US CRITICAL METALS CORP. Total of 53 samples taken with grades ranging from anomalous to 2,129 ppm Li.
Highest grade samples collected to date at McDermitt confirming strongly elevated Li grades within the system.
Project area is mostly covered by overburden allowing for shallowly concealed targets. Suggests the eastern margin of the caldera has been overlooked for lithium potential due to post-mineral cover.
Program has delineated a prospective area for further trenching and maiden drill program.
Project spans 6,508 acres of Bureau of Land Management claims with the majority of the claims unexplored for lithium potential.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 26, 2024) - US Critical Metals Corp. (CSE: USCM) (OTCQB: USCMF) (FSE: 0IU0) ("USCM" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has completed further exploration activities at the McDermitt Project in Nevada (the "Project"). The Project is strategically located along the east margin of the McDermitt Caldera and approximately 19 kilometers from Lithium America's Thacker Pass Lithium Project, which is the largest known claystone lithium deposit(s) in the US with 3.7 million tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent reserves at 3,160 ppm lithium1. USCM holds an options agreement with Live Energy Minerals Corp. ("LIVE"), a public British Columbia company listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange (the "CSE"), providing the Company with the option (the "Option") to acquire up to a 50% interest in the Project and a further option to acquire an additional 25% interest for an aggregate total of 75% interest in the Project. The figure below sets forth the location of the Project in relation to the Thacker Pass Lithium Project.
Figure 1
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Exploration Program Summary
The field work was designed to examine and sample in detail the historical trenching area where lithium-bearing decomposed rock material was reported in previously collected samples, and further investigate the presence of outcropping caldera lakebed sedimentary rocks within the confines of the claim block. This exploration program has significantly advanced each of these objectives by replicating previous samples of approximately 2,000ppm Li. The recent exploration work suggests that the eastern margin of the caldera has been overlooked for lithium potential due to post-mineral cover. Samples were collected from nearly all of the trenches that cover an area approximately 1.3 km north-south and 0.3 km east-west.
Detailed work within the historical trenching area where samples of lithium-bearing sandy material have been collected included reexamining the area where the initial samples were collected and undertaking trench dump sampling of nearly all of the trenches that exist in the area. During the Fall of 2023 and Spring of 2024, a total of 53 geochemical samples were collected from the trench area and surrounding areas.
Geochemistry/Sampling
USCM collected 53 samples at the historic trench area and the surrounding areas (two sampling campaigns during Fall of 2023 and Spring of 2024) where highly anomalous concentrations of lithium were previously reported in several samples. All of the samples comprise unconsolidated material, mostly of sand or silt-size, assumed to be colluvial and alluvial in origin with a possibility of being derived from decomposed rock of local origin (loess deposits).
Five samples out of the total 53 have shown elevated concentrations of lithium. These include sample 945910 at 2,054 ppm Li collected during the Fall 2023 exploration program, and samples collected from the current exploration including sample 945938 at 670 ppm Li, sample 945939 at 2,129 ppm Li, sample 945940 at 418 ppm Li, and sample 945941 at 754 ppm Li. The highest lithium concentrations observed were from samples 945910 and 945939 which were collected from a single ridgeline, between two trenches, that is covered by a sandy material that hosts the lithium mineralization.
The map below provides sample locations and corresponding lithium values of samples collected during the Fall 2023 and Spring 2024 field campaigns.
Figure 2
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Management Commentary
Mr. Darren Collins, CEO and Director of USCM, comments: "Despite market headwinds in the critical minerals sector, we continue to see value within our portfolio of assets and will seek to further advance our projects to drill ready. These exploration results demonstrate what we believe is overlooked potential and we now have a clear path forward for the claims, which includes a focused drill program to test the area of the Project where historic trenching exists. We also now turn our attention to our Long Canyon Uranium and Vanadium Project in Idaho, where our team will be in the field completing additional exploration work in the coming weeks."
Project Overview
The Project spans 6,508 acres of BLM claims and is located within the McDermitt Caldera, an extinct 40x30 km super-volcano formed approximately 16.3 million years ago (Ma) as part of a hotspot currently underneath the Yellowstone Plateau. Following an initial eruption and concurrent collapse of the McDermitt Caldera, a large lake formed in the caldera basin. This lake water was extremely enriched in lithium and resulted in the accumulation of lithium-rich clays.
Late volcanic activity uplifted the caldera, draining the lake and bringing the lithium-rich moat sediments to the surface resulting in the near-surface lithium present on the Project. The McDermitt Caldera is potentially one of the largest sources of lithium clays in the world and hosts some of the largest lithium deposits in the USA including the Thacker Pass project in the southern portion of the caldera.
