ROUYN NORANDA, QC, June 30, 2021 /CNW/ - Granada Gold Mines Inc.
(TSXV: GGM) (OTC: GBBFF) (Frankfurt: B6D) ("Granada" or "Granada
Gold") and Canada Silver Cobalt Works Inc. (TSXV: CCW) (OTC: CCWOF)
(Frankfurt: 4T9B) ("Canada Silver
Cobalt") are pleased to jointly announce that Canada Silver
Cobalt has begun preliminary test work at SGS, Lakefield, Canada on mineralized material from the
Granada Gold Mine in Rouyn-Noranda,
Quebec.
The planned test work was announced earlier this year
(March 30, 2021 joint news release)
after Granada Gold announced the unexpected discovery of a rare
earth and alkali metals deposit at the Granada property in Quebec during exploration for gold.
Rubidium, one of the discovered alkali metals, showed
particularly high assays and potential value based on quoted market
prices (March 23 and May 12, 2021 Granada news releases) and therefore
is an important part of the focus of the Re-2Ox test work.
Rubidium has numerous applications in various industries (see
below), including in sodium-ion batteries which may see significant
growth ahead due to their reported cost-effectiveness as stationary
energy storage for homes, the grid and data centres.
Frank J. Basa, P.Eng., CEO,
commented: "Granada currently
expects that rubidium will be treated as a zero-cost, by-product
alkali metal recovery from Granada's gold mineralized resource. The
preliminary test program will evaluate the potential recovery of
rubidium mineralization and the subsequent amenability of the
Re-2Ox process for the leaching and production of rubidium
salts. Granada Gold intends to review the viability of
suppling rubidium salts as a by-product of gold processing for
evaluation into the new fast-evolving sodium-ion storage battery
market."
Planned Re-2Ox testing
A 10-kilogram drill core sample was sent to SGS, Lakefield for mineralogical studies to
identify the minerals associated with rubidium. The studies
indicated so far that rubidium is likely in the micas and/or
K-feldspars. Analytical results returned a grade of 1,238.5 ppm for
rubidium. Distinct rubidium minerals do not commonly occur in
nature and are almost always associated with feldspars and
micas.
The test program at SGS will be undertaken in two stages. The
first stage will consist of straight forward flotation followed by
leaching using the Re-2Ox process. The second stage is straight
leaching using the Re-2Ox process. The test program was developed
to target rubidium in the mineralized zones.
Rubidium at Granada
The Rubidium mineralized material at Granada has been found to be on top on the
gold-bearing mineralized material that the company is targeting as
a gold mineral resource and for mining. Drill hole GR-20-22 was
drilled to a depth of 1,626 meters on the Big Claim 1.6 kilometers
west on strike from the discovery drill hole GR-20-20 which was
drilled to depth of 588 meters. Drill hole GR-20-22 intercepted 21
distinct mineralized zones ranging in core length from 177 meters
to 2.8 meters. Rare earths and alkali metals of note identified to
date are caesium (Cs), rubidium (Rb), scandium (Sc), zirconium
(Zr), cerium (Ce), gallium (Ga), hafnium (Hf), neodymium (Nd) and
strontium (Sr) -- others pending. While still to be
determined, the company may be in the position of mining the rare
earth and alkali mineralized zones to access the gold-bearing
mineralized material. The entire size of the rare earth and alkali
metals deposit has not yet been determined.
Rubidium in Sodium-Ion Batteries
Rubidium salts have been commonly used as an electrolyte to
improve the efficiency cycle of sodium-ion batteries. In recent
years, it has been implemented into a larger scale for further
technological advances to improve the performance rate and better
cyclability in the batteries. Sodium-ion batteries have
demonstrated about half the energy density of lithium-ion batteries
and have applications as stationary storage like renewable energy
for homes and the grid or backup power for data centers, where cost
is more important than size and energy density. Currently available
information places the cost of sodium-ion batteries to be about
10–20 percent less than lithium-ion batteries.
Sodium-ion batteries use abundant, cheap, and benign materials.
In the Earth's crust there is over one-thousand times more sodium
than lithium. It also costs less to extract and purify. Sodium
metal oxide cathodes are typically used in batteries and the anodes
are carbon just like lithium-ion batteries but can be made from
plentiful metals such as iron and manganese. The Department of
Energy's Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy in
September 2020 awarded Santa Clara, California-based Natron
Energy $19.9 million US dollars as part of a new program
to fast-track technologies, with the goal of advancing their
commercialization efforts. The batteries are now
in low-volume commercial production. Natron's first
customers are data centers and telecom companies. Sodium-ion
batteries are also more stable and safer than lithium-ion. They
have a wider temperature range, are nonflammable, and do not have
thermal runaway.
Additional Applications of Rubidium in Industry
Applications for rubidium and its compounds include biomedical
research, electronics, specialty glass, and pyrotechnics. Specialty
glasses are the leading market for rubidium; rubidium carbonate is
used to reduce electrical conductivity, which improves stability
and durability in fiber optic telecommunications networks.
