Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada – Tuesday, January 18, 2022 – ZincX Resources Corp. (“ZincX” or the “Company”, TSX Venture Exchange: ZNX, US: ZNCXF, FRA: M9R) is pleased to provide an update on the permitting status for its 100% owned Akie project that hosts the premier Zn-Pb-Ag Cardiac Creek deposit.
Permitting Status Update:
The Company has been advised by the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources that the surface drilling permit for the Akie property has been renewed for an additional 5-year period that now extends exploration activities to December 31st, 2026. The permit originally expired on December 31st, 2020; however due to COVID-19 it was given a one-time, one-year extension to December 31st, 2021.
The drill permit covers a large exploration area of the 11,580-hectare Akie property, including all three key thrust panels that contain mapped occurrences of the highly prospective Gunsteel Formation. The central thrust panel represents the primary target for exploration on the Akie property and is host to the premier Zn-Pb-Ag Cardiac Creek deposit that has been progressively drilled by the Company. Other high-priority exploration targets on the central panel include the North Lead Zone and NW Extension targets where drilling has identified mineralisation along the same stratigraphic horizon as the deposit. The eastern thrust panel is host to the recently discovered Sitka showing as well as a large open-ended silver soil anomaly. Other exploration targets on this panel include the large South Zinc Anomaly. The western thrust panel is host to the GPS barite showing.
Peeyush Varshney, President and CEO, commented, “We are pleased to have received our drill permit extension for the Akie property. The ongoing support by the government and other stakeholders of our exploration efforts on the Cardiac Creek deposit and Akie property is encouraging.
The spot zinc price is very encouraging and remains well in excess of market expectations, starting 2022 above US$1.60/lb. We believe this is the result of market supply/demand fundamentals and our team remains very bullish on zinc. The addition of zinc to the critical minerals list by Canada and the US Geological Survey in 2021, alongside the approval of massive infrastructure programs in the US and Europe, point to very favorable market demand dynamics. This growing demand, coupled with shrinking supply that is associated with mine closures, will continue to foster strong markets for zinc over the coming years, making the Company’s 100% owned Akie project a potential key development project globally.”
The Company has initiated planning of exploration activities on the Akie property for the 2022 season, including a number of high-priority drill targets.
The Akie Zn-Pb-Ag Project
The 100% owned Akie property is situated within the Kechika Trough, the southernmost area of the regionally extensive Paleozoic Selwyn Basin and one of the most prolific sedimentary basins in the world for the occurrence of SEDEX zinc-lead-silver and stratiform barite deposits.
Drilling on the Akie property by ZincX Resources since 2005 has identified a significant body of baritic-zinc-lead SEDEX mineralization known as the Cardiac Creek deposit. The deposit is hosted by siliceous, carbonaceous, fine-grained clastic rocks of the Middle to Late Devonian Gunsteel Formation.
The Company updated the estimate of mineral resources at Cardiac Creek in 2018, as follows:
| 5% Zinc Cut-Off Grade | Contained Metal: | ||||||
| Category | Tonnes (million) |
Zn (%) |
Pb (%) |
Ag (g/t) |
Zn (B lbs) |
Pb (B lbs) |
Ag (M oz) |
| Indicated | 22.7 | 8.32 | 1.61 | 14.1 | 4.162 | 0.804 | 10.3 |
| Inferred | 7.5 | 7.04 | 1.24 | 12.0 | 1.169 | 0.205 | 2.9 |
The Company announced robust positive results from the 2018 Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA). The PEA envisages a conventional underground mine and concentrator operation with an average production rate of 4,000 tonnes per day. The mine will have an 18-year life with potential to extend the life-of-mine (LOM) through resource expansion at depth. Key parameters for the PEA are as follows:
| Parameter | Base Case1 |
| Tonnes Mined | 25.8 Mt |
| Mined Head Grades | 7.6% Zn; 1.5% Pb; 13.08 g/t Ag |
| Tonnes Milled | 19.7 Mt |
| Milled Head Grades (after DMS2 upgrade) | 10.0% Zn; 1.9% Pb; 17.17 g/t Ag |
| Total Payable Metal (LOM) | $3,960M3 |
| Initial CAPEX | $302.3M including $45.7M contingency |
| LOM Total CAPEX | $617.9M including $58.5M contingency |
| All-in Total OPEX | $102.4 per tonne milled |
| Pre-Tax NPV7% | $649M |
| Pre-Tax IRR | 35% |
| Pre-Tax Payback | 2.6 years |
| After-Tax NPV7% | $401M |
| After-Tax IRR | 27% |
| After-Tax Payback | 3.2 years |
1. The base case used metal prices are calculated from the 3 year trailing average coupled with two year forward projection of the average price; and are: US$1.21/lb for zinc, US$1.00/lb for lead and US$16.95 for silver. A CDN$/US$ exchange rate of 0.77 was used. The NPV discount rate is 7%. 2. DMS = dense media separation. 3. All dollar amounts expressed in Canadian dollars.
The PEA is considered preliminary in nature and includes mineral resources, including inferred mineral resources that are considered too speculative geologically to have the economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as mineral reserves. Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves have not yet demonstrated economic viability. Due to the uncertainty that may be attached to mineral resources, it cannot be assumed that all or any part of a mineral resource will be upgraded to mineral reserves. Therefore, there is no certainty that the results concluded in the PEA will be realized.
Kechika Regional Project
In addition to the Akie Project, the Company owns 100% of eight of eleven large, contiguous property blocks that comprise the Kechika Regional Project including the advanced Mt. Alcock prospect. The Kechika Regional Project also includes the Pie, Yuen and Cirque East properties which the Company maintains a significant 49% interest with partners Teck Resources Limited (TSX: TECK.B) and Korea Zinc Co. Ltd holding 51%. These properties collectively extend northwest from the Akie property for approximately 140 kilometres covering the highly prospective Gunsteel Formation shale; the main host rock for known SEDEX zinc-lead-silver deposits in the Kechika Trough of northeastern British Columbia. These projects are located approximately 260 kilometres north northwest of the town of Mackenzie, British Columbia, Canada.
Ken MacDonald P.Geo., Vice President of Exploration for the Company, is the designated Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and is responsible for the technical information contained in this release. Mike Makarenko P.Eng, JDS Energy and Mining, is the designated Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and is responsible for the PEA technical information contained in this release.
(1) Murrell, M., and Roberts, W., 1990; Summary Report, 1989 Exploration Program on the Mt. Alcock Property, British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, Assessment Report 19829A & B, 133p.
(2) Carne, R.C., 1980; Report on Diamond Drilling on the Bear and SI Claim Group, British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, Assessment Report 8626, 51p.
The TSX Venture Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
ZINCX RESOURCES CORP.
“PEEYUSH VARSHNEY”
PEEYUSH VARSHNEY, LL.B
CEO & CHAIRMAN
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ZincX Resources Corp.
Suite 2050 - 1055 West Georgia Street
PO Box 11121, Royal Centre
Vancouver, BC V6E 3P3
Canada
[email protected]