New Tech Lithium Acquires Buena Vista Hills Cobalt Property In Nevada

New Tech Lithium Corp (CSE:NTM) has signed an arm’s-length definitive option agreement dated May 15, 2018, to lease the mineral rights for the Buena Vista Hills cobalt property located in Pershing county (Nevada), which contains known significant cobalt mineralization. New Tech Lithium had previously signed a letter of intent (LOI) with an arm’s-length vendor to lease the mineral rights beneath a privately owned, approximately 640-acre section in Pershing county. Deal terms are defined later in this news release.

Cobalt mineralization and provenance

The Buena Vista Hills cobalt project is in northern Pershing county, southeast of Lovelock, Nev. Cobalt mineralization at the Buena Vista Hills cobalt project is considered part of an IOCG (iron oxide copper gold) mineralization occurrence located within and associated with the Jurassic-aged Humboldt mafic magmatic complex. Cobalt mineralization occurs temporally, with copper-gold mineralization as part of a sulphide mineralization event that postdates it, and in places that partially overprint earlier oxide, magnetite and iron ore metasomatic replacement mineralization. Cobalt is associated with disseminated massive pyrite and stockwork-pyrite veining sulphide mineralization that is temporally associated with, but spatially separated from, copper-gold sulphide mineralization. IOCG iron ore mineralization has been mined in the past at several locations in the Humboldt mafic complex, as evidenced by several existing historic open pits and associated waste piles. Strongly oxidized cobalt-bearing pyrite is exposed in a historic (approximately 660 feet by 600 feet and 150 feet deep) open-pit iron ore mine at the area of interest. IOCG associated copper-gold exploration has occurred at several locations in the Humboldt mafic complex as well.

Cobalt mineralization occurs as disseminations and stockwork veins of cobalt-bearing pyrite associated with strong sodium-calcium (Na-Ca) hydrothermal alteration in gabbroic intrusive rocks, co-magmatic basalt-andesite volcanic flow rocks and replacements of disseminated to massive magnetite bodies. The igneous host rocks are all part of the Jurassic-aged Humboldt IOCG mafic magmatic complex. Very low levels of nickel-sulphide mineralization represent the only other base metal associated with the cobaltoan-pyrite sulphide mineralization and the prospect can be characterized as an iron-cobalt deposit. Cobaltoan-pyrite sulphide mineralization is associated with albite-actinolite and late chlorite-sericite alteration that occur outside of or variably overprint earlier scapolite-hornblende alteration in gabbro intrusive rocks, basalt-andesite volcanic flow rocks and early disseminated to massive magnetite replacement bodies, which are genetically and spatially related to high-temperature, intrusive-proximal scapolite-hornblende alteration.

Cobalt geochemical results

Due diligence rock chip geochemical results for samples collected by New Tech Lithium from the top of the northeast margin of a historic iron ore open-pit mine on the property range from 0.048 per cent to 0.113 per cent cobalt and confirm previously reported rock chip sample cobalt data collected from around the existing open pit and historic drill data from a single, vertical, 580-foot reverse circulation (RC) exploration drill hole completed by the owners in 2008. The drill hole is located approximately 330 feet northeast of the northeast pit wall and contains a 40-foot interval with an average grade of 0.12 per cent CoO (cobalt oxide) occuring within a 60-foot interval of 0.1 per cent CoO and a 90-foot interval of 0.09 per cent CoO. Complete NewTech Lithium due diligence as well as comparative historic rock chip and drill hole sample results are reported as follows.

Complete historic and recent cobalt geochemical results

New Tech Lithium due diligence geochemical results:

• Four rock chip samples from exposed mineralization at the top/upper bench of open pit and northeast development pit outside the pit ranged from 0.048 per cent to 0.113 per cent Co, with an average grade of 0.0723 per cent Co.
  • This includes one sample from a small development pit located approximately 1,000 feet northeast of the main exposed mineralized zone of 0.048 per cent Co.
• There were two dump samples with an average grade of 0.013 per cent Co.
• There was one sample from development pit, approximately 800 feet southwest of the main exposed mineralized zone and outside the pit, grading 0.047 per cent Co.

Unpublished geochemical data:

• Fifteen pit wall (top of upper bench only) rock chip and dump samples ranged from 0.009 per cent to 1.2 per cent Co, with an average grade of 0.23 per cent Co.
  • If the anomalously low (0.009 per cent Co) and high (1.2 per cent Co) cobalt concentration samples are cut from the sample population, the range becomes 0.023 per cent to 0.82 per cent Co, with an average grade of 0.18 per cent Co.

Historic RC drill hole data (drill hole located approximately 330 feet northeast of main exposed cobalt mineralized zone in the open pit):

• 20 feet to 110 feet at 0.09 per cent CoO;
  • Including 20 feet to 80 feet at 0.10 per cent CoO;
  • Including 40 feet to 80 feet at 0.12 per cent CoO;
• Please note that selected grab samples collected by New Tech Lithium and reported in the Ted DeMatties preprint paper are not necessarily representative of the deposit.

The final terms of the definitive option agreement are described in the attached tables (all dollar amounts are in U.S. dollars).

                                   CASH AND SHARES

Item           Cash ($)       Shares                                          Date
  
1                3,000             -                         Paid on March 5, 2018
2               22,000       250,000                  Closing date -- May 25, 2018 
                                        (10 business days after the execution date) 
3               25,000       250,000                                  May 25, 2019
4               25,000       250,000                                  May 25, 2020
 
After the closing date, the number of shares to be issued will be subject to any 
subdivision or consolidation of the shares.

                             EXPLORATION EXPENDITURES ($700,000)

Year 1      $100,000      Completed by the first anniversary of the execution date, May 15, 2019
Year 2      $200,000      Completed by the second anniversary of the execution date, May 15, 2020
Year 3      $400,000      Completed by the third anniversary of the execution date, May 15, 2021

Royalty

The lessor retains a 1-per-cent net smelter returns royalty (one-half of which can be purchased for $500,000). If magnetite and hematite are comingled within the ore or concentrates shipped from site, a royalty of $1 per metric tonne of Fe (iron) shall be paid to the lessor in addition to the other royalties for the metals of interest.

There is a minimum annual royalty of $50,000 to be paid for 10 years, commencing on the third anniversary of the execution date (which would be May 15, 2021).

There is an existing and underlying NSR of 5 per cent on the property owned by Nevada Lands and Resources of Reno, Nev.

Option to purchase

The company has the option to purchase the property for a price of $2-million for a period of three years, expiring May 13, 2021.

Exploration program

New Tech Lithium plans to immediately initiate design of a phase 1 exploration program now that the option deal has been completed. The proposed phase 1 exploration program is expected to include early-stage test drilling around the known cobalt-mineralized zone(s), in and around the existing open pit and along presumed structural controls.

About New Tech Lithium Corp.

New Tech Lithium is a Canadian Securities Exchange-listed public company located in Vancouver, B.C. New Tech is focused on exploring for and developing the modern battery-element lithium and cobalt in the United States. It currently controls a large lithium plus bromine plus potassium brine project (about 13,840 acres of federal lithium claims and Utah and Colorado state leases) in the Paradox basin of Utah and Colorado. New Tech also controls about 27,000 acres of potash permit applications in the Paradox basin of Utah.

The scientific and technical data contained in this news release were prepared and reviewed by Dr. Kent Ausburn, PhD, PGeo, a non-independent qualified person to the company. Dr. Ausburn is responsible for ensuring that the geologic information provided in this news release is accurate and acts as a qualified person pursuant to National Instrument 43-101 — Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

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Source: www.stockwatch.com