Winsome Strengthens Presence In Quebec Opening Val-D’or Office

Lithium exploration and development company Winsome Resources (ASX:WR1; “Winsome” or “the Company”) is pleased to announce it will be opening an office in Val-d’Or, Quebec, Canada at the beginning of September. Val-d’Or is the heart of the Quebec mining industry and is a technical and logistical hub for Winsome’s projects with many key staff, consultants and suppliers based in the Abitibi region.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Exploration and drilling activity recommenced following wildfire delays
• Environmental baseline data collection activities have resumed
• Operations office opening in Val-d’Or, the heart of the Quebec mining industry
• Meetings held with government and community stakeholders including the Cree Nation of Mistissini to discuss Winsome’s proposed development strategy and associated infrastructure projects in the James Bay region
• Progressing with the development of an all-weather road connecting the Adina Project area to the Trans Taiga Road including the evaluation of route options
• Upgrading the 100% owned Cargair camp and logistics hub increasing capacity to 50 people, enabling Winsome to operate on a stand-alone basis.

With the recent wildfire emergency affecting many of these communities, active engagement was put aside to allow these communities to focus on aid and relief for those affected, with the Company providing practical assistance where it could. Amongst various efforts, funds were provided to an organisation responsible for supporting families evacuated to the Saguenay region from the Cree community of Mistissini.

Now that the province is gradually returning to business Winsome is resuming its regular routine of virtual and in-person engagements, led by Vice President Sustainability and Regulatory Affairs Geneviève Morinville and Country Manager Carl Caumartin. The Company plans to commence releasing its communications via media and social media in both French and English to improve the reach of these communications across Quebec as well as creating a bilingual Canadian-focused company website.

In the coming months, the Winsome team will hold regular in-person meetings with various Cree rightsholders from the project areas to discuss Project updates and proposed development strategies, engage with relevant land management and environmental teams to understand the potential impact of our activities, and to gather information on available services and service providers owned and operated by Eeyou Istchee Cree.

Aside from sharing updates on its latest exploration and drilling activities, engagements will focus on the proposed all-weather road from the Trans-Taiga Road to the Adina Project. Winsome’s team intends to collaborate with Cree land users and relevant communities which overlap the proposed road options. Preferred design options aim to minimise, to the extent possible, negative impacts on the environment and existing traditional land use. The analysis will be based on a number of metrics such as avoidance of sensitive wetland habitats, minimising the number of crossings, reducing the length, proximity to and access to suitable borrow pits. The proposed Winsome access road route to Adina Project area runs similar to the upper portion of the proposed La Grande Alliance route as shown in the infrastructure map in figure 1 below.

A representative of one of the tallymen families from the Mistissini Cree community overlapping Adina Project areas recently worked with a team of Winsome biologists to view the proposed road route and also joined our exploration team in the field. The results of these field investigations will inform, in part, applications to regulatory authorities for the construction of the all-weather road as well as engagements with other planned projects in the region to maximise any synergies and benefits from collaborations. Additional engagements with relevant traditional land users from Mistissini are being planned in the coming weeks.

Winsome is also progressing design and approvals for the upgrade and expansion of its 100% owned logistics base located on the Trans Taiga Road north of Adina (and east of Cancet). The facility can currently accommodate up to 20 individuals and the Company has submitted plans to the Minister of Natural Resources and Forests (Ministère des Ressources naturelles et des Forêts; MRNF) to expand its lease boundary, upgrade the facility, and enhance accommodation capacity to over 50 persons. The acquisition and refurbishment in late 2022 of the historical Cargair hydro base camp, accessible by road, helicopter and hydroplane provides substantial advantages to the Company given the current level of activity in the James Bay area, with almost all rental and short stay accommodation at capacity during the summer field season.

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