’t had enough time and money to develop it. “We’re really pushing hard not to be a science experiment anymore and to build a commercial facility,” he said. “There are third party systems out there that are further advanced.” E3 will select which technology to pursue this month because it will form the basis of its Clearwater prefeasibility study that’s due early next year, he said. Clearwater, which plans to tap brine for green energy lithium from the same Leduc crude oil aquifer that boosted the prov-

> IAA from P9

version of the IAA must prioritize federal jurisdiction and effects within that jurisdiction, rather than broad policy considerations unrelated to federal authority,” Osler national co-chair Maureen Killoran wrote in an Oct. 13 Osler Update. In addition, the court highlighted that the IAA’s lack of a materiality threshold for designation leads to federal decision-making on projects that may not be sufficiently tied to federal jurisdiction. “This could have implications beyond the current case, affecting other federal decision-making powers. The Court expressed concern that the current legislation allows for the regulation of projects on broad grounds, potentially granting decision-makers excessive authority over projects regardless of federal jurisdiction,” Killoran wrote. Lastly, the court’s judgment raises questions about the federal government’s plans related to the energy transition, which have faced challenges for encroaching on provincial jurisdiction. “These statements suggest that other federal initiatives that specifically target greenhouse gas emission reductions, such as a cap on oil and gas emissions and a clean electricity standard, may similarly exceed the federal government’s jurisdiction and erode the division of powers under the Constitution,” Killoran wrote. Roadblock to mining Any changes to the IAA will impact the mining industry, with many projects across the country currently undergoing federal assessment and more entering the

ince’s post-war petroleum industry, has an after-tax net present value of $820 million at an 8% discount rate with an internal rate of return of 27%, according to a 2020 preliminary economic assessment. The aquifer holds 16 million tonnes of LCE in the measured and indicated categories and 900,000 inferred tonnes of LCE. Most projects intend to inject the post-lithium brine back underground. Doornbos said DLE technologies have comparable environmental profiles. “Some use a bit more water, some use a bit less. Some use a bit more reagent, some use a bit less, but they’re all alike,” he said. “If you stand far enough back, they’ll probably look fairly similar when you average it out.” TNM

process. MAC also highlighted the complex regulatory framework that mining projects face, including comprehensive provincial regulations and various federal requirements. The association argued there is sufficient regulatory oversight governing mine developments. “The federal government does not have jurisdiction over mining on provincial Crown land and does not have a dedicated regulator for mines. However, most new mining projects and major expansions have been subject to the federal IAA and predecessor legislation,” it said. For instance, the abundance of water in most parts of Canada means that a mining project may also require authorization under the Fisheries Act habitat provisions, an approval or Governor in Council Order under the Canadian Navigable Waters Act, and, in some cases, an amendment to Schedule 2 of the Metal and Diamond Mining Effluent Regulations. All mines must also comply with relevant general federal legislation such as the Explosives Act, the Species at Risk Act, the Migratory Birds Convention Act and the Canadian Environmental Protection Act. There’s an added layer with uranium projects. Uranium mines are subject to the exact provincial and federal requirements as other mines and are further regulated by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, adding yet another source of federal and provincial regulatory overlap. “MAC encourages the federal government and Parliament to take this extensive regulatory oversight into account as it considers its response to the Court’s opinion,” it said. TNM

Bunker busters China’s state-owned Sinomine bought the site in 2019 from Boston-based Cabot (NYSE: CBT), a global chemicals company. Cabot reportedly sold Tanco’s tantalum to United States defence contractors to harden bunker buster bombs, Peck said. Grid has paid $300,000 for the True North mine and mill and would pay $1 million more after a 90-day due diligence period with 1911 Gold ends this month. It would also buy $450,000 of 1911 Gold stock for about 10% of that company and contribute $2.9 million to the mine’s closure bond over three years, Dunbar said. The fully permitted mine shut last November after declining underground grades made it unprofitable. The mill is valued at more than $200

