Overview
Canadian Critical Minerals (TSXV:CCMI,OTCQB:RIINF) is a mineral exploration company with two advanced copper projects in tier 1 mining jurisdictions in Canada. The main project is the 100 percent owned Bull River Mine near Cranbrook, British Columbia, which has a mineral resource containing 135 million pounds (Mlbs) copper. CCMI also owns a 34 percent interest in the Thierry mine at Pickle Lake, Ontario, which has a mineral resource base containing 1.3 billion pounds (Blbs) copper, along with other metals, including nickel, silver, palladium, platinum and gold.
The near-term focus is restarting the Bull River mine and returning it to production. The project is currently under care and maintenance. CCMI is in the process of securing permits to restart the mine at its designed capacity of 700 tons per day (tpd). In the meantime, CCMI has begun selling pre-concentrated copper, gold and silver ore from the surface stockpiles at Bull River through an ore purchase agreement with New Afton. In April 2024, the company transported 362 wet metric tons (wmt) of mineralized material to New Afton and received a payment of US$72,445 for the shipment. The sale of stockpiles should provide near-term cash flow, which will be used to restart the Bull River mine. The current stockpile at Bull River is estimated at 180,000 tons (or 6.14 Mlbs copper equivalent) valued at approximately C$30 million.
Bull River Mine
The outlook for copper remains bullish. The transition towards green energy, electric vehicles and artificial intelligence (AI) are driving demand, causing the price of this industrial metal to surge towards a new record high. S&P Global estimates copper demand to double by 2035 to 50 million metric tons. On the other hand, supply is estimated to touch 30 million metric tons by 2036, according to Statista. This clearly implies a shortfall that is likely to support prices in the long term.
Canadian Critical Minerals offers several unique value propositions which make it attractive for investors looking to participate in the copper market. It has an assured revenue stream for the next 15 to 18 months from the sale of stockpiles to New Afton. It is working to secure permits to get the Bull River mine back into production. Bull River is a fully developed underground mine which can be restarted with minimal capital expenditure. Additionally, a 34 percent stake in the Thierry mine offers optionality to investors to participate in any exploration and development success of the project.
Company Highlights
Focused on restarting the past-producing Bull River mine, currently under care and maintenance. The mine has a current surface stockpile, which is generating revenue for the company, estimated at 180,000 tons (or 6.14 Mlb copper equivalent), valued at ~C$30 million.The Thierry Project is a past-producing copper and nickel mine with excellent infrastructure and year-round access. The current mineral resource estimate indicates 1.3 billion pounds of copper.Given its 34 percent interest in Thierry mine, CCMI can benefit from any positive assay results from the drilling program at Thierry mine completed last year and future exploration.
Key Projects
Bull River Mine Project
The Bull River project is near Cranbrook, British Columbia and comprises 21 mineral claims covering an area of 10,285 hectares. It is a tier 1 mining jurisdiction with year-round access to the site by paved and all-weather roads, as well as being connected to the BC Hydro hydroelectric power grid. Bull River was a producing mine from 1971 to 1974. Between 1996 and 2010 22,000 metres of underground workings were developed and the mine is currently dewatered. The underground infrastructure provides access to the orebodies on seven different levels to depth of 350 metres below surface. The minehas been under care and maintenance since 2014. Due to its historical development, most of the necessary mining infrastructure at Bull River is already established and only requires refurbishment or replacement to become operational again.
CCMI is in the process of securing permits to restart the mine at its designed capacity of 700 tpd. In the meantime, CCMI is generating revenue via the sale of surface stockpiles at Bull River. CCMI has entered into an ore purchase agreement with New Afton to sell stockpiled mineralized materials from the Bull River mine project. The agreement ensures near-term cash flows and reduces financing risk associated with the project.
The most current NI 43-101 compliant resource estimate published December 1, 2021, has indicated resources of 2.261 MT at 2.132 percent copper (or 106.27 Mlbs copper equivalent) and inferred resources of 1.356 MT at 1.918 percent copper (or 57.33 Mlbs copper equivalent).
