Power Nickel Releases Initial NI 43-101 Resource on Nisk Project

Power Nickel Inc.  (TSX-V: PNPN) (OTCBB: PNPNF) (Frankfurt IVV) is pleased to release the initial NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate on its “NISK” Nickel Sulphide project, located near Nemaska, James Bay, Québec.

Following up a successful drilling campaign in summer of 2023, and new inputs from the recently completed FLEET Ambient Noise Tomography survey, the Nisk geological interpretation has reached a higher level of understanding, resulting in the elaboration of a robust 3D litho-structural model. This new model is fully integrated to and is constraining the current Mineral Resource Estimation.

Power Nickel is proud to announce 5.43M tonnes of indicated resources at a weighted average grade of 1.05 % NiEq and 1.79M tonnes of Inferred resources at a grade of 1.35 % NiEq, using a NiEq cut-off grade of 0.20% inside the open pit and 0.55 % for the underground portion.

Power Nickel has retained a group of independent Qualified Persons to perform the 2023 MRE study. The Technical Report will be filed on SEDAR within 45 calendar days. While the oversight of the Technical Report preparation is being undertaken by Duncan Studd, P.Geo (from GeoVector Management Inc.), the Data Validation and Mineral Resource Estimation items were carried out by Pierre Luc Richard, P.Geo (from PLR Resources Inc), on the basis of a metallurgical study performed by Gordon Marrs, P.Eng (from XPS – Expert Process Solutions, a Glencore company) and a pit shell that was generated to constrain the Mineral Resources provided by Jeffrey Cassoff, P.Eng. (from BBA Inc.).

The Mineral Resource Estimate presented herein in Table 1 is either constrained within a pit shell developed from a pit optimization analysis or presented as underground mineral resources using an appropriate cut-off grade and reasonable potential mining shapes which include must-take material.

Table 1 – 2023 Nisk Project Mineral Resource Estimate at a cut-off grade of 0.20% NiEq for the open pit potential and 0.55% NiEq for the underground portion.

Table 2 below shows the sensitivity of the block model to grade cut-off. The reader is cautioned that the numbers presented in the following tables should not be misconstrued with a mineral resource statement.

Table 2 – 2023 Nisk Project Mineral Resource Estimate – Sensitivity of the block model at various cut-off grades.

“Our inaugural NI 43-101 Technical report is an excellent start and major first step to showing the significant commercial potential of Nisk. We believe this Mineral Resource Estimate establishes us as one of the world’s best nickel investment opportunities. Power Nickel took a particularly robust approach for this Mineral Resource Estimate, by involving independent experts in data management, metallurgy, mining engineering and mineral resource estimation. If compared to our peers, we may have pushed this study further than what we had to at this stage, but we believe that there is no ambiguity about the results obtained, and that this study fully supports the coming stages.”, stated Power Nickel CEO Terry Lynch.

“Moving forward, Power Nickel will continue working with CVMR Inc., as they conduct a feasibility study that will review the viability of a mine at Nisk that produces not the concentrate that was modeled in this NI-43-101 but refined products. These refined products, including powders, nano powders, wires, anodes, and precursors, currently generate revenues for CVMR 2.5 to 3 times LME concentrate levels. As mentioned in the news release dated November 20^th, CVMR’s investment enabled Power Nickel to arrange a $2.75 million financing at a price per share twice the market price at the time, demonstrating CVMR’s confidence in the Nisk mineralization. Between now and the end of Q2 2024, we anticipate continuing to drill and grow the Nisk resource and for the ongoing feasibility study to validate substantially greater recovery rates and reveal how finished products significantly improve the overall economics,” added Mr. Lynch.

The Nisk deposit is magmatic Ni-Cu sulphide hosted in an elongated sill of serpentinized ultramafic rocks that intrude the Lac des Montagnes paragneiss and amphibolite sequence. The disseminated to massive Ni-Cu-Co-Fe sulphide mineralization occurs in a body of black serpentinite-altered peridotite and is typically between 5 and 15 metres thick.

An updated metallurgical test program has been completed by XPS – Expert Process Solutions, a Glencore company. XPS participated in the selection of geometallurgical samples which were tested both separately and as part of a master composite. Mineralogical and metallurgical testing was completed on the geometallurgical samples and hardness and flotation conditions were developed on the master composite. A locked cycle test was conducted on the master composite and produced a marketable concentrate containing 12.9% Ni, 4.88% Cu, 0.92% Co and 14.16 g/t Pd at recoveries of 70.0% Ni, 43.6% Cu, 78.8% Co and 66.8% Pd.