Spodumene ore with lithium glows orange in Donner Lake core samples under ultraviolet light. COLIN MCCLELLAND

million and could be refurbished by 2027 according to Grid. The scoping study by Primero Group, which owns 6% of Grid, says converting the mill can produce spodumene concentrate at a cost of $316.14 per tonne. It recommended further engineering studies totalling $2 million. New metallurgy tests showed a 70% recovery rate and production of concentrate grading

5.5% Li2O and iron content of 1.4% ferric oxide, Grid said. Dunbar was a banker with BMO before starting Mustang Minerals two decades ago with the Makva Mayville nickel project in the same southeast Manitoba region. The project holds 33.8 million indicated tonnes grading 0.27% nickel and 0.37% copper for 203 million lb. nickel and 276 lb. copper, according to a 2014 preliminary economic assessment. Mustang became Grid in 2016. Its stock traded at 12¢ apiece on Wednesday in Toronto, within a 52-week window of 10¢ to 24¢. Canada’s two producing lithium projects are the Tanco mine and the North American Lithium (NAL) project in Quebec operated in a 75%-25% partnership between Sayona Mining (ASX: SYA; US-OTC: SYAXF) and Piedmont Lithium (NASDAQ: PLL; ASX: PLL). It made its first commercial shipment of spodumene concentrate in August. “With car company demand set to accelerate, the market is underestimating the problems of the lithium supply side,” Dunbar said. “With an agreement with Tanco, all we need is a mining permit and we’re there.” TNM

“[Magino] is a unique opportunity to own one of [the 10 largest and lowest cost gold mines in Canada] not owned by a senior.’”

a US$250-million debt financing agreement with a syndicate of lenders to help it refinance its existing debt and pay for Magino’s development and expansion. The final estimate for Magino now sits at $980 million, according to Argonaut’s first quarter financial results, in May. But Young said he doesn’t expect costs to rise again. “The project is done now,” he said. “There’s a few pieces of infrastructure that are still outstanding, but the project is up and running. And so that capital inflation risk is now behind us.” Following a recent tour of Magino, BMO Capital Markets mining analyst Brian Quast said in a note on Sept. 10 that most metrics at the mine are positive even though many issues require attention as the mine progresses through commissioning. Staffing is one challenge. One truck wasn’t operating because of a lack of trained drivers, Quast said, and management noted there are around 70 open positions at Magino, despite efforts to upskill workers and attract more talent. Argonaut shares traded at 52¢ before press time in Toronto, giving the company a market capitalization of $449.6 million. Its shares traded in a 52-week range of 32¢ and 77¢. TNM

Donner Lake projects map. GRID METALS

ARGONAUT from 31

He declined to give a price estimate for the Mexican assets, but said the company would begin exploring sales in the fourth quarter. “I think we’re going to be realistic with this and do the right thing by our employees,” he said. “Our focus is to put the assets in the right hands. We’re looking for companies and management groups that share our values and have the balance sheet to execute and continue to operate these assets.” Argonaut’s change of heart on the Mexican projects comes several months after the government of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador passed a set of contentious mining laws that critics say will deter investment and harm the country’s mining industry. Under the new reforms, juniors will face a tougher process to obtain mining concessions, which will also be granted through public auctions, and the concessions have been shortened to 30 years from 50 years. Argonaut didn’t respond to questions as to whether those laws influenced the company’s decision to review its Mexican operations. Long, winding path Argonaut’s path to production at Magino has at times been winding and rough.

RICHARD YOUNG, CEO ARGONAUT GOLD

It acquired Magino in 2012, and began building the mine in 2020, when development costs were pegged around $510 million. Capex would rise three more times until 2023, including in December 2021, prompting the ouster of Argonaut’s founder, president and CEO Peter Dougherty. In June 2022, Argonaut closed an offering of 434 million common shares at 45¢ apiece, giving it $195.3 million gross for construction at Magino — while doubling its share count. It also inked

e h

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Q&A Mining some tales with… Randy Smallwood QUESTIONS BY COLIN MCCLELLAND

Every month, The Northern Miner gets to know a different executive in the mining industry by asking them about everything — except mining.

