Power Metals engages First Nation-run drilling company for Case Lake project in Ontario

Power Metals (TSXV: PWM) has engaged First Nation-owned Black Diamond Drilling to complete its 2024 phase III drill program at the company’s Case Lake project in northeastern Ontario.

Power Metals is a Canadian mining company with a long record of exploring and developing cesium, lithium, and tantalum assets in Canada, with a focus on expanding cesium in the global marketplace.

Black Diamond Drilling is owned and operated by the Apitipi Anicinapek Nation (formerly known as Wahgoshig First Nation) in northeastern Ontario. The community is located near Matheson, Ontario. Black Diamond is operated by a drilling team focusing on exploration projects in the Abitibi greenstone belt.

The 2024 phase III program will target and extend known cesium zones at West Joe and Main zones as part of the Case Lake project, with 2,000 metres of exploration drilling to be completed.

Power Metals CEO Hayden Daxter commented: “Power Metals is extremely pleased to have engaged the team at Black Diamond Drilling, as part of Apitipi Anicinapek Nation, as we explore our world-class critical minerals project at Case Lake in Ontario. Delivering local work to the local communities we operate in is a priority for our company and we believe this is the beginning of a strong partnership with this First Nation company.”

A representative from Black Diamond Drilling stated they are pleased Power Metals consults regularly with their team and shows ongoing engagement on the implementation of the exploration agreement.

Water sampling

Power Metals recently completed its phase II water sampling program at Case Lake with members of Apitipi Anicinapek Nation over a two-day period. A total of eight points were sampled as part of the Case Lake waterway system, including lake and tributary locations.

This follows a recent training program on the collection and analysis of water samples conducted by the company during phase I sampling with members of Apitipi Anicinapek Nation and Blue Heron Environmental Consultants in Timmins.

The company has developed this initiative in conjunction with traditional landowners to collaborate and share technical data on waterways of the Case Lake region.

Soil sampling

Power Metals recently completed a targeted soil sampling program to validate two cesium anomalies identified 500 metres to the north-northwest of the West Joe prospect during a structural and geophysical assessment of the Case Lake project. The two high-priority targets represented similar magnetic signatures and structural proximity to the current high-grade cesium mineralization at the West Joe prospect.

The program was conducted over four days in mid-October with 177 samples collected by the geology team on loan from Winsome Resources (ASX: WR1).

The soil sampling program in the West Joe area was designed to validate two geophysical anomalies that show similarities to magnetic signature of LCT mineralization at West Joe. The samples were taken from five soil lines oriented at an oblique angle to geological strike of the regional fabric and glacial flow direction. Samples were taken at every 25 metres along each line with 15% of the total samples being QA/QC samples that were inserted into the sample stream.

Samples were submitted to Activation Laboratories in Timmins and were subsequently sent to Actlabs geochemical laboratory in Ancaster, Ontario, for selective digestion-based multielement geochemical analysis.