Canada Nickel to conduct airborne survey over new targets near Timmins

The fast-moving nickel-cobalt exploration project just north of Timmins is adding an airborne survey to its data-gathering efforts.

Canada Nickel Company says detailed airborne magnetic and gravity surveys, similar to what was successfully utilized at the company’s flagship Crawford Nickel-Cobalt Sulphide Project, began this week on its option properties which were acquired earlier this year with earn-in agreements with Noble Mineral Exploration.

“This airborne survey is the critical next step in unlocking the nickel-cobalt sulphide potential of the overall land package we have assembled in addition to our Crawford project: seven different structures ranging in size from 2.2 kilometres long by 375-600 metres wide (Kingsmill), to 8 kilometres long by 200-500 metres wide (Mahaffy-Aubin). Each structure has yielded historical drill intersections indicating that the geophysical targets identified are nickel-bearing,” said Mark Selby, Chair and CEO of Canada Nickel.

“With our recently announced $13 million financing and this airborne survey underway, we look forward to building on the large resource we have already defined at our Crawford nickel-cobalt project and beginning to unlock the district scale nickel-cobalt potential we believe this region holds over the coming autumn and winter seasons.” 

Airborne survey and drilling results from the Crawford Main and East Zones showed a strong correlation between specific magnetic and gravity signatures and nickel mineralization. This unique geophysical signature was successfully utilized for ranking drill targets at Crawford.

The Crawford Nickel-Cobalt Sulphide Project is located in the heart of the prolific Timmins-Cochrane mining camp in Ontario, Canada, and is adjacent to well-established, major infrastructure associated with over 100 years of regional mining activity.

Airborne Survey

The airborne survey, flown by CGG Canada Services Ltd. using the Falcon® system, will include measurements of the total magnetic intensity and the vertical gravity gradient made along flight lines oriented north-south and spaced 100 m apart. The current survey totals 2,731 l-km and adds to the previously acquired 2,000 l-km to completely cover Crawford and Carnegie Townships as well as the Nesbitt-North, Kingsmill, MacDiarmid and Mahaffy exploration targets.  See Figure 1 below.

Figure 1 – Plan view of Planned Geophysical Survey Area over Crawford, Kingsmill, Nesbitt-Aubin, Nesbit North, MacDiarmid and Mahaffy-Aubin Properties, Ontario. 

 
Overview of Option Properties (Previously released on July 13, 2020)

Kingsmill

The Kingsmill target is a large serpentinized ultramafic intrusion which is 2.2 km long and between 375-600 metres wide.  For reference, the Crawford Main Zone resource is 1.7 km long and 225-425 metres wide.
Initial review of historical drilling results has yielded both significant nickel and PGM intersections and the north side of the structure appears to have the same PGE enrichment as Crawford Main and East Zones: 1.0 g/t PGM over 2 metres from 96 metres within 0.3 g/t PGM over 30 metres from 69 metres in historic hole KML-12-11, 0.8 g/t PGM over 5 metres from 523 metres within 0.5 g/t PGM over 24 metres in historic hole KML-12-07.
The Company believes that the initial review points to several large portions of the structure which remain highly prospective for nickel-cobalt-PGM mineralization:

• The two sections were 1.3 km apart leaving a large portion of the overall structure completely untested
• There are several intersections which points to the potential for relatively higher quantities of recoverable minerals

• Holes KML-12-06, KML-12-11, KML-12-12 on the Eastern section all contained intersections with significant nickel and sulphur content (which is necessary for formation of nickel sulphide minerals) across wide intersections (see Table 1 below)
• Hole KML-12-03, yielding 0.26% nickel and 0.03% sulphur over 130 metres, was the only hole (of four holes on the Western section) drilled on the northern half of the structure, which has yielded the best mineralized portions of the Crawford Main and East Zones
  • Historic hole 27090, also drilled on north side of the structure in 1966, yielded 0.31% nickel over 302 metres (sulphur was not assayed)

The understanding of the mineralogy of these deposits has evolved significantly since the Kingsmill drilling was completed eight years ago, particularly the controls and the deportment of potentially recoverable nickel minerals across a deposit.  Initial mineralogy results from Kingsmill in 2012 were inconclusive as the test was conducted on one master sample compiled from all drill cores across a distance of 2 km – not taking into account the significant variability in mineralogy between rock types, and that some ultramafic rock will have low amounts of potentially recoverable nickel minerals.

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