MINERAL RESOURCE STATEMENT – NELLIGAN PROJECT, CANADA

As at February 10th, 2023 (100% Basis)

Notes:

1. 2014 CIM definitions were followed for classification of Mineral Resources.
2. Mineral resources are estimated at a cut-off grade of 0.35 g/t Au.
3. Mineral Resources are reported using a gold price of US$1,500 per ounce and a US$ : C$ exchange rate of 1:1.2.
4. Mineral Resources are constrained by a Datamine Studio NPVS Scheduler optimized pit shell using a 0.35 g/t Au cut-off grade and are considered to have reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction.
5. High grade assay values have been capped from 7 g/t Au to 40 g/t Au in the main mineralized domains of Renard and Footwall, and from 3 g/t Au to 12 g/t Au in the other domains. In addition, the spatial influence of high grade samples within Footwall, Renard and Liam domains were further controlled using high grade restriction distance parameters within the respective search ellipsoids.
6. Bulk density values were determined by measurements on core and range from 2.70 to 2.75 g/cm3 for the different domains and host lithologies, to 2.00 g/cm3 for overburden.
7. Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability.
8. All figures have been rounded to reflect the relative accuracy of the estimates.

43-101 Technical Report – February 22, 2023 (view PDF)
43-101 Technical Report - October 22, 2019 (View PDF)

Since 2013, approximately C$20M has been invested in the Nelligan project. 

The Nelligan Property is geologically located in the NE part of the Abitibi Greenstone Belt in the Superior Province, in Quebec, Canada. All rocks of the region are Archean in age except for Proterozoic diabase dikes. The Nelligan Property cover’s a small area of the large Caopatina segment belonging to the North Volcanic Zone of the Abitibi Belt. The property is centered on the E-W Druillette synclinal. This synclinal consists of the sediments of the Caopatina Formation resulting from the erosion of volcanic rocks and located in the central portion of the property. The sedimentary formation is bounded to the north and to the south by sub-marine volcanic rocks of the Obatogamau Formation and are of tholeiitic composition (basalts and gabbros). The North and South portions of the property are occupied by granodioritic to tonalitic intrusions. Granitic intrusions in the region belong to two groups: synvolcanic plutons observed in the core of regional anticlines, and syntectonic plutons. The synvolcanic plutons, typically polyphased, were emplaced before the regional deformation and are linked to the genesis of the volcanic sequences. The region was affected by the Kenorean orogeny which resulted in the formation of regional folds and the development of a main E-W schistosity. Important deformation corridors are related to EW faults and ductile-brittle NE faults which affect the entire Caopatina-Caopatina segment such as the Guercheville Deformed corridor located 5km north of the property.

In the Desmaraisville segment, the faults are grouped into 4 groups based on direction and overlapping relationships: EW, SE, NE, and NNE faults. The EW and SE longitudinal faults are the oldest and associated with the regional schistosity of the main deformation episode. The NE faults cut the regional schistosity and structures related to the EW faults. Late NNE faults are commonly related to the Grenvillian orogeny to the east.

The EW faults, mainly represented by the Kapunapotagen and Guercheville faults, are parallel to the trend of the regional schistosity and are typical of the east trending ductile faults that crosscut the Abitibi Subprovince (Cadillac-Larder, Casa Berardi, Detour deformation zones). They are generally characterized by pure shear with dextral reactivation with widths up to 1km as well as characterized by an intense schistosity, the presence of mylonitic zones, and carbonate- and sericite-rich alteration.

The NE faults are well documented in the Fancamp Deformation Corridor between the Eau Jaune Complex and the Verneuil Pluton and has an average width of 600m, steeply dipping (80°) toward the SE. Several gold showings, such as the Chevrier deposit ((1.8Mt at 5.1g/t), Phillibert deposit (1.5Mt at 5.4g/t) are spatially associated and the only mine in the eastern part of the Caopatina-Desmaraisville segment was the former Joe Mann mine which produced 4.7Mt @ 8.26 g/t Au and 0.3% Cu.