Biomedical applications include rubidium salts used in antishock
agents and the treatment of epilepsy and thyroid disorder;
rubidium-82, a radioactive isotope used as a blood-flow tracer in
positron emission tomographic imaging; and rubidium chloride, used
as an antidepressant. Rubidium atoms are used in academic research,
including the development of quantum-mechanics-based computing
devices, a future application with potential for relatively high
consumption of rubidium. Quantum computing research uses ultracold
rubidium atoms in a variety of applications. Quantum computers,
which have the ability to perform more complex computational tasks
than traditional computers by calculating in two quantum states
simultaneously, were expected to be in prototype phase by 2025.
Rubidium's photo-emissive properties make it useful for
electrical-signal generators in motion-sensor devices,
night vision devices, photoelectric cells (solar panels), and
photomultiplier tubes. Rubidium is used as an atomic
resonance-frequency-reference oscillator for telecommunications
network synchronization, playing a vital role in global positioning
systems. Rubidium-rich feldspars are used in ceramic applications
for spark plugs and electrical insulators because of their high
dielectric constant. Rubidium hydroxide is used in fireworks to
oxidize mixtures of other elements and produce violet hues.
(Source: USGS).
Qualified Person
The technical information in this news release was prepared
under the supervision of Mr. Frank J.
Basa, P.Eng., CEO of Granada Gold Mine Inc., a qualified
person in accordance with National Instrument 43-101.
About Granada Gold Mine Inc.
Granada Gold Mine Inc. continues to develop the Granada Gold
Property near Rouyn-Noranda,
Quebec. Approximately 140,000 meters of drilling has been
completed to date on the property, focused mainly on the extended
LONG Bars zone which trends 2 kilometers east-west over a potential
5.5 kilometers of mineralized structure. The highly prolific
Cadillac Break, the source of more than 75 million plus ounces of
gold production in the past century, cuts through the north part of
the Granada property, but is not
necessarily indicative of mineralization hosted on the company's
property.
The Granada Shear Zone and the South Shear Zone contain, based
on historical detailed mapping as well as from current and
historical drilling, up to twenty-two mineralized structures
trending east-west over five and a half kilometers. Three of these
structures were mined historically from four shafts and three open
pits. Historical underground grades were 8 to 10 grams per tonne
gold from two shafts down to 236 m
and 498 m with open pit grades from
3.5 to 5 grams per tonne gold.
Updated Mineral Resource
The updated resource at the Company's Granada Gold project in
Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec was
estimated by SGS Canada and outlined in a January 29, 2021 news release. The final
report was filed March 15, 2021 with
an Effective date of December 15,
2020. The 43-101 Technical Report is titled: Granada Gold
Project Mineral Resource Estimate Update, Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec, Canada authored by
Yann Camus, P.Eng. and Maxime
Dupéré, B.Sc, géo. Both of SGS Canada Inc.
Updated Mineral Resource Estimate Base Case with Details
Between the Open Pit Portion and the Underground Portion
Type
|
Category
|
Tonnes
|
Au
(g/t)
|
Gold
Ounces
|
In Pit
|
Measured1
|
3,756,000
|
1.89
|
228,000
|
Indicated
|
1,357,000
|
2.55
|
111,000
|
Measured+Indicated
|
5,113,000
|
2.06
|
339,000
|
Inferred
|
34,000
|
11.29
|
12,000
|
Underground
|
Measured
|
37,000
|
4.22
|
5,000
|
Indicated
|
807,000
|
4.02
|
104,000
|
Measured+Indicated
|
844,000
|
4.03
|
109,000
|
Inferred
|
1,244,000
|
6.33
|
253,000
|
1.
|
Cut-off grades are
based on a gold price of US$1,600 per ounce, a foreign exchange
rate of US$0.76 for CA$1, a gold recovery of 93%
|
2.
|
Pit constrained
mineral resources are reported at a cut-off grade of 0.9 g/t Au
within a conceptual pit shell
|
3.
|
Underground
mineral resources are reported at a cut-off grade of 3.0 g/t Au
within reasonably mineable volumes
|
The Company is in possession of all mining permits required to
commence the initial mining phase, known as the "Rolling Start",
which allows the company to mine up to 550 tonnes per day.
Additional information is available at www.granadagoldmine.com.
"Frank J. Basa"
Frank J. Basa P. Eng.
President and Chief Executive Officer
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services
Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX
Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or
accuracy of this release. This news release may contain
forward-looking statements which include, but are not limited to,
comments that involve future events and conditions, which are
subject to various risks and uncertainties. Except for statements
of historical facts, comments that address resource potential,
upcoming work programs, geological interpretations, receipt and
security of mineral property titles, availability of funds, and
others are forward-looking. Forward-looking statements are not
guarantees of future performance and actual results may vary
materially from those statements. General business conditions are
factors that could cause actual results to vary materially from
forward-looking statements.
SOURCE Granada Gold Mine Inc.