SILV - Update On Potash & Zinc Projects 2022-03-31 15:33 ET - News Release
Mr. Brandon Rook reports
SILVER VALLEY METALS PROVIDES CORPORATE OVERVIEW, UPDATE ON ITS SULPHATE OF POTASH AND LITHIUM PROJECT, AND OUTLOOK FOR 2022
Silver Valley Metals Corp. has provided an overview, update and outlook for 2022.
It has been a transformative time for Silver Valley Metals over the past eight months. Eight months ago, after the company consummated its first transaction in northern Idaho's prolific Silver Valley, the company changed its corporate name to Silver Valley Metals, and its focus to the exploration and potential future development for silver, zinc and lead. The project borders to the west the largest mine in the Silver Valley, Bunker Hill, and comprises five high-grade historical mines that are shallow, and remain open at depth and along strike. Following this first transaction, the company followed up four months ago (November, 2021), and closed a second transaction that triples the original project size and consolidates under one operator for the first time the western extension of the Silver Valley mining corridor. Importantly, the entire project is located on patented land and includes an option to own the Page mine (the sixth mine on the newly consolidated project package) which is a top 10 historical producer in the valley. The Page mine remains open at depth and possesses significant historical mineral reserves. The entire project area has never had modern exploration applied to it.
See below project development plans for 2022.
Update: Mexican lithium-potassium (sulphate of potash) project
Following up on the news release dated Nov. 10, 2021, "Silver Valley Metals Considers Strategic Alternatives for Its Lithium and Sulphate of Potash (SOP) Deposits in Zacatecas, Mexico," the company can report it is in advanced discussions and under non-disclosure agreements with several well-financed and highly technical groups. Discussions continue to progress well. All options remain open for the company, including a direct investment into the company itself, and the company moving the project forward to a joint venture, to a spinout of the asset or to a buyout of the entire asset. By gauging the strong interest, the company is confident that an accretive transaction or investment into the company will occur in the relative short term. When considering today's strong economics and demand in the lithium and fertilizer sectors, and the company's National Instrument 43-101 inferred mineral resource defined thus far, it is anticipated that the value of the deposit(s) will add significant share value to what at this point in time is not realized in the market capitalization of the company, which may be due to the change of corporate name and the limited market exposure of the asset up to this point in time.
Considering today's price of lithium carbonate equivalent at $74,222 (U.S.) per tonne and $1,100 (U.S.) per tonne SOP (sulphate of potash), the in situ value of what the company possesses is significant, and,importantly, the inferred resource is defined from surface to, on average, only five metres below surface. There is strong potential the resource can be expanded at depth and laterally notwithstanding the upside brine potential that has yet to be drill tested.
The NI 43-101 inferred resource contains 243,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) and 12.3 million tonnes of sulphate of potash (SOP).
- Today's price for one tonne of lithium carbonate (LCE) in U.S. dollars is $74,222 (1);
- At 243,000 tonnes there is an in situ dollar value of $18-billion;
- Today's price for one tonne of SOP in U.S. dollars is $1,100 (2);
- At 12.3 Mt of SOP there is an in situ dollar value of $13.5-billion;
- Significant upside for expansion as the basin has not been determined and the brine potential remains untested, majority of resource tested from surface to only five m in depth;
- Continuous high-grade lithium portion at one of three salars, containing seven Mt at 1,490 parts per million Li within 20 Mt of 880 ppm Li -- perimeter and depth of deposit largely untested;
- Maiden mineral resource estimate (NI 43-101 compliant by SRK, 2019) of 120 Mt of inferred mineral resources grading 4.6 per cent potassium (K) and 380 ppm lithium (Li) (1) (2).
Price sources: March 30, 2022: (1) Asian Metal, (2) CME Group.
Outlook -- project development plans -- 2022
The company has been developing its exploration plans for 2022 at its flagship Ranger-Page project in the Silver Valley, Idaho. Because the company made a second transaction in the latter part of Q4 2021, which includes the option to acquire the Page mine as well as a large unexplored property package that adjoins to the west of the original project, the company is re-evaluating the project in its entirety. With that said, the company will build upon the shortened exploration campaign of 2021 with an expanded ground geophysics IP (induced polarization) survey set to begin June 1, a field program that will include mapping and sampling in addition to compiling a significant amount of recently acquired underground mining data that clearly connect the underground workings over the entire project area. The company considers this recently acquired new information incredibly valuable, which is further enhancing the understanding of the entire project's great potential. The exploration field campaign will kick off in the latter half of Q2 2022 with an inaugural drill campaign targeted for the fall of 2022.
Qualified person
Timothy Mosey, BSc, MSc, SME, is the qualified person for the company and qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Mosey supervised the preparation of the technical information in this news release.
About Mexican lithium-potassium (sulphate of potash) project
Silver Valley owns a 100-per-cent interest in a lithium- and potassium-bearing salar complex comprising 4,059 hectares on three mineral concessions (Mexican projects) located on the Central Mexican Plateau in the states of Zacatecas and San Luis Potosi, Mexico. The NI 43-101 inferred mineral resource contains 12.3 Mt of sulphate of potash (SOP) and 243,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE), and remains open in all directions for expansion. The company is currently exploring strategic alternatives for the project to enhance shareholder value. The company considers the asset valuable and important.
About Ranger-Page project
Silver Valley's primary focus is on its flagship Ranger-Page project located in the Silver Valley of Idaho, 60 kilometres east of Coeur d'Alene and one kilometre from the I-90 freeway. In 2020 Idaho was ranked the first in the world in policy perception, and ninth best mining jurisdiction (Fraser Institute annual mining survey). The project borders the famous Bunker Hill mine to the east and for the first time consolidates the western extent of the prolific Silver Valley mining corridor by one operator in the past 100 plus years.
The project is on patented claims, there are no royalties, and it comprises six historical mines. The largest of these, the Page mine, was a top 10 producer in the Silver Valley, producing over one billion pounds of zinc and lead, and 14.6 million ounces of silver. The Page mine has high-grade silver-zinc-lead historic reserves and remains wide open at depth beyond what has been defined to date.
There is shared underground infrastructure connecting the larger Page mine with five shallow historical mines within the larger project area. The company has underground mining data and surface geological data that support high-grade silver-zinc-lead mineralization present within the shallow, undeveloped mines. These mines remain open at depth and laterally along strike.
Exploration potential beyond the historical mines is considered significant due to no modern systematic exploration applied to the project.
About Silver Valley Metals Corp.
Silver Valley is a group of experienced exploration, mining and financing specialists focused on the pursuit of mineral discovery and development. The company's expertise in evaluating targets, consummating strategic and accretive outright sales, joint ventures and /or acquisitions while maintaining a favourable share structure via the least dilutive option is the mandate for Silver Valley Metals. The company looks to further derisk potential projects via obtaining historical geological data that reflect untapped exploration potential that are located in top tier mining jurisdictions preferably near producing mines.
We seek Safe Harbor.