Zinc and lead play an essential role in the global economy and will continue to be pivotal in the clean energy transition.
Zinc, which is one of the 31 critical minerals identified by Canada as required for a sustainable transition to a low-carbon economy, is used to galvanize iron and steel to protect against corrosion, adding longevity to infrastructure and construction materials that would otherwise deteriorate and have to be rebuilt.
Lead supports the clean energy transition as a component of wind generation and increases solar panel longevity, according to the World Bank.. Most importantly, it allows for easier recovery of other vital metals when recycling electronic waste.
The Pine Point Mining project, located in Canada’s Northwest Territories, has the potential to become one of the world’s largest zinc and lead mines. Pine Point Mining Limited’s mission is to develop and put into production the Pine Point Mine, which is a past-producing mining asset located on the south shore of Great Slave Lake, between Hay River to the west and Fort Resolution to the east. The site’s major advantages include the significant infrastructure it already has in place, which includes power from the Talston Hydroelectric dam on site, paved highway access, and 100 kilometers of viable haulage roads.
First discovered in the late 19th century, Pine Point was an active open-pit mine between 1965 and 1988, producing and shipping 10,785,000 tons of lead and zinc concentrates and high-grade ores. During its operations, the town of Pine Point was built by the mining company, Cominco, and the mine closed the town. Today, the time is right to explore the possibility of resuming mining operations to supply the modern world with the zinc and lead it needs for renewable energy technologies.
The Pine Point Project, now owned by Pine Point Mining Limited, located in the Northwest Territories for which the 2022 PEA has indicated an after-tax NPV of $602M and an IRR of 25% is based on the current Mineral Resource Estimates that are amenable to open pit and shallow underground mining and consist of 15.7Mt grading 5.55% ZnEq of Indicated Mineral Resources and 47.2Mt grading 5.94% ZnEq of Inferred Mineral Resources. Please refer to the technical report entitled “Preliminary Economic Assessment, Pine Point Project, Hay River, Northwest Territories, Canada” dated July 30, 2022 which has been filed on SEDAR. The site includes infrastructure and paved highway access, and also has an electrical substation as well as 100 kilometres of viable haulage roads already in place.
The global push towards decarbonization to combat climate change has led to an unprecedented shift in energy transition requiring metals such as zinc and lead. Pine Point Mining Limited is well poised to become the leading base metal developer in North America, and we intend to take full advantage of that. The Pine Point Project has a high potential for mineral resource expansion.
Zinc is a critical metal and strategic sources with a secure supply chain are rare. Zinc is fundamental to the clean energy transition as galvanization is the key process involved in adding longevity to both infrastructure and construction materials that would otherwise deteriorate and have to be rebuilt/refabricated.
Lead supports the clean energy transition as a component of wind generation and increases solar panel longevity, according to the World Bank. Most importantly, it allows for easier recovery of other vital metals when recycling electronic waste.
