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Olympio Metals Limited (ASX:OLY) (Olympio or the Company) is pleased to announce that it has signed an option to acquire 80% of the highly prospective Dufay Cu-Au Project on the Cadillac-Lake Larder Fault Zone, known as the ‘Cadillac Break’ (Dufay Option), in Canada.
Highlights
- Option to acquire 80% of the Dufay Copper-Gold Project from private vendors
- Located on the Cadillac Break, a regional structure associated with world class gold and copper mineralisation (>110 Moz Au1)
- Outcropping copper sulphides with numerous high grade rockchips up to 7.7% Cu
- 60km2 of tenure, covering 10km of strike of the Cadillac Break
- Multiple large Au-Cu mineral resources within 5km (Kerr-Addison2 >11Moz, Galloway3 >1.4 Moz)
- 35km west of world class Rouyn-Noranda Cu-Au province (VMS) and Horne Copper Smelter (Glencore)
- Excellent road and rail infrastructure with year round access
- Untested high priority IP anomaly (>1.2km) adjacent to syenite porphyry
- Underexplored property with no drilling since the 1980s
- Drilling approvals underway with drilling planned for January 2025
- Option represents a low cost strategic addition for Olympio
Olympio’s Managing Director, Sean Delaney, commented:
“The Dufay Project offers Olympio significant strike exposure to one of the world’s premier mineralised structures, the famed Cadillac Break. The Project offers a range of underexplored exploration targets, including high-grade copper showings that have never been drilled and compelling porphyry Cu-Au geophysical targets that remain untested.
“The Project is adjacent to numerous large gold-copper mineral resources, with a major highway through the project directly to the Rouyn-Noranda copper smelter 35km to the east. The Project has significant potential to host porphyry Cu-Au mineralisation, with exploration drilling planned to commence during the upcoming Canadian winter field season.”
This terrane bounding structure is associated with world class endowments of VMS and orogenic gold and copper mineralisation1. The Project is located 35km west of the Rouyn-Noranda mining centre and copper smelter in southwest Québec (Figure 3 and Figure 4).
Figure 1 Rock chip sampling and IP geophysical survey over 1VD regional magnetics
The Dufay Project contains numerous historical showings of chalcopyrite-rich quartz veining, including the Chevrier working (refer Figure 1 and Figure 2), which was mined briefly in the late 1920s. There has been limited drilling on the Property, with the majority of holes drilled pre-1945 and no drilling for the last 36 years.
Numerous high grade copper rock chips samples across many prospect locations within the tenure, including up to 7.66% at the Papitose Prospect and up to 6.78% at the Chevrier Prospect (Figure 1, Table 1).
Table 1 Copper results of selected rock chip samples (See Table 2 attached for full summary of sampling)
There are numerous elongated exposures of syenite porphyry mapped in the Dufay Project (Figure 1). The Dufay Project syenite occurs <4km south of the Renault Bay Syenite, which is directly associated with the >1.4 Moz Au-equivalent Galloway Project 4km to the north3 (Fokus Minerals) (Figure 2). An Induced Polarisation (IP) ground survey over the area was completed in 20114, and recorded a large (>1200m long), high conductivity anomaly typical of copper sulphide mineralization immediately adjacent to the syenite porphyry. Importantly, this compelling copper target has never been drilled.
The extensive IP anomaly, the Chevrier Prospect and the Papitose Prospect are immediate priority drill targets with the approvals process already underway for drilling planned to start in January 2025.
Figure 2 Dufay Project local mineralisation context. Hendricks drill intercept source5
Figure 3 Copper and Gold mineralisation along the Cadillac Break, southern Abitibi Sub-Province
Figure 4 Dufay Project Location
TECHNICAL INFORMATION
The Dufay Copper-Gold Project is located immediately south of the Cadillac-Lake Larder Fault Zone, or the Cadillac Break, a major crustal discontinuity separating the Archean Abitibi Greenstone sub-province to the north from the Pontiac sub-province to the south.
The gold endowment of the orogenic deposits located along the Cadillac Break totals approximately 111 Moz1. Multiple >1Moz gold projects occur within 5km of the Dufay Project , including Kerr-Addison (11 Moz2) and the recently increased Galloway Au-Cu mineral resource (Fokus Minerals, >1.4 Moz Au-equivalent3) (Refer Figure 2 and Figure 3). The Pontiac Sub-Province sediments host numerous gold mineral resources peripheral to the Cadillac Break, including the nearby Granada mineral resource (>1.0Moz)6 and the >10Moz Malartic deposit7.
