Stockhouse metals & mining investors know there’s a lot going on in the nickel space right now, especially as key driver in the booming electric vehicle (EV) industry. And as nickel investors are also keenly aware of, the price of this versatile mineral has roughly doubled to unprecedented highs, as the war in Ukraine continues to fuel concerns of supply disruptions. Thus, a reliable and steady domestic supply of
this now critical metal must be achieved for vital industry…for both commercial and military applications.
Enter
Talon Metals Corp. (
TSX.TLO,
OTC Pink: TLOFF,
Forum) – exploration and battery mineral mine development company currently engaged in a joint venture with Rio Tinto plc (
NYSE: RIO) to develop the high-grade Tamarack Nickel-Copper-Cobalt Project located in central Minnesota. Talon currently owns a 51% interest in the Tamarack Nickel Project and has the right to increase its interest by 9% to 60%.
Talon has built an all-star team of in-house drillers, geologists, and geophysicists that are all employed by the company (not subcontracted) and focussed solely on the Tamarack Nickel Project. Talon says their team has the necessary tools to efficiently collect and interpret data and then rapidly test each new exploration hypothesis. These include state-of-the-art LF-90 diamond core drill rigs, Bore Hole Electromagnetic (geophysics) survey tooling, Surface Electromagnetic (geophysics) survey tooling, and the recently added Cross-Hole Tomography geophysical equipment.
Talon’s multidisciplinary team has also been able to significantly reduce the cost of exploration below what would be expected from a traditional exploration program, while simultaneously finding new high-grade massive sulphide mineralization.
In
July 2021, Talon entered into an Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the United Steelworkers whereby the parties outlined a number of ways that they will work with, and support, one another to advance the Tamarack Nickel Project through permitting to production. Talon was recently commended for its workforce development agreement with the Steelworkers as an example of responsible domestic mining (
FACT SHEET: Securing a Made in America Supply Chain for Critical Minerals | The White House).
Talon has a well-qualified exploration and mine management team with extensive experience in project management, mine development, and permitting.
About Tamarack
The high-grade Tamarack Nickel Project, located in Aitkin County Minnesota, encompasses a vast land position (18 kilometres of strike length) with numerous high-grade intercepts outside the current resource area. Talon is focused on expanding its current high-grade nickel mineralization resource prepared in accordance with National Instrument (NI) 43-101 Standards of Disclosure, identifying additional high-grade nickel mineralization, and developing a responsible processing capability in the U.S.
In 2022, in addition to an aggressive infill drill program to progress Tamarack towards its pre-feasibility study, the Talon team will also turn its focus to a larger area of the Tamarack Intrusive Complex with the singular objective to find additional economically viable nickel and copper massive sulphide mineralization to demonstrate that Tamarack
is a nickel-copper ‘district’. According to Talon, they intend on expanding the exploration within three areas of high priority in 2022 that are marked by high-grade assay results.
https://talonmetals.com/corporate-presentations/
(Click image to enlarge)
In the News
On
April 13th, Talon Metals Corp. announced the purchased of three new drill rigs for its Tamarack Nickel-Copper-Cobalt Project. According to the company, these new drills will be deployed to expand Talon’s exploration of the Tamarack Intrusive Complex for additional high-grade nickel, copper, and cobalt.
The three Boart Longyear drill rigs, two LF-160’s, and one LF-230 have increased depth capacity and bring Talon’s in-house drilling fleet to six drill rigs. The new rigs will be focusing on exploration outside of the main resource area, where numerous intercepts of high-grade nickel-copper mineralization (up to 9.95% nickel) have already been discovered. The first three zones that will be targeted are known as the 221 Zone, the 264 Zone, and the 164 Zone (see image below). The Company also plans to drill a highly-conductive anomaly that sits directly below the main zone resource area.
https://talonmetals.com/corporate-presentations/
(Click image to enlarge)
Henri van Rooyen, Chief Executive Officer of Talon, commented:
“The need to secure domestic sources of battery minerals like nickel has grown more urgent. Climate change is accelerating, and the United States is dependent on foreign countries for the key ingredients required for clean power and battery storage. President Biden, with bipartisan support in Congress, has recently elevated domestic sourcing of battery materials like nickel to a national priority. Our investment in new equipment, people, and technology to explore for battery minerals in Minnesota addresses this national priority and purpose.”
