Reviewed by Alex SmithMay 11 2022
Platinex Inc. has announced that Endurance Elements Inc., its wholly-owned subsidiary, has obtained additional mining claims adjoining the W2 Copper-Nickel-PGE in the Ring of Fire in Ontario, Canada. The new claims, when merged with the current claims, cover an 8-10 km long, northeast-trending magnetic high, such as the site of Aurora Platinum Corporation’s Titanium-Vanadium (Ti-V) discovery in 2001.
Claim Acquisition. Image Credit: Platinex Inc.
The discovered drill hole LH01-10 bored in the BNMH intersected multiple intercepts of disseminated to massive titano-magnetite mineralization hosted within diorite-leucogabbro-anorthosite-gabbro-magnetite cumulate sequences. The three intercepts of titano-magnetite mineralization restored near-economic vanadium and titanium oxide grades (Mazur and Osmani 2002):
- 0.081% V2O5 and 0.27% TiO2 over 3.0m (175.0m-178.0)
- 0.4% V2O5 and 0.42% TiO2 over 6.0m (144.0m-150.0m)
- 0.34% V2O5 and 0.5% TiO2 over 13.5m (126.0m-139.5m)
These findings came from the analysis of 19 core samples using the ICP partial acid-digestion method. When the genuine oxide values of these elements were established using the near-total digestion method on 8 randomly chosen samples from all three intercepts, all samples yielded significantly higher scores (up to 8.2% TiO2 and 0.81% V2O5) than those determined previously.
These values are significant compared to vanadium deposits mined in South Africa at average grades varying from 0.47% to 1.4% V2O5 at the Bushveld Complex (South Africa) and the Windimurra Mine (Australia).
Notably, while the lack of basic infrastructure in the Ring of Fire area presently poses a barrier to the viability of such a Ti-V deposit, the region’s prospects will improve significantly as other projects in the area join the development phase and the infrastructure needed is constructed.
The recent acquisition of Noront Resources Ltd. by Wyloo Metals Pty Ltd., as well as recent statements by the Ontario and Federal governments, is a positive sign for the area deposits and the Company.
The Company’s near-term exploration plans at W2 will remain focused on expanding existing near-surface Copper-Nickel and Platinum-Palladium zones and testing several high-priority magnetic-high coincident EM conductors in the eastern section of W2, however, the Titanium-Vanadium deposit is a strategic asset that may prove to be of significant interest in the medium term.
Greg Ferron, CEO, Platinex Inc.
As payment for the purchase, Platinex issued 200,000 shares and offered the seller a 2% net smelter return (NSR) royalty. The Company has the option to rebuy 50% of the NSR royalty at any period for $1,000,000. The Share Issuance applies to a fourth-month statutory hold period.
W2 Project Overview
The W2 Project is a district-scale land package that spans over 16,000 hectares (160 km2) and includes 784 mining claims (823 cells). W2 owns one of the significant Oxford Stull Dome complexes, the layered mafic-ultramafic Lansdowne House Igneous Complex, which is rich in copper-nickel (Cu-Ni) and platinum group element (PGE) deposits.
The common factor of strong Cu-Ni-PGE, Cr, and Ti-V mineralization in the mafic-ultramafic intrusions rattling the Oxford Stull Dome suggests a common element, a massive magmatic system, and thus a promising amount of metals in each intrusion.
At W2, extensive Cu-Ni-PGE mineralization has been identified in at least seven considerable mineralized zones within a 7.5 km long folded corridor next to the land package’s center. Furthermore, VTEM and AeroTEM II airborne geophysical surveys have identified numerous high-priority conductors in the property’s eastern part that have yet to be drill checked.
Ontario Junior Exploration Program Grant
Platinex is also thrilled to confirm that it has been approved for an Ontario Junior Exploration Program grant. The grant is worth up to $80,000 and will be given as a 50% rebate on expenditures related to prospecting, geochemical surveying, and disclosing at the Company’s Shining Tree Project in Timmins during the summer of 2022.
In due time, the Company will proclaim its Shining Tree gold exploration program, with funds from the OJEP grant used for geological mapping and extra geochemical work, such as a soil sampling program to follow up on the IP and gold-in-till work completed in 2021. The findings of these programs will be combined with current geophysical data (magnetic and IP) to produce drill targets.
The technical data in this press release has been vetted and evaluated by Ike Osmani, P. Geo, a consulting geologist for the Company, and James R. Trusler, P.Eng., Chairman of Platinex Inc., who are both qualified persons for investigation at the W2 project, as outlined by National Instrument 43-101, Standards for Disclosure for Mineral Projects.