Nickel Creek Platinum reports high-grade at Yukon project ahead of July PFS

Nickel Creek Platinum (TSX: NCP; US-OTC: NCPCF) shares rose on Wednesday, after the company reported high-grade results from the Arch target at its flagship Nickel Shaw project in southwest Yukon.

Hole ASD22-016 cut 3.8 metres grading 2.57% nickel, 1.61% copper and 2.35 grams total precious metals (TPM) per tonne from 169.5 metres depth. The highlighted hole was drilled as part of an 18-hole, 2,975-metre program that ran last July to October and from which data will be used for an upcoming prefeasibility study in the second quarter. The massive sulphide interval was encountered down-dip of semi-massive to massive sulphide mineralization drilled in 2021.

The company also reported significant disseminated and semi-massive sulphide intervals grading 0.29% to 0.67% nickel, 0.08% to 0.43% copper and 0.43 to 1.64 grams TPM over 6.3- to 79-metre intervals in seven holes. Nickel cut-off grades of 1% for the massive sulphide and 0.25% for the disseminated sulphide.

“We have demonstrated the continuity of sulphide mineralization at the Arch Target including its significant nickel, copper, precious metals and sulphur grades. This target occurs at shallow depths and is currently being assessed to determine if a maiden inferred resource can be outlined here,” Nickel Creek CEO Stuart Harshaw said in a release, adding that Arch data won’t be included in the prefeasibility study for Nickel Shaw expected in July.

“But we are excited by the opportunity for additional higher-grade mineralization at our Nickel Shaw property.”

The company also reported that geophysics results at Arch showed untested conductivity down-dip and along strike of current drilling, and near surface massive to disseminated sulphide mineralization at depths of 7 to 170 metres over a 450-metre strike length.

Of the 18 holes drilled last year, 10 (totalling 1,265 metres) were drilled at Arch. The drill campaign extended massive to disseminated nickel-copper sulphide mineralization at depth and along strike from holes drilled in 2021.

The other eight holes (totalling 1,710 metres) were drilled on the Wellgreen deposit, about 4 km southeast of Arch, with the aim of collecting geotechnical and hydrogeological data, and converting inferred resources to indicated for the prefeasibility study.

According to a 2018 technical report, Nickel Shaw hosts measured and indicated resources of 323.4 million tonnes grading 0.26% nickel, 0.16% copper and 0.015% cobalt, 0.25 gram per tonne platinum, 0.25 gram palladium and 0.04 gram gold.

Contained metal totals 1.8 billion lb. nickel, 1.1 billion lb. copper, 107 million lb. cobalt, 2.6 million oz. platinum, 2.6 million oz. palladium and 480,000 oz. gold. In the inferred category, the project hosts 108.1 million tonnes grading 0.29% nickel, 0.15% copper, 0.01% cobalt, 0.25 gram per tonne platinum, 0.27 gram palladium and 0.04 gram gold for 691 million lb. nickel, 357 million lb. copper, 38 million lb. cobalt, 890,000 oz. platinum, 970,000 oz. palladium and 139,000 oz. gold.

Nickel Shaw is located about 317 km northwest of Whitehorse on the paved Alaska Highway.

Shares of Toronto-based Nickel Creek traded at 5¢ apiece, up 11% as of noon on Wednesday, in a 52-week window of 4¢ and 10¢. The company has a market capitalization of $21.7 million.