He went on to say:
“Talon’s in-house geology and geophysics teams have already established the initial high-grade zone of nickel-copper mineralization at the Tamarack Nickel Project that will supply Tesla and potentially other customers. Our investment in these three new drill rigs and hiring the people to deploy them on a 24/7 basis will hopefully confirm our geologists’ view that Tamarack is a “district scale” resource similar to other large-scale nickel sulphide districts in Canada and Russia that have been shown to have numerous zones of high-grade mineralization.”
And recently,
on March 23rd, Talon reported that “numerous high-grade nickel-copper intercepts had been made outside main resource area at Tamarack Nickel Project.” Click
here or on image below for details (contains video interview with Talon Metals’ Vice President of Geology, Dr. Etienne Dinel.)
(Click image to link to story and play video)
“Mines to Mobility”: The Talon-Tesla Connection
As the price of nickel (Ni) surges, metals & mining investors are taking take stock of the new global reality – Russia, a major supplier of the critical metal, is now facing extensive sanctions following its invasion of Ukraine. Now, automakers and investors are forced to rethink EV plans if foreign nickel supplies are constrained or interrupted.
Nickel is the most important metal by mass in lithium-ion battery cathodes used by the vast majority of electric vehicle manufacturers. EV batteries are charged and discharged by the consistent flow of lithium ions between the graphite-containing anode and the cathode. The cathodes contain nickel which, in turn, delivers high-energy density that lets the vehicle to travel further.
As part of a major new announcement on January 10th 2022, Talon Metals Corp., through its U.S. subsidiary Talon Nickel (USA) LLC, entered into an agreement with Tesla Inc. for the supply and purchase of nickel concentrate to be produced from the Tamarack Nickel Project. The execution of the agreement follows an extensive and detailed due diligence period performed by Tesla and lengthy negotiations between the parties.
Agreement Highlights:
- Under the terms set out in the agreement, Tesla has committed to purchase 75,000 metric tonnes (165 million pounds) of nickel in concentrate, representing a portion of the metals projected to be produced from the Tamarack Nickel Project. Tesla also has a preferential right under the agreement to negotiate the purchase of additional nickel concentrate over and above the initial 75,000 metric tonne commitment.
- The term of the agreement is six years or until a total of 75,000 metric tonnes (165 million pounds) of nickel in concentrate has been produced and delivered to Tesla. The agreement is conditional upon: (i) Talon earning a 60% interest in the Tamarack Nickel Project; (ii) Talon commencing commercial production at the Tamarack Nickel Project; and (iii) the parties completing negotiations and executing detailed supply terms and conditions. Talon says it will use commercially-reasonable efforts to achieve commercial production on or before January 1, 2026 at the Tamarack Nickel Project, which may be extended by the agreement of the parties for up to 12 months following which Tesla has a right to terminate the agreement and Talon may elect to sell to other parties.
- And, notably, Talon and Tesla will work together to optimize nickel concentrate grades and metal recoveries.
- The purchase price to be paid by Tesla for the nickel in concentrate will be linked to the London Metals Exchange (LME) official cash settlement price for nickel.
- The parties have also agreed to share in any additional economics derived from by-products extracted from the nickel concentrate, such as iron and cobalt. As such, the nickel concentrate from Tamarack could end up supplying both nickel (NCA/NMC) AND iron-phosphate (LFP) battery production.
CEO van Rooyen said:
“
This agreement is the start of an innovative partnership between Tesla and Talon for the responsible production of battery materials directly from the mine to the battery cathode. Talon is committed to meeting the highest standards of responsible production that is fully traceable and that has the lowest embedded CO2 footprint in the industry. Talon is excited to support Tesla’s mission to accelerate the transition to renewable energy.
Drew Baglino, SVP of Powertrain and Energy Engineering at Tesla, commented:
“The Talon team has taken an innovative approach to the discovery, development, and production of battery materials, including to permanently store carbon as part of mine operations and the investigation of the novel extraction of battery materials. Responsible sourcing of battery materials has long been a focus for Tesla, and this project has the promise to accelerate the production of sustainable energy products in North America.”
The Bottom Line
As the new Green Energy Revolution continues to grow exponentially – and the EV battery metals sector specifically – industry’s voracious appetite for critical metals to ‘feed the need’ must be met…quickly, efficiently, and cost effectively. Today, Talon Metals Corp. stands at the vanguard of domestically producing high-grade Ni ore, on a mass scale, for a global market in need of nickel.
https://talonmetals.com/corporate-presentations/
(Click image to enlarge)
For more information on the company, visit
talonmetals.com.
FULL DISCLOSURE: This is a paid article produced by Stockhouse Publishing.