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Backstop agreement is evaluating injection well site options, pumping and piping infrastructure, preliminary engineering and cost estimates for liquid and solid waste disposal
Fortune Minerals Alberta Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Fortune Minerals Limited (TSX: FT,OTC:FTMDF) (OTCQB: FTMDF) (" Fortune " or the " Company ") ( www.fortuneminerals.com ) is pleased to announce that it has signed a backstop agreement with SECURE Waste Infrastructure Corp. ( TSX:SES ) (" SECURE ") to provide waste disposal solutions for the Company's planned hydrometallurgical facility in Lamont County, Alberta. The hydrometallurgical facility will process concentrates from Fortune's planned NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper mine and concentrator in the Northwest Territories (" NWT "), and other feed sources, to make value-added critical mineral products for the energy transition, new technologies and defence, collectively, (the " NICO Project ").
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Pursuant to the agreement, SECURE is investigating 1A deep disposal injection well site options and the related pumping and piping infrastructure to transport and dispose of brine-wastes that will be produced from the Company's Alberta hydrometallurgical processing facility. SECURE will also prepare the preliminary engineering and cost estimates for these facilities and obtain the necessary permits, licenses, certifications and authorizations from governmental and regulatory bodies having jurisdiction over the project. Once the preliminary work is complete, the companies expect to enter into a definitive agreement to develop and operate the injection well over the first 10 years of refinery operations. The definitive agreement will also include provisions for the transportation and disposal of approximately 200,000 metric tonnes per year of process residue solids in a Class 2 government approved landfill.
Robin Goad, Chief Executive Officer of Fortune commented, "We are pleased to partner with SECURE for the development, construction and operation of a 1A deep brine injection well and a solid waste disposal solution for the waste products that will be generated from our Alberta hydrometallurgical facility. SECURE is a trusted local expert in waste management systems and the relationship is a cost and environmentally effective alternative for the treatment of refinery waste products."
The NICO Project is an advanced development asset comprised of a planned open pit and underground mine and concentrator in the NWT and a dedicated hydrometallurgical facility in Alberta to process three critical minerals to value-added products with more than one million ounces of in-situ gold. Development of the NICO Project would provide a reliable vertically integrated North American supply of battery grade cobalt sulphate, bismuth ingots, and copper cement critical mineral products to address western supply chain resilience and security vulnerabilities.
The disclosure of scientific and technical information contained in this news release have been approved by Robin Goad, M.Sc., P.Geo., President and Chief Executive Officer of Fortune and Alex Mezei, M.Sc., P.Eng. Fortune's Chief Metallurgist, who are "Qualified Persons" under National Instrument 43-101.
About SECURE
SECURE is a leading waste management and energy infrastructure company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta with an expansive infrastructure network located throughout Western Canada and North Dakota and providing crucial solutions for waste management systems. SECURE partners with its clients to safely recover oil and metal, dispose of liquid and solid waste, recycle waste materials, and reclaim contaminated land to minimize their environmental footprint. SECURE delivers innovative solutions to help its customers reduce costs, lower greenhouse gas emissions, and exceed their business, safety and environmental goals.
About Fortune Minerals
Fortune is a Canadian mining and processing company focused on developing the NICO cobalt-gold-bismuth-copper project in the Northwest Territories and Alberta. Fortune also owns the satellite Sue-Dianne copper-silver-gold deposit located 25 km north of the NICO deposit and is a potential future source of incremental feed to extend the life of the NICO concentrator.
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This press release contains forward-looking information and forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. This forward-looking information includes statements with respect to, among other things, the construction of the proposed Hydrometallurgical Facility in Alberta, and the Company's plans to develop the NICO Project. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management as well as certain assumptions at the date the information is given (including, in respect of the forward-looking information contained in this press release, assumptions regarding: the Company's ability to complete construction of a NICO Project Hydrometallurgical Facility; the Company's ability to arrange the necessary financing to continue operations and develop the NICO Project; the receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals for the construction and operation of the NICO Project and the related Hydrometallurgical Facility and the timing thereof; the time required to construct the NICO Project; and the economic environment in which the Company will operate in the future, including the price of gold, cobalt, bismuth and other by-product metals, anticipated costs and the volumes of metals to be produced at the NICO Project). However, such forward-looking information is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. These factors include the risks related to the new Mineral Reserves, Mine Plan and production schedule for the NICO Project, the Company may not be able to finance and develop NICO on favourable terms or at all, uncertainties with respect to the receipt or timing of required permits, approvals and agreements for the development of the NICO Project, including the related Hydrometallurgical Facility, the construction of the NICO Project may take longer than anticipated, the Company may not be able to secure offtake agreements for the metals to be produced at the NICO Project, the Sue-Dianne Property may not be developed to the point where it can provide mill feed to the NICO Project, the Company may not enter into a definitive agreement with SECURE once the preliminary work is completed, the inherent risks involved in the exploration and development of mineral properties and in the mining industry in general, the market for products that use cobalt or bismuth may not grow to the extent anticipated, the future supply of cobalt and bismuth may not be as limited as anticipated, the risk of decreases in the market prices of cobalt, bismuth and other metals to be produced by the NICO Project, discrepancies between actual and estimated Mineral Resources or between actual and estimated metallurgical recoveries, uncertainties associated with estimating Mineral Resources and Reserves and the risk that even if such Mineral Resources prove accurate the risk that such Mineral Resources may not be converted into Mineral Reserves once economic conditions are applied, the Company's production of cobalt, bismuth and other metals may be less than anticipated and other operational and development risks, market risks and regulatory risks. Readers are cautioned to not place undue reliance on forward-looking information because it is possible that predictions, forecasts, projections and other forms of forward-looking information will not be achieved by the Company. The forward-looking information contained herein is made as of the date hereof and the Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise it to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260408842348/en/
For further information please contact:
Fortune Minerals Limited
Troy Nazarewicz
Investor Relations Manager
info@fortuneminerals.com
Tel: (519) 858-8188
www.fortuneminerals.com