The results of the metallurgical test program were then integrated into the resource block model, enabling the calculation of a nickel-equivalent percentage (NiEq %) from the interpolated grade of nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), cobalt (Co) and palladium (Pd).

Table 3 and Table 4 present the input parameters that were used to calculate the Nickel Equivalent formula, calculate the cut-off grades, and generate the pit shell to constrain the Mineral Resources. The selling prices for Ni, Cu and Co are based on a 3-Year Average, while Pd is based on long–term pricing consensus, and the costs are benchmarked from similar operations. An exchange rate of 1.3 CAD to USD was used.

Table 3 – Input Parameters

Table 4 – Economic Parameters

The cut-off grade for the mineral resources within an open pit is 0.20% NiEq and 0.55% NiEq for the mineral resources for an underground mining operation. The mineral resources within an open pit do not consider mining dilution and losses. Pit slopes of 25 degrees in overburden and 45 degrees in bedrock were used to generate the pit shell. Figure 2 the Nickel Equivalent (%NiEq) grade, the mineral resource classification (indicated vs inferred), as well as the  potential mining method (open pit vs underground).

“We’ve done an excellent job at drilling the deposit, our QPs have come up with a very robust overall study, and the deposit continues to show growth potential. Combine to this the FLEET survey and the push we’ve done on the geological interpretation and 3D modeling of Nisk Main, it’s fair to say that we’ve reached a new level of geological understanding of our property, and that on many fronts. Not only it has allowed us to constrain the actual resource by its geological context, better understanding the distribution of nickel within such context has already led to developing new potential target areas. We’re excited with the larger scale interpretation suggesting that Nisk Main could potentially repeat itself in adjacent structural domains. The plan is to follow that up in a very near future.” – commented Kenneth Williamson, VP Exploration.

Qualified Person

Kenneth Williamson, Géo, M.Sc., VP Exploration at Power Nickel, is the qualified person who has reviewed and approved the technical disclosure contained in this news release.

About Power Nickel Inc.

Power Nickel is a Canadian junior exploration company focusing on high-potential copper, gold and battery metal prospects in Canada and Chile.

On February 1, 2021 Power Nickel (then called Chilean Metals) completed the acquisition of its option to acquire up to 80% of the Nisk project from Critical Elements Lithium Corp. (CRE:TSXV)

The NISK property comprises a large land position (20 kilometres of strike length) with numerous high-grade intercepts. Power Nickel, formerly Chilean Metals is focused on confirming and expanding its current high-grade nickel-copper PGE mineralization historical resource by preparing a new Mineral Resource Estimate in accordance with NI 43-101, identifying additional high-grade mineralization, and developing a process to potentially produce nickel sulphates responsibly for batteries to be used in the electric vehicles industry.

Power Nickel (then called Chilean Metals) announced on June 8^th, 2021 that an agreement has been made to complete the 100% acquisition of its Golden Ivan project in the heart of the Golden Triangle. The Golden Triangle has reported mineral resources (past production and current resources) in total of 67 million ounces of gold, 569 million ounces of silver and 27 billion pounds of copper. This property hosts two known mineral showings (gold ore and magee), and a portion of the past-producing Silverado mine, which was reportedly exploited between 1921 and 1939. These mineral showings are described to be Polymetallic veins that contain quantities of silver, lead, zinc, plus/minus gold, and plus/minus copper.

Power Nickel is 100-per-cent owner of five properties comprising over 50,000 acres strategically located in the prolific iron-oxide-copper-gold belt of northern Chile. It also owns a 3-per-cent NSR royalty interest on any future production from the Copaquire copper-molybdenum deposit, recently sold to a subsidiary of Teck resources Inc. Under the terms of the sale agreement, Teck has the right to acquire one-third of the 3-per-cent NSR for $3-million at any time. The Copaquire property borders Teck’s producing Quebrada Blanca copper mine in Chile’s first region.

Figure 1 : 3D perspective view of the interpolated Ni% contained in Nisk Main mineralized zone, within its geological context. (CNW Group/Power Nickel Inc.)

Figure 2 – Longitudinal view of the 2023 Nisk Project Mineral Resource Estimate, showing Nickel Equivalent (%NiEq) grade, the mineral resource classification (indicated vs inferred), as well as the potential mining method (open pit vs underground). (CNW Group/Power Nickel Inc.)