Resource World Magazine

52 www.resourceworld.com O C T O B E R / N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 8 MINING New Age Metals planning PEA for River Valley PGM Project by David Duval Harry Barr, left, Chairman and CEO of New Age Metals, and Peter Chadwick, Resident Geologist, Kirkland Lake and Sudbury mining districts at the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines, examine some diamond drill core and discuss the River Valley Project in the Sudbury Mining Camp. Photo by David Duval. O ntario's two billion-year old Sudbury Basin is the third-largest known impact crater on earth and one of its oldest. Filled with magma con- taining massive, high-grade concentrations of nickel and copper, including valuable co-products such as platinum, palladium, gold, silver and cobalt, the Sudbury Basin is still supporting mines, smelters and local employment after more than a century. Global mining giants Glencore plc [GLEN-LSE] and Brazilian multinational Vale S.A. [VALE-NYSE] earlier this year announced board approval for two major mine development projects in the Sudbury area estimated to cost at least $1.4 billion. In addition, new discoveries in the region are almost certain to guarantee the longev - ity of this world beater of a mining camp. Among the companies with advanced stage projects in the region is New Age Metals Inc. [NAM-TSXV; PAWEF-OTCQB; P7J-FSE] which is pushing to feasibility its flagship River Valley Project which the company is billing as the largest unde - veloped primary platinum group (PGM) resource in North America. NAM is headed by, Harry Barr, who, in his capacity as a CEO over the years, has guided his management teams to complete more than 300 option/joint venture agree - ments with major, mid-tier, and junior mining companies. Reflecting management's pragmatism that comes from years in the business, NAM's River Valley Project is in an area with excellent infrastructure and is within 100 km of Sudbury, host to one of the largest metallurgical complexes in North America. Greater Sudbury boasts several operating mines, two sulphide concentra - tor mills, two nickel-copper-PGM smelters and a nickel refinery. Owned 100% by NAM, the River Valley Project hosts 4.6Moz PdEq (palladium equivalent) in measured and indicated categories and 2.7Moz PdEq inferred. The 6,688-hectare property has been explored extensively by NAM since 1999, formerly known as Pacific North West Capital. Thus far, some $45 million has been spent. Much of the company's land is leased and subject to renewal, with no assessment fees required. In addition, the company has good relations with First Nations bands in the region who have provided contract services to the company. To date, 710 boreholes comprising over 200,000 metres have been completed, identifying surface mineralization for approximately 16 km of strike along a con - tact zone of the River Valley Intrusion. This includes 4 km of the recently acquired River Valley Extension where about $5 mil- lion has already been expended and 84 drill holes were completed in the past. Eight mineralized zones have been delineated by drilling so far along the 16 km of favourable strike length. Mineralization has been drill tested to less than 300 metres vertical in the Dana North/Dana South Zones and to less than 200 metres vertical in the other mineral - ized zones. Induced polarization surveys in summer 2017 and winter 2018 identi- fied numerous anomalies, including the recently discovered Pine Zone in the foot- wall of the Dana North Zone. The River Valley Project is part of the Paleoproterozoic East Bull Lake Intrusive Suite. Two styles of mineralization have been observed at the project: contact nickel-PGM mineralization and reef PGM mineralization. The presence of several highly-anomalous assays from rocks lying within higher portions of the River Valley Intrusion's stratigraphy suggests that

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