Nord Precious Metals Mining has finished an orientation survey using deep ground-penetrating radar (DGPR) at its Castle property, a site historically mined for silver in Ontario’s Cobalt Camp. The work was carried out in partnership with Earth Scan Technologies and focused on identifying underground features linked to past mining activity.

The survey examined the upper four levels of historic workings, located at depths of up to 100 metres, with a particular emphasis on levels 21 metres and 48 metres below the surface. While the DGPR system employed is capable of penetrating down to 200 metres, covering the upper eight of the mine’s total eleven levels, the company noted that resolution may diminish at greater depths due to the narrow vein mining methods historically used at the site.

Objectives of the Survey

According to Nord, the survey was designed to serve several purposes:

• Map the layout of historic mining drifts.

• Distinguish between empty stopes and those filled with broken, mineralized material.

• Identify fractures as well as possible vein structures or extensions of previously mined areas.

• Delineate lithologic contacts, including the Nipissing diabase contact, which is regarded as the source of the region’s high-grade silver mineralization.

The fieldwork required four days on site. Depending on the detail and clarity of the data at different depths, Nord has indicated the survey area could be expanded to include additional ground.

Earth Scan Technologies is expected to deliver a final report containing maps of the underground structures and vertical sections that interpret stope and vein characteristics. If data density allows, a three-dimensional model of the underground features will also be prepared.

Connection to Tailings Work and Recovery Plans

The survey results will eventually be integrated with data from an upcoming sonic drill program targeting the historic Miller Creek tailings, as well as testing designed to evaluate silver and critical metals recovery from those tailings. Nord has stated that Ontario’s new Recovery Permit allows the company to reprocess historical tailings and produce a gravity concentrate rich in silver and sulfide minerals.

Plans call for the remaining tailings, once treated, to be blended with cementing materials and used as backfill for empty stopes in the Castle mine. The company has described this process as part of a voluntary remediation effort intended to stabilize old workings while addressing historical tailings.

Nord Precious Metals Mining Inc. operates in Ontario’s Cobalt Camp, where it manages what it describes as the only permitted high-grade milling facility in the region. The company’s principal asset is the 63-square-kilometre Castle property, which includes the past-producing Castle Mine and the Castle East silver discovery.

In 2020, drilling at the Castle East Robinson Zone outlined an inferred resource of 7.56 million ounces of silver grading an average of 8,582 grams per tonne (250.2 ounces per ton) from two sections of the deposit. These resources, starting at a depth of around 400 metres, were disclosed in a press release dated May 27, 2020. Nord has emphasized that inferred resources are not mineral reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability.

Beyond silver, Nord has developed an integrated processing strategy aimed at extracting critical minerals such as cobalt and nickel. Its proprietary Re-2Ox hydrometallurgical process can produce cobalt sulphate and nickel-manganese-cobalt formulations used in battery manufacturing. Supporting infrastructure includes TTL Laboratories and underground mine access at the Castle site. The company also holds a broader portfolio of assets linked to the energy transition. These include a 35 percent interest in Coniagas Battery Metals Inc., which has projects in Northern Quebec, and the St. Denis-Sangster lithium project, a 260-square-kilometre land package located near Cochrane, Ontario.

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