On the local scale, the Nelligan project contains several gold showings including Liam and Dan Zones discovered by drilling in 2013 (drill hole NE-13-04 (Liam) – 20.7m @ 2.04 g/t Au) and 2014 (drill hole NE-15-26 (Dan) – 10.20m @ 2.47 g/t Au) and the historical Lake Eu showing with grades of 2.17 g/t Au and 3.5 g/t Au (drill holes 94-13 and 95-01) on respective widths of 4.4m and 10m.

New gold zones were intersected to the north of the known gold showings and revealed the widespread presence of gold over a strike length of more than 1km, over a width of a few hundred metres and a depth of over 450m vertical (Zones 36 and Renard). These zones remain open along strike and at depth and appear to fall within a corridor highlighted in the regional magnetic data identified over a potential strike length of several kilometres.

The area of Lake Eu was discovered in the 1990s and is located about 500m NE of the Liam-Dan area. Liam and Dan showings were discovered by drilling in 2013 and 2014. These gold structures were intersected by drilling over 400m and remain open both at depth and laterally.

The 2016 exploration drilling program intercepted wide zones of alteration and mineralization that delineated the 36 and Renard zones. Further drilling in 2018 has confirmed depth extensions as well extensions to the west of the Renard zone structure over 1.3 km. This gold corridor, associated with a large hydrothermal gold system of >2.3km strike length, corresponds to a Magnetic low anomaly and remains open along strike and at depth. Recent drilling results (32 holes totaling 13,360 m) disclosed in 2018-2019 indicate significant drill results from the Renard and 36 zones.

The presence of gold is relatively constant throughout the drilling campaigns that we estimate totals nearly 37,000m (in 146 holes) since the late 1970’s with the majority of these holes focused in the Dan, Liam, Zone 36 and Renard area since 2014 by Vanstar and IAMGOLD.

The Nelligan project is affected by several structures and deformed zones and contains several interesting gold showings. The Nelligan deposits (Liam, Dan, 36, Renard) are essentially blind deposits where exploration vectors have permitted to advance subsequent exploration phases. The characteristics of the mineralized zones Dan, Liam, Zone 36 and Renard appear to be of variant type, style and of potential. Saliently, significant alteration and associated gold mineralization has been intersected over wide intervals at Zones 36 and Renard over a strike length of more than 1.1km, to a depth of over 450 vertical metres

The geological modelling of the drilled area on Nelligan remains on-going and interpretation suggest that drill holes are located within a vast hinge zone where folding, faulting and transposition occur. Molybdenite appears as a gold tracer and breccias units intersected in drillhole may have different signatures and some breccia type may be more auriferous than others.

Gold showings at Nelligan can be grouped according to their style of mineralization: i) quartz-sulphide vein type mineralization and ii) disseminated pyrite mineralization. Trace molybdenite and infrequently visible gold are also observed. We note the density of the hydrothermal system with the 4 zones and their scale (300m to 1.1 km strike length, 5 to 150m widths and depth beyond 450m). This may lead to the probable presence of a robust auriferous hydrothermal system amenable to open pit and underground operations.

Drilling programs in 2018 and 2019 totaling more than 30,000 meters resulted in a first resource estimate close to 100 millions MT at a grade of 1.02 g/t Au for a total of  3.2 millions inferred gold ounces. Drill programs from 2020 to 2022 extended the mineralized zone to the west by 1.5 km and added resources at depth.  The deposit remains open with expansion potential to the east and west, at depth, as well as within the current resource pit shell.

A 10,000 metre drill program is planned to with the following objectives: testing for extensions to expand the known resources in specific areas; infill drilling to add resources within the pit shell where higher density is required; and evaluation of newly defined exploration targets. Regional exploration activities and future exploration programs continue to be guided by the Nelligan Resource geological model and the incorporation and compilation of exploration data to refine geological, geochemical and structural exploration models to help identify and prioritize additional targets within the large project land package.