Hard Creek Nickel Corp. is actively developing and exploring its 100% owned Turnagain Nickel Project, located in northwest British Columbia, Canada.
The Turnagain Nickel project is located in British Columbia about 1350 km (835 miles) northwest of Vancouver and 70 km (44 miles) east of Dease Lake. The property consists of 81 contiguous mineral claims covering an area of approximately 29,370 ha (72,570 acres). Nickel and copper sulfides were first identified on the property in about 1956 with Falconbridge Nickel Mines completing the first exploration programs during the period from 1966 to 1973. Exploration to date on the Turnagain property has included geological mapping, geophysical and geochemical surveys and more than 75,620 metres (248,100 feet) of diamond drilling in 304 drill holes.
The table below presents the estimate of the resource of the Turnagain nickel deposit using a 0.10 per cent NiS* cut-off, as of May 31, 2008,(see June 17, 2008 News Release) of 576 million tonnes of measured and indicated resources at 0.162 per cent NiS* and an additional 545 million tonnes of inferred resources at 0.154 per cent NiS*.
MINERAL RESOURCE ESTIMATE TABLE
Cut-off grade Tonnage
at 0.10 per cent NiS* (thousands) Per cent NiS Per cent total Ni Per cent Co
Measured 86,461 0.179 0.240 0.011
Indicated 490,091 0.159 0.215 0.010
Measured and indicated 576,552 0.162 0.219 0.010
Inferred 545,051 0.154 0.204 0.011
*Note: "Per cent NiS" refers to nickel per cent that is present in sulphides.
| Turnagain Nickel Property |
The Turnagain nickel property is situated immediately north of Turnagain River near its confluence with Hard Creek. The community of Dease Lake, on highway 37 some 400 kilometres north of the port of Stewart, is 70 kilometres west of the property. The principal zones of sulphide mineralization identified to date on the Turnagain property include the Horsetrail, Northwest, Hatzl and Duffy. Other mineralized zones on the property include the DB-DJ, which hosts platinum-palladium mineralization, Highland and Discovery areas which host nickel-cobalt mineralization and the Cliff area, which hosts nickel-platinum-palladium mineralization.
An updated Preliminary Assessment of the Turnagain deposit by engineering firm AMEC Americas Limited showed positive economics with a potential 29 year mine life, producing an average of 44,900,000 pounds (20,397 tonnes) of nickel per year, (see press release dated December 10, 2007).
The table below is an economic summary of the engineering report that shows the Net Present Value (NPV) of the
project at various assumed prices for nickel and at different discount rates. At the base case long term nickel price
of $7.50/lb, the NPV at a 10% discount rate is $187 million; a discount rate of 8% gives a NPV of $422 million.
Pre-tax Net Present Value - Various Cases
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Area Case 1 Case 2 Base Case 4 Case 5 Present
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Commodity Nickel 6.00 6.75 7.50 8.25 9.00 12.00
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(US$/lb) Cobalt 8.80 9.90 11.00 12.10 13.20 34.00
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Copper 1.12 1.26 1.40 1.54 1.68 3.15
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IRR % 4.8 5.0 12.2 15.3 18.3 31.8
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NPV (CDN $M) Cum. Net Cash Flow 889 1,859 2,828 3,797 4,767 9,905
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5.0% Discount -22 466 954 1,443 1,931 4,484
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8.0% Discount -279 72 422 773 1,123 2,945
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10.0% Discount -390 -102 187 476 764 2,258
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12.0% Discount -471 -229 13 255 497 1,745
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15.0% Discount -553 -362 -172 19 210 1,191
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Payback (yrs) 13.2 8.0 6.4 5.3 4.5 2.6
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Recommendations
AMEC indicated in the Study that the deposit is potentially mineable and that further work is justified. It was recommended that work in all major areas be undertaken to advance the project to the pre-feasibility level to better determine the economic viability of the project. This work includes drilling to better define the resources and upgrade these into reserves. More metallurgical work is necessary to ensure that saleable metal products can be produced. More environmental and geotechnical work is necessary to allow the project to move forward. The pre-feasibility study would examine variants to derive the appropriate path to the development of this deposit. Confirmation and availability of the required power from the North American grid is critical to this project.
