Fireweed Metals Corp. (TSXV: FWZ) (OTCQB: FWEDF) has made a significant stride in the mining industry with the announcement of its mineral resource estimate (MRE) for its Mactung Project.
Nestled in the Yukon and Northwest Territories, the Mactung Project now holds the title for the largest high-grade tungsten resource globally, according to a recent release by Fireweed.
The company’s announcement on Wednesday has sparked curiosity and excitement in the mining sector. The Mactung Project’s mineral resources are estimated to be a staggering 41.5 million tonnes of indicated resources at a grade of 0.73 per cent WO3 (tungsten trioxide). This is supplemented by 12.2 million tonnes of inferred resources at a grade of 0.59 per cent WO3. These figures significantly outshine the second largest mine, the Nui Phao mine in Vietnam, which has estimated reserves of 55.4 million tonnes of ore grading 0.21 per cent tungsten.
Furthermore, for the Mactung deposit, there is an exploration target estimated to be between 2.5 million tonnes and 3.5 million tonnes at a grade ranging from 0.4 per cent to 0.6 per cent WO3. The Mactung deposit has an upper and a lower zone, both of which are present at the surface and descend to approximately 400 meters below the surface.
A portion of the resource within the lower zone shows high-grade tungsten concentrations and was assessed considering underground mining volumes at a cutoff grade of 0.5 per cent WO3. On the other hand, the upper zone, which contains high-grade material, was evaluated based on a conceptual open pit design using a cutoff grade of 0.25 per cent WO3.
The selection of cut-off grades were chosen due to a tungsten concentrate price of approximately USD$240 per metric tonne unit (MTU).
Mactung historic drilling and historic estimates. Image via Fireweed Metals.
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Copper and gold too low grade to be economic feasible
For the underground constrained resources at Mactung, copper and gold were estimated as potential by-product metals.
The assumption of potential recovery is based on historical production data from the geologically similar Cantung mine, which has yielded small quantities of gold and copper concentrate.
The company believes its reasonable to assume it could potentially recover a portion of the gold and copper within the current mineral resource, ensuring the prospects of eventual economic extraction, and the company is presently performing metallurgical tests to assess the recovery of tungsten, gold and copper at Mactung.
At present, though, the grades of copper and gold were considered too low to be included in the mineral resource estimate for open-pit constrained resources. Therefore, the focus of the resource estimation primarily revolves around tungsten.
Mactung Project location map. Image via Fireweed Metals.
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Global tungsten supply is dominated by China
Tungsten is the hardest metal with the highest melting point. These qualities make it highly valuable and indispensable in various industries, including automotive, technology, energy, military, manufacturing and anything requiring wear-resistant materials such as in metalworking, mining and construction sectors.
However, global tungsten production is largely dominated by China, which controls 58 per cent of the world’s tungsten reserve and supplies around 85 per cent of the world’s tungsten. This has resulted in tungsten being classified as a critical mineral by many governments, including Canada.
In response to the importance of critical minerals like tungsten, the Canadian government has taken steps to support and promote the exploration and mining of these resources within the country. Canada has implemented several initiatives aimed at advancing the development of critical minerals, including tungsten and zinc. These initiatives seek to enhance domestic production, reduce dependence on foreign sources and ensure a secure supply of critical minerals for various industries in Canada.
Fireweed Metals shares rose 9.2 per cent to $1.07 on Wednesday on the TSX Venture Exchange.
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