PALM BEACH, Fla., July 29, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- FinancialNewsMedia.com News Commentary - The refining of sulfide nickel deposits usually requires a smelting capacity not present today in North America. It is controlled by China. Smelting is an environmentally harmful process worse than C02 that can cause environmental damage (water, air). Tailings from sulphide minerals in mining waste have the potential to create acid. China Controls 68-80% of nickel refining smelting, and controls 84% of the Indonesia Nickel Market. A report from the Brookings Institute said that: “Even if the U.S. and EU were to dig more minerals out of the ground, many of these minerals would need to be shipped overseas for concentrating, refining, and smelting without significant increases in U.S. and European mineral refining and smelting capacity. The U.S., in particular, will likely have to update and amend its mining regulatory regime. Governments will also have to onshore or “friend-shore” smelting and refining capacity. The midstream part of the equation is likely to be the most challenging, complicated by high investment costs and market conditions.” Active Companies mentioned in the article include: First Atlantic Nickel Corp. (OTCQB: FANCF) (TSX-V: FAN), Alaska Energy Metals Corporation (TSX-V: AEMC) (OTCQB: AKEMF), Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F), General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM), TMC the metals company Inc. (NASDAQ: TMC).
The U.S. Government (USGS) sees a better way saying: “The development of awaruite deposits in other parts of Canada may help alleviate any prolonged shortage of nickel concentrate. Awaruite, a natural iron-nickel alloy, is much easier to concentrate than pentlandite, the principal sulfide of nickel. Awaruite is safer and more economical to process due to the magnetic separation and concentration. It uses less chemicals, less energy, can be processed directly in North America and since no smelting is required doesn’t need to go to China. Awaruite means no burning, which releases sulfur dioxide and other toxic emissions, and less risk of acid mine tailings accidents or contaminations (no sulphide minerals present).”
A report from Science Direct said: “Nickel is an important component of stainless steel and a wide range of applications which are critical for the transition to clean energies including electric vehicle batteries. Awaruite is a native nickel–iron alloy that has gained interest as a possible new economic source of nickel. In the last decades, there have been discoveries of awaruite, mostly with more significant amounts of nickel sulphides, that have demonstrated the potential for awaruite to contribute to the economics of a deposit. This study is focused on the very large Baptiste deposit in central British Columbia, Canada where awaruite is the primary nickel mineral.” It concluded: “Awaruite has the potential to be concentrated in a unique and valuable nickel concentrate of distinctive characteristics including its very high nickel content, which lowers both the downstream costs and the carbon intensity. Furthermore, the negligible content of sulphur and penalty trace elements, such as mercury, antimony, and arsenic in a potential awaruite concentrate, minimizes the costs of refining it.”
First Atlantic Nickel Corp. (OTCQB: FANCF) (TSX-V: FAN) Hosts Strategic Investor Site Visit, Expands Geological Team, and Reports Milestones on Infrastructure Upgrades at Atlantic Nickel Project - First Atlantic Nickel Corp. (FSE: P21) ("First Atlantic" or the "Company") is pleased to provide an update on the progress at its wholly-owned Atlantic Nickel Project in central Newfoundland, Canada (the "Project" or the "Atlantic Nickel Project"). The Company recently completed the first site visit with a strategic corporate investor (the "Strategic Investor"), which included examining nickel-bearing occurrences and historical drill core. First Atlantic welcomes the Strategic Investor's support, knowledge, and experience in mining project exploration and development.
Highlights:
- First site visit at Atlantic Nickel Project with Corporate Strategic Investor completed.
- Awaruite identified as visible grains in previous drill core from Atlantic Lake Area.
- First bridge installed as part of road upgrade and development program, enabling year-round Project access.
- Technical Advisor, Dr. Ron Britten has conducted a site visit to examine awaruite nickel occurrences and will help lead the charge to discover a potential large scale deposit.
- Permits filed for phase 2 of new all-weather road construction.
- Geological team with awaruite experience expanded to accelerate district-scale exploration efforts along extensive 30 km trend.
Project Road Update: First Atlantic is also pleased to announce the installation of the first bridge as part of its infrastructure upgrade program on the Project. The Company anticipates the completion of two additional bridges, allowing for the establishment of operations directly on the Project site, enhancing future operational efficiency.
The installation of the first bridge marks a significant milestone in conducting large-scale district-size mining exploration operations. The road will provide faster and closer access to additional awaruite zones throughout the district, allowing for year-round exploration work and drilling. Improved road access reduces the cost per meter of drilling, enabling significantly more drilling activities.
Exploration Updates: Preparations are underway for the Exploration Camp with a permit in place. The camp will serve as a strategic base for on-site operations, enabling the exploration team to work efficiently in the field. To ensure year-round access to the site, road upgrades are being implemented, allowing for easy ground access regardless of the season.
The exploration program is focusing on grading and prioritizing awaruite outcrops, as well as sampling and mapping prospective drill targets along the 30km trend. A LiDAR/Photos airborne program is also being planned to aid in this work, providing high-resolution topographic data and aerial imagery. The LiDAR data will help identify key geological structures, while the aerial photos will be used to visually identify outcrops for the geological team to investigate on the ground. This integrated approach will further support exploration and development efforts.
