Clean Air Metals Inc (TSX-V:AIR, OTCQB:CLRMF) has appointed engineer BBA E&C Inc (BBA) to lead work on the remaining pre-feasibility study (PFS) for its Thunder Bay North critical minerals project in Ontario, expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2023.
The work will include underground mine design, the cut-off policy optimization, and an NI 43-101 compliant estimate of proven and probable (2P) mineral reserves.
"Planned 2023 project milestones include a mineral resource update in Q2 2023 and delivery of a prefeasibility study and 2P mineable reserves in Q3 2023," said Abraham Drost, the CEO of Clean Air Metals in a statement.
"The company has a long-term commitment to development of an environmentally sustainable mining operation at Thunder Bay North," he added.
"It is well financed for the next chapter of that journey having recently closed the first tranche of a C$15 million mining royalty investment into the Thunder Bay North platinum-palladium-copper-nickel project by Triple Flag Precious Metals (TSX:TFPM)."
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Clean Air noted that DRA Americas was continuing with metallurgical optimization work at the project, which was started in May last year.
This is expected to be completed in Q1, 2023 with the mill flowsheet and plant design phase beginning immediately and continuing into Q2, 2023, the company added.
On environmental matters, Clean Air Metals explained that carbon capture is the "trapping of carbon emissions after they have been emitted but before they enter the atmosphere" and carbon sequestration is the storage of removed or captured carbon.
Results from a number of studies initiated by the firm to date have shown that the ultramafic and mafic rock units and minerals at Thunder Bay North "successfully capture and sequester CO2 gas from the atmosphere," it noted.
Clean Air Metals' flagship asset is the 100% owned, high-grade Thunder Bay North project, a platinum, palladium, copper, nickel project near the city of Thunder Bay, Ontario and the Lac des Iles mine owned by Impala Platinum.
The Current and Escape deposits form the basis for a robust preliminary economic assessment (PEA), which was filed in January, 2022 and showed a net present value (NPV) of $425 million in fully discounted cash flows, a pre-tax IRR of 31% and a post-tax internal rate of return (IRR) of 25% on initial capital of $367 million.
Contact the author at giles@proactiveinvestors.com