The Cadillac Break is also linked to the Noranda Volcanic Complex, which hosts numerous VMS deposits (Cu-Au-Zn-Ag) including the Horne deposit (>1Mt Cu, 0.5Mt Ag, 9Moz Au production8; Refer Figure 3).
The Project is highly prospective for porphyry Au-Cu mineralisation and shear-hosted quartz- carbonate-pyrite lode gold mineralisation. The nearby Galloway gold deposit (<4 km to the north, Fokus Minerals) is strongly associated with a syenite intrusive, similar to those mapped within the Dufay tenure.
Dufay hosts numerous quartz vein-sulphide hosted copper-gold-silver prospects with strike extents to hundreds of metres. The Archaean host geology includes a wide variety of rock types, including metasediments, ultramafic talc-chlorite schists, porphyry/syenite, felsic to intermediate intrusives and gneisses, and Proterozoic dolerite dykes. Disseminated chalcopyrite mineralisation is widespread in selected areas examined by Olympio to-date, suggestive of a large pervasive mineralising system.
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VVC Resources
Investor Insight
With a growing list of natural resources assets vital to growing global demand in the healthcare and technology sectors, VVC Resources presents an investment opportunity for investors looking to diversify their portfolios.
Overview
The global helium market is expected to increase from $4.45 billion in 2022 to $5.03 billion in 2023 at a compound annual growth rate of 12.9 percent driven by the growing demand for helium from the healthcare industry. Helium is important in medicine because this rare element is used in various ways, one of which is as a refrigerant capable of cooling the superconducting magnets in MRI scanners. This non-reactive, non-corrosive, non-flammable noble gas is not only used in diagnosis equipment but also as an adjunct therapy for certain diseases like COPD, asthma and bronchiolitis.
Although helium is the second most common element on earth, global helium supplies are running low. Resource companies that supply industries dependent on helium should explore potential helium reserves and evaluate data to come up with a unique strategy for increasing helium production.
VVC Resources (TSXV:VVC;OTCQB:VVCVF) engages in the exploration, development and management of natural resources - specializing in scarce and increasingly valuable materials needed to meet the growing, high-tech demands of industries such as manufacturing, technology, medicine, space travel and the expanding green economy.
The company’s portfolio includes a diverse set of assets and high-growth projects, comprising: helium and industrial gas production in the western US; copper and associated metals operations in northern Mexico; and strategic investments in carbon sequestration and other green energy technologies.
VVC currently targets helium reserves in the US by reactivating old gas wells and drilling new wells. In January 2022, the company engaged Foreland Operating to manage the day-to-day helium operations going forward. In March 2022, VVC announced the successful completion and connection of its first helium well in the Syracuse Project. The well, known as the Levens #2, was connected to Tumbleweed Midstream’s Ladder Creek Pipeline, which transports gas to the Ladder Creek Helium Processing Plant in Cheyenne Wells, Colorado. VVC further confirmed the presence of helium up to 1.14 percent from its second drilled well in the Syracuse Project.
VVC also acquired the Monarch Project to further capitalize on the growing demand for helium due to increased global usage. The Monarch Project consists of more than 1,700 acres of gas leases located in Greely County, Kansas with six existing wells. Minor repairs were made to five of the six wells, restoring electric power service, and began generating revenue from the natural gas and helium at low volumes. The focus of this project is the 14 additional potential well locations which are conveniently located for connection to the Tumbleweed pipeline.
VVC’s helium portfolio reached another significant milestone with the installation of 14 miles of its internal gathering system pipeline in the Syracuse Project. The major infrastructure will seamlessly transport gas produced by the company’s helium and natural gas wells to a nearby processing plant. The milestone increases the pipeline’s length from 7 to 14 miles and the project’s capacity from 50 to 100 wells.
VVC is advancing its Gloria copper property in Mexico towards production. The 4,055-acre Gloria property is situated in the northern part of Mexico’s Chihuahua state in the Sierra Madre region 60 kilometers southwest of El Paso, Texas. The project is also supported by infrastructure including an access road and an available mining workforce.
