FIREBIRD NICKEL PROJECT
(formerly Falcon Nickel Project)
The Firebird Nickel Project (“Firebird”) is comprised of 73 claims owned 100% by ALX totaling 23,624 hectares (58,376 acres) that are prospective for nickel, copper and cobalt (“Ni-Cu-Co”) mineralization, located in the northern Athabasca region of Saskatchewan. Firebird hosts a magmatic nickel-sulphide mineralizing system that has been underexplored by modern methods until its acquisition by ALX.
[
Firebird Nickel Project](https://www.alxresources.com/assets/img/maps/Firebird%20Nickel%20Project%20Location_300dpi.jpg "Firebird Nickel Project")
The centre of Firebird is located approximately 18 kilometres (11.2 miles) northwest of Stony Rapids, Saskatchewan within the Tantato Domain, otherwise known as the East Athabasca Mylonite Triangle, which forms a segment of the Snowbird Tectonic Zone. A long history of exploration beginning in 1929 discovered numerous Ni-Cu-Co showings within Firebird’s boundaries, including the Axis Lake deposit (“Axis Lake”), the Rea Lake deposit (“Rea Lake”) and the Currie Lake deposit (“Currie Lake”). However, no exploration was carried out from 2007 to 2019 until ALX acquired its claims by staking and subsequent purchase in 2019.
[
Firebird Nickel Project Claims](https://www.alxresources.com/assets/img/maps/Firebird%20Nickel%20Project%20Claims_300dpi.jpg "Firebird Nickel Project Claims")
2021 Exploration Program
On April 6, 2021, ALX announced that its exploration partner, Rio Tinto Exploration Canada Inc. (“Rio Tinto”), has confirmed details of the 2021 exploration program and budget for Firebird.
Firebird is currently the subject of an option agreement whereby Rio Tinto can earn up to an 80% interest in the Project by incurring exploration expenditures of $12.0 million over a six-year period and by making a total of $125,000 in cash payments to the Company.
The Firebird 2021 exploration program, is anticipated to begin in late May 2021 with initial ground-truthing of geophysical anomalies that were detected in the airborne electromagnetic (“EM”) survey completed at the Project in October 2020. The early onset of winter conditions in mid-October 2020 prevented surface investigations of anomalous areas where no prospecting has been carried out by ALX. Following the ground-truthing, drilling is planned to commence in June 2021, with ALX acting as operator of exploration at the Project.
In May 2021, contracts for drilling, helicopter support, and geological services were executed by the Company and the summer diamond drilling program consisting of 1,500 metres in up to eight holes is scheduled to begin in mid-June 2021, mobilizing from Stony Rapids, Saskatchewan.
Highlights of 2021 Drilling Program
- The helicopter-supported program is planned to consist of up to eight diamond drill holes totaling approximately 1,500 metres (4,920 feet), each targeting discrete EM conductors that exhibit the geophysical characteristics of magmatic sulphide mineralization within this geological setting.
- The first drill holes of the program are planned in the northwestern part of Firebird at the Wiley Lake Showing area, where surface sampling by ALX has identified high-grade nickel showings (see ALX news release dated July 27, 2020, “ALX Resources Corp. Samples up to 2.43% Nickel and 8.34 Grams/Tonne Gold in the Northern Athabasca Region, Saskatchewan”).
- ALX received a permit in early March 2021 for surface exploration, including ground geophysical surveys and diamond drilling, good until September 30, 2022. Engagement with indigenous groups and local communities in the northeastern Athabasca Basin area is ongoing in order to mitigate any impacts to traditional land use and cultural practices during ALX’s exploration program.
[
2020 Airborne EM Survey with Nickel Show…](https://www.alxresources.com/assets/img/maps/2020%20Airborne%20EM%20Survey%20with%20Nickel%20Showings-%20Firebird%20.jpg "2020 Airborne EM Survey with Nickel Showings - Firebird Nickel Project, Saskatchewan")