Talon Metals Corp has commended US President Joe Biden for adding battery materials including nickel, cobalt, and lithium to the extraordinary support available under the Defense Production Act (DPA) Title III program.
The DPA Title III program provides authority for the administration to use a variety of tools to support domestic production: funding for particular aspects of project development, funding for infrastructure or equipment, and the ability to commit to offtake contracts are just some of the tools that become available once added to the list of national priority industries.
"President Biden's action today makes clear that there is a bipartisan consensus that the battery material supply chain, from mine to recycling, is a national priority," said Talon CEO Henri van Rooyen in a statement. "Building on the funding for EV battery material processing and recycling that Congress included in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, this action opens significant support for mining operations, in addition to down-stream processing and battery recycling. Combined with other government programs like the Critical Minerals Institute (CMI) at the Department of Energy, technology and innovation funding from ARPA-e and the work of the US Geological Survey, we are now seeing an urgent 'whole of government' approach to addressing both the current U.S. dependence on Russia and China for battery materials and the energy transition imperative."
READ: Talon Metals reveals more high-grade nickel and copper intercepts from outside Tamarack resource area in Minnesota
In a separate statement earlier, Talon Metals reported its results for the year ended December 31, 2021, which showed the company spent $38 million on the Tamarack nickel project in the year.
The company said its capitalized exploration costs and deferred expenditures on the Tamarack Nickel-Copper-Cobalt Project for the year ended December 31, 2021, of $38.0 million compares to $10.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2020.
The total capitalized exploration cost to the Tamarack Nickel-Copper-Cobalt Project to December 31, 2021 amounts to $98.8 million, Talon said.
The company posted a full-year net loss of $5.5 million or 1 cent per share (basic and diluted), which was primarily the result of administration expenses and stock option compensation.
That compares with a net loss for the year ended December 31, 2020, of $2.7 million or $0.01 per share (basic and diluted), which was also primarily the result of administration expenses.
Talon is a TSX-listed base metals company in a joint venture with Rio Tinto on the high-grade Tamarack Nickel-Copper-Cobalt Project located in central Minnesota.
The Tamarack Nickel Project comprises a large land position (18 kilometres of strike length) with high-grade intercepts outside the current resource area. Talon has an earn-in right to acquire up to 60% of the Tamarack Nickel Project, and currently owns 51%.
Talon is focused on expanding and infilling its current high-grade nickel mineralization resource prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 to shape a mine plan for submission to Minnesota regulators, following up on additional high-grade nickel mineralization in the Tamarack Intrusive Complex, and exploring the prospects for significant carbon storage in the ultra-mafic rocks that comprise the Tamarack Intrusive Complex through carbon mineralization.
The company has an agreement with Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) to supply it with 75,000 metric tonnes (165 million lbs) of nickel in concentrate (and certain by-products, including cobalt and iron) from the Tamarack Nickel Project over an estimated six-year period once commercial production is achieved.
Contact the author at jon.hopkins@proactiveinvestors.com