VVC Exploration is led by a management team with a wealth of mining experience and is supported by a board of directors with significant influence in both the mining and financial industries. The management and board are also notably invested in the company, with the CEO, members of management and the board of directors listed as top investors. As a whole, the company has a tight share structure with over 90 million shares held by the top 25 investors.
Company Highlights
Helium, Natural Gas & Other Industrial Gases
- A growing portfolio of helium and NG projects with the acquisition of Plateau Helium, currently comprising 69 leases covering 16,400 acres known as the Syracuse Kansas project, 1,600 acres in the Monarch property, Stockholm project (3,000 acres), Johnson-Moore project (6,000 acres), LF project (5,000 acres) and State Line project (6,000 acres).
- The Colorado project, located in Eastern, Colorado, comprises 23,000 acres of gas leases and leasing continuing, with a total of 26 historical wells that were previously drilled flowing gas that tested helium above 3 percent.
- Six wells connected and producing, two ready to complete in the Syracuse KS project (as of December 2024).
- One well drilled and completed, producing into tanks in the Stockholm KS project. Connection line to processing plant in process. Helium, natural gas and oil sales expected in January 2025, additional well sites identified (as of December 2024).
- The initial well of the Kansas Oil project has begun producing. The company is currently in the planning phase for additional wells in the area.
- Installed 14 miles of internal gathering system pipeline to transport helium and natural gas wells to a nearby processing facility.
- Installed a 15-mile water disposal system.
Copper, Base & Precious Metals
- VVC’s near-production Gloria copper property, located in Mexico, has an indicated copper resource of 59.4 million pounds and 89.33 million pounds of inferred copper.
Strategic Investments
Energy Transition & Carbon Capture
- Strategic investment in Proton Green as part of its carbon capture venture. Proton Green’s focus project, the St. John’s Field, contains 33 billion cubic feet of helium and the ability to inject up to 22 million metric tons of CO2 per year at its primary basin
- Helium production began August 30, 2023.
- Food grade CO2 production is expected to begin in 2025.
Helium & Natural Gas
- Strategic investment in the PHC South Africa project, located in the Free State, Republic of South Africa East of Welcome and South of Kroonstad 147 miles southwest of Johannesburg (152,000 acres).
Key Projects
Helium Portfolio
As of Dec 2024
Plateau Helium Corporation
In January 2021, VVC Exploration acquired Plateau Helium Corporation (PHC), a Wyoming Corporation focused on helium exploration and development, primarily in the western US. PHC’s initial target project is located in Kansas and currently comprises 69 leases covering 16,371 acres known as the Syracuse Helium Project.
Plateau Helium Corporation engaged Foreland Operating to manage the company’s helium production. Foreland Operating is a Texas-based upstream oil and gas operating company with a long-tenured team that has been operating in many of the premiere US basins including the Barnett Shale, the Marcellus Shale and the Permian Basin.
Syracuse
Syracuse is VVC’s helium project with 16,400 acres of contiguous oil and gas leases. The company has identified 16 identified well sites in the area with internal estimates of a future resource of 75 Bcf of gas. Currently, Syracuse has 22 well sites permitted or currently being permitted, each with the potential to produce over 1 billion cubic feet of gas.
In 2022, the company announced it successfully completed and connected its first helium well to the project. The well is known as the Levens #2 and was connected to Tumbleweed Midstream’s Ladder Creek Pipeline allowing the transport of gas to the Ladder Creek Helium Processing Plant in Cheyenne Wells, Colorado. The Levens #2 was successfully drilled to a depth of 2,478 feet and encountered multiple gas zones.
As of Dec 2024
Monarch Lease
VVC purchased the Monarch Lease in April 2021, bolstering VVC’s ability to capitalize on the growing demand for helium, driven by increased global usage. The Monarch Lease is a 1,720-acre property that is located in the Byerly Field in Greely County, Kansas and includes six formerly producing gas wells that are still connected to the Tumbleweed Midstream pipeline. All wells produced both methane and helium. There is additional potential in the deeper zones of this property which VVC will explore.
Stockholm Project
The Stockholm project is VVC’s top drilling priority project in Wallace Kansas in an area with significant natural gas potential. Stockholm spans 3,000 acres of permitted jurisdiction targeted for helium, natural gas and hydrogen. VVC has commenced drilling activities at the Josephine Mack 1-18 well, marking the initiation of the company's first test well within the Stockholm project.The Josephine Mack 1-18 well is VVC's strategic entry into this geologically promising region which evaluates the hydrocarbon potential of the Morrow Zone. The Stockholm project shows potential for oil production as well.