LIVE completed a Technical Report in accordance with the requirements of National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, on the Project entitled "43-101 Technical Report on McDermitt Lithium East Property" with an effective date of December 16, 2022" (the "Technical Report"). The Technical Report can be found on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
QP Statement
Robert J. Johansing, BSc (geology), MSc (economic geology), who is a qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (the "QP"), has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information contained in this news release. Robert J. Johansing is a consultant for the Company.
QA/QC
All samples were delivered to American Assay Laboratories (AAL) of Sparks, Nevada. Samples were then dried, crushed and split, and pulp samples were prepared for analysis. Lithium was determined by a 4 acid + Boric acid digestion and analyses by ICP-OES+MS. Lithium standards, along with blanks and duplicates, were inserted into the sample chain by AAL Standard sample 'chain of custody' procedures were employed during field work until delivery to the analytical facility.
About US Critical Metals Corp.
USCM is focused on mining projects that will further secure the US supply of critical metals and rare earth elements, which are essential to fueling the new age economy. Pursuant to option agreements with private Canadian and American companies, USCM's assets consist of three agreements, each providing USCM with the right to acquire interests in four discovery focused projects in the US. These projects include the Clayton Ridge Lithium Property located in Nevada, the Haynes Cobalt Property located in Idaho, the Sheep Creek located in Montana, and Lemhi Pass located in Idaho. A significant percentage of the world's critical metal and rare earth supply comes from nations with interests that are contrary to those of the US. USCM intends to explore and develop critical metals and rare earth assets with near- and long-term strategic value to the advancement of US interests.
For further information please contact:
Darren Collins
Chief Executive Officer & Director
Telephone: +1 (786) 633-1756
Email: dcollins@uscmcorp.com
Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor the Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information
This news release contains certain information that may be deemed "forward-looking information" with respect to USCM within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause USCM's actual results, performance or achievements, or developments in the industry to differ materially from the anticipated results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Forward-Looking information includes statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects", "plans", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "projects", "potential" and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could" or "should" occur. Forward-Looking information contained in this press release may include, without limitation, the expectation that the Company will exercise the Option and fulfil its obligations under the pursuant to the Option; exploration plans and expected exploration and drilling results at the Project, results of operations, and the expected financial performance of the Company.
Although USCM believes the forward-looking information contained in this news release is reasonable based on information available on the date hereof, by its nature, forward-looking information involves assumptions and known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking information.
Examples of such assumptions, risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, assumptions, risks and uncertainties associated with general economic conditions; the Covid-19 pandemic; adverse industry events; the receipt of required regulatory approvals and the timing of such approvals; that USCM maintains good relationships with the communities in which it operates or proposes to operate; future legislative and regulatory developments in the mining sector; USCM's ability to access sufficient capital from internal and external sources, and/or inability to access sufficient capital on favorable terms; mining industry and markets in Canada and generally; the ability of USCM to implement its business strategies; competition; the risk that any of the assumptions prove not to be valid or reliable, which could result in delays, or cessation in planned work; risks associated with the interpretation of data, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits; the possibility that results will not be consistent with USCM's expectations; as well as other assumptions, risks and uncertainties applicable to mineral exploration and development activities and to USCM, including as set forth in the USCM's public disclosure documents filed on the SEDAR+ website at www.sedarplus.ca.
The forward-looking information contained in this press release represents the expectations of USCM as of the date of this press release and, accordingly, is subject to change after such date. Readers should not place undue importance on forward-looking information and should not rely upon this information as of any other date. While USCM may elect to, it does not undertake to update this information at any particular time except as required in accordance with applicable laws.
1 The comparable information about other issuers was obtained from public sources and has not been verified by the Company. Comparable means information that compares an issuer to other issuers. The information is a summary of certain relevant operational attributes of certain mining and resource companies and has been included to provide an overview of the performance of what are expected to be comparable issuers. The comparables are considered to be an appropriate basis for comparison with the Company based on their industry, commodity mix, jurisdiction, and additional criteria. The comparable issuers face different risks from those applicable to the Company. Relevant material concerning any adjacent or comparable properties included in this press release is limited to information publicly disclosed by the owner or operator for such adjacent or comparable property. The Company has relied on the Qualified Persons responsible for such information and has not independently verified such information. The Company cautions that past production, mineral reserves, resources or occurrences on adjacent or comparable properties are not indicative of the mineralization on the Company's properties. Readers are cautioned that the past performance of comparables is not indicative of future performance and that the performance of the Company may be materially different from the comparable issuers. You should not place undue reliance on the comparable information provided in this press release.
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