First Class Metals

Default features description for sign up page.

Join our free monthly email newsletter - First Class Focus - to get the latest insight into work across our portfolio, access to all of our special reports, and much, much more…

Useful Resources

Shareholder Information

Company Presentation

Why Invest?

Investors

First Class Focus

Media

News Announcements

Esa Project | (Au) Gold Exploration in Ontario Canada

Sunbeam (Au) Gold Exploration & Mining Project

North Hemlo (Au, Ni, Mo, Cu) Gold & Metal Exploration & Mining

Mining & Metal Exploration Projects Overview |

Kerrs Gold Project | Ontario (Au) Gold Exploration Asset

Zigzag (Li, Ta, Rb) Lithium & Critical Metal Exploration Project

Pipeline Projects

Naming our new projects

Projects

Corporate Strategy | First Class Metals Exploration Plan

ESG Policies | Responsible Metal Mining & Exploration

Board & Management | First Class Metals Leadership Team

Corporate

UK Listed Junior Mining Company | Gold & Metal Exploration

OTC Listing (landing page)

Contact Us

Overview page 2

First Class Focus October German

Why Invest German page

German investors

Poppins

This week, I want to talk about nickel.
 
Historically, the silvery-white metal was used primarily in the manufacturing of stainless steel. But in more recent years, it has become increasingly well known for its use in EV batteries.
 
You see, adding nickel to the cathodes in the cells that power these vehicles can significantly boost their performance. So, with the roll-out of EVs expected to continue gathering pace over all time frames, some expect total demand for the metal to increase by more than 40% by the end of the decade.
 
But there’s a problem–for nickel producers, anyway. Due to historical supply chain underinvestment and prolonged bear market conditions, the amount of nickel available is expected to fall short of the huge amounts needed.
 
In other words, a structural deficit is approaching. And as it does, pipeline nickel projects are becoming increasingly demand by explorers and producers alike.
 
It’s for this exact reason I’m so excited by the recent discovery on our Pickle Lake project in Ontario, Canada.
 
Let’s remind ourselves of the details.
 
The Pickle Lake area is subject to a joint venture with Palladium One, which owns a number of surrounding licences. As part of the conditions of its option to earn up to an 80% interest in the area, the company has recently completed drilling of the “West Pickle Zone”. This is a 600m electromagnetic anomaly where soil sampling returned up to 116ppm nickel and 153ppm copper last year.
 
From its work, Palladium One was able to intersect sulphide mineralisation over 5.5m including semi-massive sulphides over 1.75m meters from 185.25 to 187m downhole.

Now, it’s too early to be drawing definitive conclusions. However, what’s particularly notable about this latest discovery is that it reinforces Palladium One’s belief that the West Pickle Zone is an extension of its nearby “RJ Zone”.
 
Given the RJ Zone has returned up to 1.04% nickel, this is in itself encouraging. However, what is especially exciting is that RJ is itself thought to be located on the same potential feeder system hosting Palladium One’s Smoke Lake and Bulldozer discoveries to the east.
 
In short, more and more signs are pointing to the presence of a regional nickel trend extending from east to west in the Hemlo-Schreiber greenstone belt. And if this inferred trend extends east onto our 100%-owned North Hemlo property immediately to the west of the Pickle Lake JV area then we would enjoy sole exposure to any upside this unlocks.

If nothing else, then, the discovery gives us further validation that our ongoing systematic approach to exploring North Hemlo is the correct course of action. With this in mind, we await the results of Palladium One’s assaying and additional drilling on Pickle Lake with enthusiasm­–after all, this could validate our approach even further.
 
But in the meantime, we will continue to push forward at North Hemlo as planned.
 
Right now, we are in the process of completing and interpreting a >4,000-line km helicopter borne low level magnetic survey over the entire property in the search for base metals including but not limited to nickel as well as gold and molybdenum.
 
Naturally, the results of this work will inform the next steps we take. But for now, the bottom line is clear…
 
It’s looking increasingly likely that a new nickel district is opening up around us at a time when demand for potentially economic deposits of the metal is accelerating. So, for our part, we plan to capture as much of the upside this could create as possible by exploring and proving up the potential for nickel and other minerals on our own project area.
 
Indeed, whatever the ultimate outcome turns out to be, I feel like the story here is getting more and more exciting here with every passing day.

Pushing forward at North Hemlo