Copper and Associated Metals
VVC’s current copper focus project is Gloria in Northern Mexico which is a host to oxide copper mineralization with a copper resource of 59.4 million pounds, indicated (9.6 million tonnes grading 0.28 percent copper) and 89.33 million pounds, inferred (14.4 million tonnes grading 0.28 percent copper). The property spans 4,055 acres in Chihuahua State and drilling over the past two years has defined a significant copper mineralized zone over a 15-kilometer strike.
Gloria provides VVC with a unique exposure to the copper market. Approximately 100,000 tons of artisanal ore piles on site that have been high graded, hand cobbed (sorted), and can be utilized for pilot/test mining.
Located in Central Sonora Mexico is VVC’s 16,622-acre Cumeral gold/copper exploration project. Cumeral covers an epithermal style, mineralized gold/silver zone at least 3.6 kilometers long with geological structure and surface sampling suggest the potential for multi-million ounce gold deposit.
Carbon Capture
Proton Green
VVC recently made a strategic investment in Proton Green, an energy transition company poised to become one of the leading helium producers and carbon sequestration hubs in North America.
Proton Green, LLC, is a producer of helium and hydrogen and is building out its position as a large carbon sequestration operator in North America. With operating control over the St. Johns Field, a 152,000-acre property in Apache County, Arizona, Proton Green controls a helium reservoir and carbon storage basin.
Proton Green’s initial project is the St. Johns Field. The St. Johns Field is a massive helium reservoir and immense carbon storage basin located in Apache County, Arizona. Extensive third-party geological studies performed on the property indicate reserves of up to 33 billion cubic feet of helium in shallow, easily accessible reservoirs. Capable of producing one billion cubic feet of helium per year, it will be among the most prolific helium production sites in the world.
It is also projected to be among the largest carbon capture companies in North America, with 22 million metric tons of carbon sequestration per year, and a total storage capacity of over 1 billion metric tons.
Management Team
Terrence Martell - Chairman of the Board
Dr. Terrence Martell is the director of the Weissman Center for International Business at Baruch College and the Saxe Distinguished Professor of Finance where he oversees a myriad of international education programs and projects. He is also the chairperson of the University Faculty Senate and an ex-officio member of the board of trustees at The City University of New York. His area of expertise and research is international commodity markets.
He is a director of the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) where he serves on the audit committee and has many roles. He serves on the board of the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce and is a member of their executive committee. He is also a member of the New York City District Export Council of the US Department of Commerce and a member of the Reuters/Jefferies CRB Index Oversight Committee. Dr. Martell received his BA in Economics from Iona College and his PhD in Finance from the Pennsylvania State University.
James (Jim) Culver - President, CEO and Director
Dr. James Culver has spent over 40 years in the fields of commodities, international trade and trade finance, holding posts in government, academia and the private sector. For the last 20 years, he has focused on commodity finance and commodity project finance, primarily in mining and metals and agricultural products. He spent 22 years working in New York City where he most recently managed two private commodity asset-based lending companies and developed hedge funds to support their lending activities.
Previously, Dr. Culver served as chief economist and director of the Economics and Education Division for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. He was responsible for market surveillance and new product approvals. He also served for five years on the staff of the Committee on Agriculture of the US House of Representatives. In addition, Culver has been an active participant in a family-owned and operated business, The Parsons Group International Education Inc., a for-profit educational services company. He earned his B.Sc. at the University of Tennessee Martin and his MSc. and PhD degrees from the University of Tennessee Knoxville.
Andre St-Michel - Senior Consultant, Mexican Operations
A Canadian mining engineer and geologist residing in Chihuahua, Mexico, Andre St-Michel has over 30 years of experience in the mining business with a focus on mine development, mill operation, administration and finance. He has spent the last 10 years working in Mexico where he currently serves as President and CEO of Freyja Resources.
From 2003 to 2008, he was a senior executive of Dia Bras (now Sierra Metals), responsible for its exploration programs and the start-up of its Bolivar copper and zinc mine. From the initial start-up of the mine in 2005, production reached 450 tons per day in 2006 with annual projected revenues of approximately $27 million and cash flows of approximately $10 million. Prior to 2003, he served as president of ECU Silver Mining, developing programs and properties in the US, Brazil and Mexico. He holds a degree from the Laval University Engineering School and a Master’s degree in Project Management from University du Quebec. He is a professional engineer.