Thierry Mine Project
The Thierry project is situated about 15 kms west of Pickle Lake, Ontario, accessible year-round via paved and all-weather roads. It is a past producing copper and nickel mine spanning approximately 4,700 hectares and includes an NI 43-101 mineral resource. CCMI owns a 34 percent interest in the mine through a private company called Cuprum Corp.
A seven-hole, 2,600-meter drilling program was completed in July 2023. The assay results for two holes were released, while the results for the remaining five are pending. Highlights for the first two drill holes include:
Hole CCM 23-51 intersected 106 meters at 0.539 percent copper equivalent within 248 meters at 0.438 percent copper equivalent from surface Hole CCM 23-52 intersected 244 meters at 0.382 percent copper equivalent from surface
The most current NI 43-101 compliant resource estimate published in January 2021 has measured and indicated resources of 8.815 MT at 1.66 percent copper (or 322 Mlbs), inferred resources of 14.922 MT at 1.64 percent copper (or 538 Mlbs copper), and open-pit resources of 53.614 MT at 0.38 percent copper (or 449 Mlbs). In total, 1.3 Blbs of copper is estimated at the Thierry mine. The current PEA study indicates an after-tax NPV@6 percent of US$488 million and an after-tax IRR of 36 percent.
Management Team
Ian Berzins – CEO, President, and Interim Board Chairman
Ian Berzins is a mining industry veteran with over 35 years of experience and extensive knowledge in all aspects of mining, from operations to maintenance to financing. He has successfully run large mining operations such as Thompson Creek Metals’ Mount Milligan mine and San Gold Corporation’s Rice Lake mine. He holds a B.Sc. in mining engineering from Queen’s University.
Dwayne Vinck – Chief Financial Officer
Dwayne Vinck has over 30 years of experience in public accounting and financial reporting, executive leadership, project leadership, and mergers and acquisitions. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) from the University of Manitoba and is a member of the Chartered Accountants of Alberta and the Institute of Corporate Directors. He is also a director of several publicly traded companies.
David Johnston – Director
David Johnston founded Braveheart Resources Canada (now Canadian Critical Minerals). He has considerable public company experience as a director and is also the founder of insurance firm Capital Benefits.
Heather Kennedy – Director
Heather Kennedy has over 30 years of mineral processing plant experience covering mine liaison, operations, projects, and capital expansions. She has worked in senior roles in both the private and public sectors. She holds a B.Sc. in metallurgical engineering from Queen’s University and is a registered professional engineer in the Province of Alberta.
Gestur Kristjansson – Director
Gestur Kristjansson has over 30 years of experience in accounting, financial management, corporate finance, and mergers and acquisitions. He has participated in multiple equity and debt raises, with over $400 million sourced. He was previously the chief financial officer and vice-president of finance of a publicly listed Canadian gold mining company. He holds a BA in advanced applied economics from the University of Manitoba and an MBA from the University of British Columbia.
Aaron Matlock – Director
Aaron Matlock is an entrepreneur with experience in operational logistics and risk management. He holds a diploma in agriculture finance from the College of Lethbridge in 2002 and a degree in economics from the University of Lethbridge in 2004.
John Morgan – Director
John Morgan is a seasoned mining executive with more than 40 years of experience in all facets of mining across both domestic and international mining operations. He holds a B.Sc. in geology from the University of British Columbia. Most recently, he was the president, COO, and director at Atlantic Gold Corporation.
Christopher Stewart – Director
Christopher Stewart has over 30 years of management experience and operational and technical experience in the mining industry. He has worked with several mining companies in senior leadership roles, including president and CEO for Minto Metals, Treasury Metals and Liberty Mines; president & COO for McEwen Mining; and vice-president of Operations for Kirkland Lake Gold. He is also a director for Cassiar Gold (GLDC.V) and ESGold (ESAU.CN) and owns CWS Mining Services, a small mining consulting company. He holds a Bachelor of Science in mining engineering from Queen’s University.