- Flagship asset, the Shakespeare Mine, is a permitted, past-producing, nickel and copper mine
- Magna’s objectives are to expand the existing resource, bring the mine back into production, and make new nickel discoveries on its regional land package
- Recent assay results from the 2021 drill program have highlighted the potential for resource expansion at Shakespeare
What Magna Mining (TSX-V:NICU) does:
Magna Mining (TSX-V:NICU) Inc is a Sudbury-based metal exploration and development company, focused on nickel, copper, and platinum group metals (PGM).
Magna’s flagship project is the past-producing Shakespeare Mine, where the company is aiming to grow the existing resource and ultimately put the mine back into production. Magna is also executing a regional exploration program that is aiming to make new nickel discoveries on its extensive exploration properties that surround the mine.
Notably, the Shakespeare mine and the surrounding properties are located in the Sudbury region, which is historically one of the richest nickel mining districts in the world. Magna’s large land package of over 180 square kilometers, includes 30 kilometers (km) of the unexplored strike of prospective geology for multiple base and precious metal commodities.
Magna’s Shakspeare Mine was previously in production between May 2010 and February 2012, when 490,000 tonnes of ore were processed through a third-party mill at an average grade of 0.33% nickel (Ni), 0.38% copper (Cu), and 0.9 grams per ton (g/t) PGMs.
The current Shakespeare deposit is open for expansion on strike, at depth, and in the footwall. Regionally, more than 12 targets have been identified which the company believes have the potential to host economic deposits that could represent additional feed for Shakespeare or be toll-milled in Sudbury.
The Shakespeare deposit includes an open-pit indicated resource of 14.4 million tons at 0.34% Ni, 0.37% copper Cu, and 0.9 g/t platinum, palladium, and gold, along with an inferred resource of 1.7 million tons at 0.29% Ni, 0.31% Cu, and 0.74 g/t platinum, palladium, and gold.
With permits in place already, Magna is aiming to put Shakespeare back into production with a 4,500 tonne per day (TPD) open-pit mining operation and processing plant. Its location, 70 km southwest of Sudbury, also means the project is easily road accessible and it has access to nearby hydroelectric power at Espanola.
Magna also takes a proactive and comprehensive approach to ESG objectives in the development of its Shakespeare Project. Magna has already established an Impact and Benefits Agreement (IBA) with the local First Nation community, the Sagamok Anishnawbek First Nations, and continues to engage with local communities in relation to both environmental impacts and job creation.
Magna has a seasoned management team and board, with decades of experience in base metal exploration and mining operations in the Sudbury region. The company is led by Jason Jessup, CEO, who has worked for over 24 years in the mining industry, including key positions at the Sudbury mining operations of both INCO and FNX.
How is it doing:
Magna Mining is actively furthering its objective to develop its existing mine and make new base metal discoveries in the Sudbury Basin.
In September 2021, Magna Mining announced an offering of up to 6,666,667 flow-through common shares for $0.45 each to raise $3 million to fund its exploration activities at the Shakespeare deposit.
Just prior to the offering, the company reported a significant discovery of new nickel, copper, and PGM at Shakespeare on a previously untested geophysical anomaly called P-4.
The company also recently shared the assay results from two diamond drill holes designed to test the P4 target, which is located 5 km to the east and on strike of the Shakespeare mine stratigraphy.
A portion of the first hole, MP4-21-01, returned a zone grading 0.58% Ni, 0.84% Cu, 0.04% Co, and 2.64 g/t TPM over 0.42 meters (m). A second hole, Hole MP4-21-02, intersected a zone of semi-massive sulphides grading 1.16% Ni, 0.10% Cu, 0.06% Co and 0.78 g/t platinum, palladium, and gold over 0.21m, as well as a second zone grading 0.46% Ni, 1.32% Cu, 0.03% Co and 1.64 g/t platinum, palladium, and gold over 0.53m
Unlike Magna’s current Shakespeare deposit, which is comprised of relatively consistent concentrations of disseminated sulphides, the new discovery showed evidence of semi-massive sulphides and metal segregation. These results were viewed as an important first step in proving the exploration potential on Magna’s property package surrounding the historic mine site.
Inflection points:
- Over 1,500m of assay results from recent resource expansion drilling around the Shakespeare Mine are still to be received.
- Updated feasibility study to be published in H1 2022. An evaluation of production options will be undertaken in early 2022.
- The next phase of exploration drilling to follow up on the recent new discovery to begin in Q1 2022.
What the boss says:
Commenting on the recent discoveries at Shakespeare, Magna CEO Jason Jessup said: "This discovery is the first step in our regional exploration program and validates Magna's belief that the Shakespeare project has the potential to host multiple nickel, copper, PGM deposits within our extensive land package.”
Contact Ritika at ritika@proactiveinvestors.com