| Platinum - a factor in the Turnagain Project |
Exploration drilling during 2007 resulted in a new discovery. The Cliff zone is returning nickel grades similar to the Horsetrail deposit, but with significant platinum and palladium values. (See Press Releases December 19, 2007 and January 14, 2008). The management of the Company says it is too early to tell whether they can develop significant tonnage in this area, but they are very excited about doing further drilling in this new zone. In addition, the management believes if they can successfully develop additional tonnage, the higher dollar value per tonne in the Cliff zone may well deliver a huge impact to project economics.
| B.C. Hydro Environmental Studies |
Late 2007, the provincial minister responsible for B.C. Hydro halted the environmental studies for the extension and upgrade of the existing power grid north along the Highway 37 road corridor. According to Mark Javis, President of the company says, "... In fundamental terms, the only event which presented concern for the development of our Turnagain Project was the suspension of the environmental studies for the power grid upgrade and extension north to Bob Quinn. The Company needs power to develop a mine at Turnagain, so it is perfectly legitimate for investors to worry about the government’s decision. The Company has held several meetings with government and has been told that they are as committed to the development of the Northwest Transmission Line today as they were when the decision to build the line was made in October 2007. Active negotiations are underway between the government and the stakeholders, including Hard Creek, to work out the details on who pays for the studies and ultimately who pays for the power line..."
The Northwest Power Line Coalition was formed to study on the potential benefits of a power line along Highway 37. On April 17, 2008 a preliminary findings were released, "... providing electric power along Highway 37 has the potential to achieve $3.5 billion in capital investments to bring eight mining projects to production. The estimate does not include the Galore Creek project (Teck Cominco/NovaGold Resources Joint Venture). The investments have the potential to create 2,000 jobs, generate over $300 million in annual revenues, and provide more than $75 million in annual taxes to government... Find out more"
Mark Jarvis also says, "We will continue to work with the provincial government and other stakeholders in the area on the issue of extending power to the north of our province. I can’t tell you the timing, but I strongly believe that a way forward will be found. The business case for the province is simply too strong."
Mark Jarvis - President, CEO and Director
Mr. Jarvis has considerable experience in the financing and operations of public companies, primarily in the mining and oil and gas sectors. Mr. Jarvis has held the position of CEO and President of Hard Creek Nickel Corporation since January 2004. Previously Mark was Director responsible for Corporate Finance at Ultra Petroleum.
George Sookochoff, B. Comm., Director
A graduate of the University of British Columbia, Mr. Sookochoff is responsible for computer systems and exploration data management. Mr. Sookochoff has been providing Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and data management services to mining companies since 1983.
Lyle Davis, P.Eng.(Alberta), MBA, Non-Executive Chairman of the Board
Mr. Davis previously worked in the corporate finance practices of Ernst & Young, an accountancy, and in a similar capacity at C.M. Oliver, a brokerage firm. Before that, Mr. Davis was with the Vancouver Stock Exchange where he was responsible for trading operations during the transition from floor based to screen based trading, prior to which he was a senior member of the VSE's corporate finance division.
Tony Hitchins, B.A.Sc., M.Sc., Chief Operating Officer
Following a masters degree in economic geology, Mr. Hitchins spent the next twenty years involved in various aspects of mineral exploration including district exploration manager for Cyprus Gold in Western Australia.
Neil Froc, P.Eng, Executive Vice President
Mr. Froc is responsible for the management of the Company’s engineering and technical studies including infrastructure and socio-economic project development. This includes various levels of public relations and consultation with government officials, First Nations, community and special interest groups.
Brian Fiddler, CFO
Mr. Fiddler is a resident professional with over 21 years of corporate accounting and operations experience. Mr. Fiddler also brings extensive experience working specifically with resource-based companies both as a consultant and as an Officer.
Leslie Young, Corporate Secretary
Ms. Young’s 20 year background in the junior capital markets started with CM Oliver & Company where she served as Executive Secretary to senior management and board members. Ms. Young joined Hard Creek Nickel Corporation February 2004 as the Corporate Secretary and Office Administrator. She is responsible for corporate filings, assisting and reporting to the President, secretary to the Board Meetings, to act as liaison with corporate council and respective corporate matters, and to act as Manager to administrative employees and the general operations.
Mr. Tom Corcoran
Manager of Corporate Communications
Telephone: (604) 681-2300
Fax: (604) 681-2310
Toll Free: 1-800-681-2399
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Corporate Office:
Address: Suite 1060, 1090 West Georgia Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada V6E 3V7
Email: info@hardcreeknickel.com
Web site: www.hardcreeknickel.com
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