Technical Advisor, Dr. Ron Britten, has completed an initial site visit and is working closely with the First Atlantic exploration team on-site. With his decades of experience, including discovering the Baptiste awaruite deposit containing over 10 billion pounds of nickel, Dr. Britten will enhance the program. Dr. Britten's efforts will help outline the best occurrences for targeting in the initial drill program planned for this year. This large-scale district sampling program can continue during the road construction phase necessary for full drilling operations. CONTINUED… Read this and more news for First Atlantic Nickel at: https://www.fanickel.com/archive
In other market news of interest:
Alaska Energy Metals Corporation (TSX-V: AEMC) (OTCQB: AKEMF) recently announced that it has begun a drilling program to test compelling geological – geophysical – geochemical targets at the Canwell block of claims that form part of its Nikolai Nickel Project in Alaska. The drilling program includes plans for three holes for a total of 1,200 meters. The Canwell prospects are located near the Company’s Nikolai project Eureka deposit which represents a large accumulation of sulphide nickel with copper, cobalt, chrome, iron, platinum, palladium and gold. Additionally, the Company plans to initiate bench-scale metallurgical testing on the EZ2 mineralization at its Eureka Deposit. Initial testing work will include bond ball mill grindability, flotation (mill calibration, rougher, cleaner, Cu/Ni separation, locked cycle) and magnetic separation (Davis Tube and LIMS) testing. Detailed mineralogical work was recently completed and will inform the metallurgical work.
Alaska Energy Metals Corporation (AEMC) is an Alaska-based corporation with offices in Anchorage and Vancouver working to sustainably deliver the critical materials needed for national security and a bright energy future, while generating superior returns for shareholders.
Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) Ford Pro™, Ford Motor Company’s commercial division, recently introduced the Ford Pro Smart Charging Bundle to California, one of America’s larger commercial fleet markets.
Charging operations for electric vehicle fleets can be complex. The Ford Pro Smart Charging Bundle aims to help California businesses with electric vehicles in their fleet while improving operations and reducing upfront and ongoing EV charging costs. The bundle offers a complimentary Ford Pro Level 2 48-amp charger or a Level 2 80-amp charger for depot and workplace charging to businesses subscribed to Ford Pro Charging software.
Going electric for businesses isn’t just about lowering environmental impacts, it’s about the bottom line. The all-electric E-Transit™requires no gasoline, scheduled maintenance is estimated to be 48 percent less than a gas-powered 2024 Transit®, and businesses can use the smart charging software to schedule charging during off-peak hours when utility costs are typically lower.
General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) - GM Defense, a subsidiary of General Motors, recently provided commercial battery electric technology in support of the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) Pulsed Power and Energy Laboratory (PPEL) and Naval Surface Warfare Center Philadelphia Division (NSWCPD). The project, Evaluation of Electric Vehicle Batteries to Enable Directed Energy (EEVBEDE), is funded by the Operational Energy Innovation office of the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), through its Operational Energy Capability Improvement Fund (OECIF). UTA PPEL will evaluate the technology to understand current capabilities of commercial automotive batteries under dynamic discharge and charge scenarios. The team's evaluation of the technology will help provide pathways and options for domestically supplied energy storage for future use in military platforms.
GM Defense is leveraging GM's Ultium Platform propulsion architecture, for evaluation and testing. The Ultium Platform can deliver power, range and scale beyond any previous GM hybrid or extended range EV technology. Modular and scalable, the Ultium Platform can use different chemistries and cell form factors, making it adaptable to changing needs and new technology insertions as they become available. Utilizing the battery technologies of its parent company, GM Defense can help solve the DoD's energy and energy storage challenges. The work performed in this new effort will provide insights into the performance and design considerations when batteries are used in more dynamic, high-power operations than would be faced by more typical applications. OECIF support plays a key role in the development of new power and energy technologies, which provide the DoD with advanced capabilities and help prevent power and energy from being a limiting factor.
TMC the metals company Inc. (NASDAQ: TMC), an explorer of the world’s largest estimated undeveloped source of critical battery metals, recently announced that it has successfully produced the world’s first cobalt sulfate derived exclusively from seafloor polymetallic nodules. The cobalt sulfate was generated during bench-scale testing of TMC’s hydrometallurgical flowsheet design with SGS Canada Inc. (“SGS”). The test work was carried out at SGS’ Metallurgical Centre of Excellence testing facility in Lakefield, Ontario.
Based on samples of nickel-cobalt-copper matte first produced by TMC in 2021, the Extractive Metallurgy team at SGS tested TMC’s efficient flowsheet to process high-grade nickel-copper-cobalt matte directly to high-purity cobalt sulfate without making cobalt metal, while producing fertilizer byproducts instead of solid waste or tailings. This milestone follows last month’s successful production of nickel sulfate, a key raw material input used in the production of energy-dense electric vehicle batteries.
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