- Tartisan originally released a Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) report in 2022, which confirmed the significant nickel-copper-cobalt mineral resource at its 100%-owned Kenbridge Nickel Project
- The PEA noted that the measured and indicated mineral resources represent 3,508,000 tons at 0.70% Ni, 0.35% Cu, and 0.01% Co (54 Mlb Ni, 27 Mlb Cu), while inferred mineral resources represent 1,013,000 tones at 1.21% Ni, 0.56% Cu, and 0.01% Co (27 Mlb Ni, 13 Mlb Cu)
- The PEA also indicated a 9-year mine plan based on a 1,500-ton-per-day underground mining and processing operation
- The company transitioned to the Advanced Exploration (“AEX”) and Project Development Phase following the release of the PEA
- The Advanced Exploration and Project Development Phase is designed to expand the company’s understanding of the Kenbridge Deposit and enhance the current resource
Located in the Kenora Mining Division in northwestern Ontario, the Kenbridge Nickel Project is the flagship project of Tartisan Nickel (CSE: TN) (OTCQB: TTSRF) (FSE: 8TA), a Canadian mineral exploration and mining development company. The project has an existing shaft to a depth of 622 m (2,042 ft), with level stations at 45 m (150 ft.) intervals below the shaft collar and two levels developed at 107 m (350 ft) and 152 m (500 ft) below the shaft collar. Accessible by gravel roads from paved Highway 71, it is covered by patented and unpatented mining claims totaling 4,108.42 ha and registered to wholly owned subsidiaries of Tartisan Nickel.
Historical exploration and project development of the Kenbridge Nickel Project took place between 1936 and 2008. And during this period, five main companies completed mineral prospecting, geological mapping, geophysical surveys, trenching, and drilling programs.
Tartisan nonetheless acquired 100% of the Kenbridge Property from Canadian Arrow in 2018 and embarked on refurbishing the access road into the site and reestablishing the cut-line grid. The company then completed an ASTER LWIR imagery study in 2020, followed by a surface time domain electromagnetics survey and a borehole electromagnetic survey in the spring of 2021. Later in 2021, the company commenced drilling, the first drilling program since 2008.
The company completed ten drill holes totaling 8,988 m on the Kenbridge Nickel Project and four additional drill holes totaling 2,419 m on the Kenbridge North target as part of the 2021 drilling program. These drill holes brought the total number of drill holes completed on the property to 665, all totaling a drilling length of 99,741 m, according to the Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) report independently prepared by P&E Mining Consultants Inc. (https://ibn.fm/549xs).
Drilling and assay data provided by Tartisan and compiled, verified, and validated by P&E were used to create an updated MRE, which confirmed that the Kenbridge Project “contains a significant nickel-copper-cobalt mineral resource that is potentially amenable to underground mining.” The PEA noted that the measured and indicated mineral resources represent 3,508,000 tons at 0.70% Ni, 0.35% Cu, and 0.01% Co (54 Mlb Ni, 27 Mlb Cu), while inferred mineral resources represent 1,013,000 tones at 1.21% Ni, 0.56% Cu, and 0.01% Co (27 Mlb Ni, 13 Mlb Cu) (https://ibn.fm/szYAB).
Additionally, the PEA indicated a 9-year mine plan based on a 1,500-ton-per-day underground mining and processing operation. This mine plan assumes the potentially extractable tonnage of measured, indicated, and inferred mineral resources, which, in turn, assumes an overall dilution of 47% and a 94% mine recovery factor. The PEA also estimated the life of mine (“LOM”) revenues, basing its calculations on the long-term industry consensus forecast for metal prices. It also estimated the LOM operating costs, mining costs, LOM capital costs, pre-tax net present value (“NPV”), pre-tax internal rate of return (“IRR”), net cash flow, and after-tax NPV, after-tax cash flow, and after-tax IRR.
Expressing his satisfaction with the results of the PEA, which is focused solely on the current underground mineral resource, Mark Appleby, President and CEO of Tartisan, said, “There remains excellent potential to increase and upgrade the quality of the near-surface mineralization at Kenbridge thereby adding additional years of production or providing the basis for an increase in annual throughput.”
However, Appleby explained that the company would initially focus on underground mining, saying, “By adjusting the mining plan to be an underground operation, it allows Tartisan to utilize the existing shaft infrastructure, thereby accessing higher grades of mineralization early in the proposed mine life. The PEA provides compelling evidence to move toward feasibility and for the Kenbridge Nickel Project to move into production.”
Following the release of the PEA in 2022, Tartisan transitioned to the Advanced Exploration (“AEX”) and Project Development Phase, retaining Nordmin Engineering Ltd., a consulting engineering firm, to assist in developing a plan for this phase, according to a March 2023 news release (https://ibn.fm/zovIo). The company’s management believes that the AEX will expand the company’s understanding of the Kenbridge Deposit and enhance the current resource. Recently, Tartisan hired Northwest Solutions Inc. to provide road design, permitting, and project management support to the Kenbridge Nickel Project (https://ibn.fm/rK6C6).
For more information, visit the company’s website at www.TartisanNickel.com.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to TTSRF are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/TTSRF
