(TheNewswire)
Toronto – TheNewswire - November 16, 2021 - Nuinsco Resources Limited (“ Nuinsco ” or the “ Company ”) (C NSX :NWI. CN) (OTC:NWIFF) www.nuinsco.ca) today announced that recent sampling on the Company’s Zig Zag Lake critical minerals property the “ Property ”) has returned very strongly anomalous lithium, tantalum, and rubidium analyses peaking at 3.55% Li 2 O, 836 ppm Ta 2 O 5 , and 4,003 ppm Rb 2 O within a pegmatite intrusion that is known to be at least 800m in length and fully encompassed by the Nuinsco Property . The Property is located approximately 68 kilometres east-northeast of Armstrong, Ontario.
The worldwide shift toward greener and cleaner economies has resulted in upward pressure on the price of many critical minerals: over the past year the lithium price has increased from circa $6/kg to its present price of circa $29/kg (lithium carbonate, battery grade) while the tantalum price has roughly doubled to circa $175/kg (tantalite, minimum 25% Ta 2 O 5 ). Rubidium (rubidium carbonate) is currently priced at circa $1,000/kg.
“During a recent site-visit to the Property the trend of the host-pegmatite was traversed for approximately 600m of strike. Discontinuous, exposed, coarse-grained, spodumene-bearing pegmatite outcrops were encountered, and grab samples were collected at a number of locations along 160m of strike, resulting in widespread lithium, tantalum, and rubidium analyses of significant interest,” said Paul Jones, CEO. “The results confirm that the Property hosts an extensive domain of critical metals mineralization. These encouraging initial exploration results show that Zig Zag Lake presents a remarkable exploration opportunity that, in combination with the on-going positive REE-niobium-tantalum-phosphate results from the Company’s 100% owned Prairie Lake project, broadens Nuinsco’s presence in the critical metals sector.”
The Property claim group encompasses pegmatite hosted lithium-tantalum-rubidium mineralization with significant cesium mineralization also reported. Critical minerals such as lithium and tantalum are essential in the accelerating transition to a low-carbon economy while rubidium has applications in, amongst other things, electronics, medical imaging, and specialty glass.
The known 800m of strike length of the pegmatite host is up to 18m thick at surface. Previous workers (1.2) have identified Li 2 O and Ta 2 O 5 mineralization along the entire length of the showing from sampling at surface, grading up to 1.68% Li 2 O over 7.9m and 0.205% Ta 2 O 5 over 2.54m in separate channels samples. Very limited, shallow, historic drilling (3) along the occurrence has returned significant lithium intersections, including an intersection grading 1.08% Li 2 O over 6.1m (between 12.45-18.55m downhole) and a separate intersection of 399.82ppm Ta 2 O 5 over 2.92m (between 15.50-18.42m). The occurrence is open along strike and to depth and remains to be comprehensively evaluated, particularly considering the fast-developing and ever-growing applications for such elements resulting from expanding global electrification, and concern over supply chain issues for critical minerals.
The Government of Canada has identified 31 critical minerals, including many of those identified at the Company’s Zig Zag Lake and Prairie Lake properties, that are considered essential for the sustainable economic success of Canada and its allies under its Canadian Minerals and Metals Plan (“ CMMP ”). As part of its commitment under the CMMP, the Government is identifying initiatives designed to bolster Canadian critical minerals projects and supply chain development to help advance the competitiveness of the country’s minerals and metals sector.
The Zig Zag Lake property consists of six (6) claim units accessible via an all-weather gravel road leading east from Armstrong that approaches to within two kilometres of the claims.