Osisko Metals Announces the Re-Start of Drilling at Pine Point

14 July 2021

News Release: MONTREAL, July 14, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Osisko Metals Incorporated (the "Company" or "Osisko Metals") (TSX-V: OM; OTCQX: OMZNF; FRANKFURT: 0B51) is pleased to announce the start of a 13,000 metres summer-fall drill program at its Pine Point Project, located in the NWT. This drill program will mainly comprise of continued infill drilling designed to support the conversion of current Inferred Mineral Resources to the Indicated category.

A number of these holes will be multipurpose and will include hydrogeological characterization of water flow in the dolomite host rock in areas not previously investigated on the project.

In addition to drilling, re-logging and re-assaying of historical Cominco drill core has been ongoing since June.

Objectives:

  • Where summer access is available, continue to drill to approximately 30-metre spacing within pit-constrained and underground Inferred Mineral Resources as defined in the 2020 Preliminary Economic Assessment (2020 PEA). This spacing will meet the criteria for conversion of Inferred Mineral Resources to the Indicated category;
  • Further characterize subsurface water flow characteristics in the eastern portion of the Pine Point Camp. This information will provide a comprehensive hydrogeological foundation when combined with the previously completed testing (see press release dated June 2, 2021) and re-evaluation of significant dewatering costs in the 2020 PEA.

Jeff Hussey, President & COO, commented: “The updated PEA, slated for Q1 2022, will represent another major advancement for the Pine Point project. The new hydrogeological model will underpin reduced CAPEX and OPEX while the updated Mineral Resource is expected to provide a stronger base for project planning. Pine Point will be one of the most advanced zinc development projects globally and will stand out as a potential producer of ultra-clean zinc concentrate. As the need for sustainable infrastructure increases through government-backed, post-pandemic stimulus funding, the demand for zinc is expected to increase, adding pressure to decreasing global zinc production.”

Qualified Person

Mr. Robin Adair is the Qualified Person and the Vice President Exploration for Osisko Metals Incorporated. He is a Professional Geologist registered in the Northwest Territories.

About Osisko Metals

Osisko Metals Incorporated is a Canadian exploration and development company creating value in the base metal space. The Company controls one of Canada’s premier past-producing zinc mining camps, the Pine Point Project, located in the Northwest Territories for which the 2020 PEA has indicated an after-tax NPV of $500M and an IRR of 29.6%. The Pine Point Project PEA is based on current Mineral Resource Estimates that are amenable to open pit and shallow underground mining and consist of 12.9Mt grading 6.29% ZnEq of Indicated Mineral Resources and 37.6Mt grading 6.80% ZnEq of Inferred Mineral Resources. Please refer to the technical report entitled “Preliminary Economic Assessment, Pine Point Project, Hay River, North West Territories, Canada” dated July 30, which has been filed on SEDAR. The Pine Point Project is located on the south shore of Great Slave Lake in the Northwest Territories, near infrastructure, paved highway access, and has an electrical substation as well as 100 kilometres of viable haulage roads already in place.

The current Mineral Resources mentioned in this press release conform to NI43-101 standards and were prepared by independent qualified persons, as defined by NI43-101 guidelines. The abovementioned Mineral Resources are not Mineral Reserves as they do not have demonstrated economic viability. The quantity and grade of the reported Inferred Mineral Resources are conceptual in nature and are estimated based on limited geological evidence and sampling. Geological evidence is sufficient to imply but not verify geological grade and/or quality of continuity. Zinc equivalency percentages are calculated using metal prices, forecasted metal recoveries, concentrate grades, transport costs, smelter payable metals and charges (see respective technical reports for details).