Q Favourite sports team? A Chelsea FC

RANDY SMALLWOOD

PRESIDENT & CEO, WHEATON PRECIOUS METALS

Q What’s your kryptonite? A My knees.

VANCOUVER, B.C.

Q What are you really into these days?

A Striving to reach 100 countries!

This month, we feature

I have visited 87 countries so far.

Randy Smallwood, president and CEO Metals.

Q What are you avoiding? A Nothing, I prefer to tackle any

Q What was your first job? A I grew up in a family auc-

Q What’s your biggest fear? A Deglobalization is high on my

of Wheaton Precious

issues head on.

tion business, so my first job at the age of eight was working the auction floor. Every day brought new treasures and challenges as you handle a wide range of items and interact with a diverse array of people, from passionate collectors and sellers to curious onlookers.

list of concerns. While globalization is not without its challenges, I believe it promotes equality, economic growth, fosters innovation and cooperation, and facilitates the movement of goods to those that need them.

Q Who is your mentor, guide or

Q If you weren’t in mining,

guru?

where would you be?

A I worked for Ian Telfer for

A I would be in another profes-

eight years early on in my career. He was an incredible mentor who greatly influenced the way I lead today and my approach to business in general.

sion that allows me to travel the world and experience new places and cultures.

Q What is the most used app

Q What have you learned along

on your phone?

A Strava—I use it almost daily to track various activities like biking, hiking, walking, running, etc.

Q What’s your favourite reading? A Bloomberg Markets, some-

“Ian Telfer was an incredible mentor who greatly influenced the way I lead today and my approach to business in general.”

times The Economist.

Q What do you drive? A I’ve been driving a Tesla Model Q Favourite band? S for 10 years now. Electric vehicles are the way of the future. A Pink Floyd / Van Morrison

Q Marvel or Quentin Tarantino? A Quentin Tarantino

Q Window or aisle seat? A Always window.

the way?

A To respect my instincts. They

serve as an inner compass, alerting us to risks or opportunities even before we consciously analyze a situation. The older I get, the more I’ve learned to trust these gut feelings.

Q What’s your next task? A Taking Wheaton to the next

level, for Wheaton to reach one million gold equivalent ounces of annual production! TNM

COMPANY INDEX Alpha Lithium .................................................. 38

Denison Mines ................................................. 19

Jaguar Mining ................................................. 39

Power Metals................................................... 34

American Eagle Gold .................................... 12

Equinox Gold ................................................... 20

Kinross Gold .................................................... 13

Red Pine Exploration ..................................... 34

Argonaut Gold.................................................. 31

Founders Metals............................................. 38

Laurion Mineral Exploration......................... 33

Arizona Sonoran Copper.............................. 43

Freeman Gold ................................................ 42

Lithium Power International ......................... 18

Atlantic Lithium................................................ 20

G2 Goldfields....................................................37

Lithium South Development ........................ 39

SolGold.............................................................. 42

Atlas Lithium .................................................... 38

Generation Mining.......................................... 33

Luminex Resources ....................................... 39

SQM ................................................................... 19

Azure Minerals ................................................. 19

Gold Royalty ..................................................... 14

Magna Mining.................................................. 33

Bravo Mining.................................................... 43

Grid Metals......................................................... 11

Northern Graphite .......................................... 43

Canada Nickel Company...................................

Horizonte Minerals ........................................ 40

Oroco Resource.............................................. 42

West Red Lake Gold Mines.......................... 34

Dakota Gold ..................................................... 18

Ivanhoe Mines ................................................. 13

Patriot Battery Metals .................................... 43

Wheaton Precious Metals ............................ 18

Rio 2................................................................... 39

Tincorp Metals ............................................... 40

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