Midland launches nickel-copper exploration in Nunavik

Eye on the Arctic
Posted: Wednesday, July 3, 2024 at 14:59
0 Comments

This month’s plan involves conducting 6,500 line-kilometres of aerial surveys, followed by mapping and prospecting to explore any findings.(Midland Exploration Inc.)

Midland Exploration Inc. said on Wednesday that it’s starting a new exploration program for nickel and copper in Nunavik, Quebec.

No one from the company responded to a request for comment before deadline on Wednesday, but in a news release they said the program, which they described as “major,” was an important step for the company.

The program follows exploration efforts from 2020-2023 when new mineral deposits were found.

The 2024 program is part of a collaboration established in August 2020 between Midland’s subsidiary, Midland Base Metals Inc., and Rio Algom Limited, a subsidiary of BHP Group PLC.

“The Alliance with BHP for nickel-copper exploration is focused on mafic intrusive rocks with troctolite/olivine gabbro compositions similar to those in Voisey’s Bay and the Nain Province, but that have historically received far less exploration in Quebec, despite the discovery of several Ni-Cu-Co [Nickel-Copper-Cobalt] prospects and occurrences,” the company said in a statement.

The Voisey’s Bay mine in northern Labrador. Northern Quebec has had less exploration than this neighbouring region, Midland said. (Vale)

The focus of this year’s exploration is a large underground structure known as a crustal-scale structure, along with associated geological formations or anomalies, that were identified during an aerial survey in 2023.

“These structures, previously poorly recognised, are deemed favorable for nickel-copper mineralization,” Midland said.

This year’s program will include additional aerial surveying covering approximately 6,500 line-kilometers, followed by detailed mapping and prospecting to investigate any anomalies detected by the survey.

In 2022, exploration by Midland and BHP in an area referred to as Target 22 in the eastern part of Nunavik, discovered samples containing up to 0.81 per cent nickel, 0.22 per cent copper, and 0.19 per cent cobalt, findings that provide important data for evaluating the potential mineral deposits.

Comments, tips or story ideas? Contact Eilís at eilis.quinn(at)cbc.ca

Related stories from around the North:

Canada: Mining companies decry regulatory burden at N.W.T. committee meeting, CBC News

Sweden:Swedish developer GRANGEX buys iron ore mine on Norway’s border to Russia, The Independent Barents Observer

United States:Canada and U.S. make co-investment in Fortune Minerals N.W.T. project, The Canadian Press