Critical One Energy Inc. (formerly Madison Metals Inc.) (“Critical One”), a leading Canadian exploration company focused on critical metals and minerals, is pleased to announce its CEO-led, initial project investigation successfully located and validated multiple key metrics and historical landmarks around the Howells Lake antimony-gold deposit and elsewhere on the Howells Lake Antimony-Gold Project (“Howells Lake Project”) in the Thunder Bay Mining Division of Ontario, Canada.
Figure 3. Cross-section of Howells Lake Project (northwest view). Image Credit: Critical One Energy Inc.
During the site visit, historic trenches were relocated, and surface antimony (stibnite) mineralization at the trenches was sampled and immediately submitted for analysis. The team also determined the locations of some of the historic drill hole collars in advance of the Company commencing more extensive fieldwork, which will include a detailed, property-wide, state-of-the-art airborne magnetic and electromagnetic geophysical survey. These investigations are part of a comprehensive initiative designed to evaluate the size and grade of the historic antimony-gold mineralized zones already identified from the original discovery work in 1979 as well as to identify new, high-priority antimony and gold exploration targets across the 26-kilometer-long property, which will continue to reinforce Critical One’s position as the operator of Canada’s largest undeveloped antimony deposit.
Summary Highlights from CEO-led Field Investigation:
- Antimony mineralization was located and sampled for immediate analysis.
- Historic drill core hole collars and surface trenches were identified and geolocated.
- 1984 drill core was located and initial evaluation completed (antimony reported in some drill logs – no assays available).
- Some or all of the 1986 drill core from holes completed 15 kilometers to the northeast of the Howells Lake antimony-gold deposit area was located and determined usable for follow-up evaluation (gold mineralization reported).
- Logistics evaluated and organized for future exploration programs.
- Broad zones of strong carbonate and sericite alteration up to 100 meters wide were confirmed to cover and flank the locations of the known antimony-gold mineralization. More details on structure, alteration and gold mineralization were documented.
“With this new information in hand, Critical One can continue to develop plans for a significant field exploration program designed to evaluate targets developed from this new information and from new airborne geophysical data that will soon be arriving daily from the field,” said Duane Parnham, Executive Chairman and CEO of Critical One.
The new information gathered while on site allowed Critical One to confirm the ground location of the known antimony-gold mineralization and the locations of enough of the historic work that the Company is now confident the antimony-gold mineralization is related to strong carbonate sericite alteration (including green mica) with accessory quartz carbonate veining and sulphides that include stibnite (antimony sulphide), pyrite, pyrrhotite, chalcopyrite, and sphalerite. Some of the suphide concentrations, including the stibnite mineralization, are broadly associated with the lower contact of a quartz feldspar porphyritic intrusive at the East Zone. A current understanding of the antimony mineralization in the vicinity of the East Zone is depicted in Figure 3 below. Low gold values are located proximally and in places coincident with the antimony mineralization. The zone of strong alteration and antimony mineralization remains completely open to further significant expansion to depth and remains open along strike.
Antimony, a critical mineral essential for military defence, battery technologies, and flame retardants, is in high demand in North America and Western countries due to global supply constraints, with over 80% of the world’s supply controlled by China and Russia. The Howells Lake Project, strategically located near Ontario’s Ring of Fire corridor, positions Critical One to address current supply chain challenges while advancing gold exploration in a tier-1 mining jurisdiction.
Qualified Person
Bruce Durham P.Geo, a Qualified Person (“QP”) under NI 43-101, who is independent of the Company, has reviewed and approved the technical content of this news release. All technical information in this release is based on historical data that cannot be verified by the QP.