- Company stakes nine new claims, covering 4,784 acres
- New holdings form contiguous land package with QMC’s Irgon Mine Project at Cat Lake
- 11,000-acre land tract lies within mineral-rich Cat Lake-Winnipeg River rare-element pegmatite field
- Irgon Mine Project is located just 20 km north of North America’s most prolific lithium mine
Vancouver-based exploration company QMC Quantum Minerals Corp. (TSX.V: QMC) (FSE: 3LQ) (OTC: QMCQF) has expanded its mineral claim holdings within the Irgon Mine Project, Manitoba, and currently holds a land package covering over 11,000 acres (http://ibn.fm/uqJ0T). The company increased its holdings through staking nine new claims, totalling 4,784 acres. QMC is the 100 percent owner of the Cat Lake Irgon Mine Project, historically estimated to hold 1.2 million tons of lithium oxide at 1.51 percent Li2O.
These new claims form a contiguous tract of land with QMC’s existing holdings in the area. All claims lie within Manitoba’s Cat Lake-Winnipeg River rare-element pegmatite field and may potentially share a similar geological profile to the nearby Tantalum Mining Corporation of Canada (“TANCO”) mine. TANCO, located 20 km from the Irgon Mine Project, was North America’s most prolific lithium mine.
QMC acquired additional claims in this area following a comprehensive review of historical data which revealed the presence of lithium -bearing spodumene mineralization in additional pegmatite dikes.
According to the historical reports, exploratory drilling was carried out in several locations within the area of QMC’s new claims. Historical drill logs reported “pegmatite with spodumene content” in six of the holes drilled, although no samples were assayed. QMC is already working to identify these locations and will proceed with exploration and sampling work.
Lithium is vital to building batteries that power electric vehicles. Owing to the surge in electric vehicles’ popularity, experts predict a growing demand for lithium, and EV producers are eager to secure supply (http://ibn.fm/ysiJV). Lithium prices have increased threefold over the past three years and are expected to triple again over the next decade.
The acquisition of these new claims is in line with QMC’s aim to secure and develop lithium-rich prospects in Manitoba. This area is a well-established, prolific mining region, ranked as one of the world’s most mining-friendly, with much of the necessary infrastructure already in position.
QMC’s Irgon Mine Project was previously owned by the Lithium Corporation of Canada Ltd., which carried out a large volume of exploration work on the site, including underground development on the dike, development of road and power access, construction of an on-site processing plant and drilling of 25 diamond drill holes through the dike. It was the assays from this drill core and underground samples which permitted the calculation of the historical resource mentioned above. Despite very promising signs, the work was suspended in the late 1950s due to the low price of lithium at that time.
In addition to the Cat Lake Irgon Mine, QMC is also prospecting for mineral deposits at its project in the Namew Lake District of central Manitoba. This project, covering 57,000 acres, is 100 percent owned by QMC and is close to mines in the prolific Flin Flon volcanic massive sulphide belt that is already producing copper, zinc, gold, silver, nickel, palladium and platinum.
QMC has also announced that it has hired specialized consulting firm Venture Liquidity Providers Inc. to act as a market maker, helping facilitate the trading of company shares. Venture Liquidity Providers will operate through registered broker W.D. Latimer Co. Ltd. For these services, QMC will pay the consultation firm $5,000 per month for an initial 12-month period.
For more information, visit the company’s website at www.QMCMinerals.com