Michael Lafrance - Director and Secretary-Treasurer
Michael Lafrance has been VVC Exploration’s secretary and treasurer and geological consultant since December 2012. Since 1980, he has served in similar roles with many other publicly-traded exploration companies. He is also the corporate secretary of POET Technologies Inc. (formerly Opel Technologies), a pioneer in the field of integrated circuits. He is a graduate of the University of Ottawa.
Kevin Barnes - CFO
Kevin Barnes has served as the corporate controller and CFO of various public and private companies over the last 12 years. He also served in the role of IT manager and senior accountant with Duguay and Ringler Corporate Services, a firm which provides corporate accounting and secretarial services to publicly-traded companies. He served as the controller of Canada’s Choice Spring Water, one of Canada’s first publicly traded bottled water companies.
He currently serves as CFO of Poet Technologies, a pioneer in the field of integrated circuits and Controller of an international training institute with revenues of $100 million. Barnes received a computer operations diploma from the Careers Development Institute and has a Certified Management Accountant designation from the ICMA Australia. In 2006, he became a member of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Canada.
Peter Dimmell - Director
Peter Dimmell is a geologist and prospector who has been involved in mineral exploration in Canada, the United States and overseas for 38 years. He is experienced in all aspects of the mining industry and has guided on-site operations from exploration through to production. He is a past president of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC), a director and former chairman of the Newfoundland and Labrador Chamber of Mineral Resources and a councilor and member of the Geological Association of Canada. He sits on the Board of Directors of four other public companies: Arehada Mining, Linear Gold, Pele Mountain Resources and Silver Spruce Resources, for which he also serves as CEO.
Bruno Dumais - Director
Bruno Dumais is vice-president of finance, for BroadSign International, a Montreal-based provider of digital signage solutions. He possesses over 20 years of experience in financial, forecast and strategic planning and is responsible for overseeing global financial activities. Before joining BroadSign, he was the chief financial officer, vice-president of finance and a consultant at Mitec Telecom for seven years. He has also held senior level positions in companies crossing a variety of sectors, such as Gestion Exponent, Nortel Networks and Premier Tech. Dumais is a chartered professional accountant and holds both a Bachelor in Business Administration from the University of Quebec in Rimouski and an International MBA from the University of Ottawa.
Patrick Fernet - Director
Patrick Fernet is a legal, operations, and corporate governance expert with more than twelve years’ experience in Canadian small-cap public corporations. He serves as a consultant to VVC on a variety of corporate matters. He has more than 15 years of governance experience with small-cap Canadian corporations.
Scott Hill - Director
Scott Hill has served as chief financial officer of Intercontinental Exchange Inc (ICE) since May 2007. He is responsible for all aspects of ICE’s finance and accounting functions, treasury, tax, audit and controls, business development, human resources and investor relations. Hill also oversees ICE’s global clearing operations. Prior to joining ICE, Hill was assistant controller for Financial Forecasts and Measurements at IBM, where he oversaw worldwide financial performance and worked with all global business units and geographies. Hill began his career at IBM and held various accounting and financial positions in the US, Europe, and Japan, including vice-president and controller of IBM Japan, and assistant controller, financial strategy and budgets..
Leon Vijay Shivamber - Director
Leon Shivamber is a transformation leader with more than three decades of successful transformations under his belt. He learned about strategy and business integrity during his years at McKinsey & Company, change management, and rapid transformation during his New York Consulting Partners years and high-performance acquisitions during his years at Arrow Electronics. He spent five years leading the prize-winning supply chain and operations transformation at the then Harris Corporation (now L3 Harris Technologies). For three years after that role, Leon extended and applied his transformation experience as a leader and general manager building an international joint venture in the Middle East.
Thereafter, Leon spent three years as CEO leading the vibrant UAE headquartered Atlas Group with strategic businesses in communications, defense, energy, food, healthcare, hospitality, public safety, and security. He also spent two additional years advising Atlas Group and other Middle-East-based corporations on their transformation efforts. Since that time, Leon has returned to the United States and has been acting as a senior advisor to several corporate transformations. He is a fellow, Life Management Institute (FLMI), and a trustee of the board of directors of Baruch College Fund.
