Ares Completes Sale of Lithium Project, announce board resignation and settle outstanding payable
Ares Strategic Mining Completes Sale of Drill-Ready
Lithium Project in Nevada to USHA Resources Ltd.
• Ares locates well-funded publicly trading company ready to start imminent exploration.
• Ares will become a large shareholder of USHA during hot lithium market.
• Ares to support USHA Resources through close working relationship and as shareholders.
Vancouver, B.C. March 31st, 2022 — Ares Strategic Mining Inc. (the “Company”) (CSE: ARS)
(OTC:ARSMF) (FRA: N8I1), is pleased to announce that it has entered into a mineral property
option agreement (the “Option Agreement” or “Transaction”) with USHA Resources Ltd. (the
“Purchaser”) of Vancouver, British Columbia, whereby the Company has been granted the
exclusive option to acquire a 100% interest in 140 mineral claims located at Jackpot Lake, Clark
County, Nevada (the “Property”).
The Property is located within Clark County, 35 kilometers northeast of Las Vegas, Nevada, and
is comprised of 140 mineral claims that total 2,800 acres. The project is a “playa”, an internally
drained brine deposit in which sediments from lithium-rich surrounding source rocks accumulate
and fill the deposit leading to a potential concentration of lithium brine due to successive
evaporation and concentration events, a similar geologic model as Albemarle’s Silver Peak Nevada
Lithium Mine which has operated continuously since 1966, and Iconic Mineral’s Bonnie Claire
Project, which recently released a Preliminary Economic Assessment report (PEA) that indicates
40-year mine with an after-tax NPV8% of 1.5 billion.
Figure 1 - Left, location of Jackpot Lake. Right, aerial image of the "playa".
The project is considered to be “drill-ready” based on the following work which has successfully
delineated a 5 x 2 kilometre anomaly within a closed basin that suggests the presence of a highly
concentrated brine:
• 129 core samples collected by the USGS with an average lithium value of 175 ppm with a
high of 550 ppm and spectrographic and atomic -absorption analyses of 135 stream
sediment samples confirming the potential for lithium mineral deposits.
• Gravitational surveying which has identified a closed basin, critical for ensuring brines
remain within the basin without dilution from external water sources.
• Geophysical modelling based upon gravitational and controlled source audio
magnetotellurics/magnetotellurics (CSAMT/MT) surveys has provided evidence of highly
concentrated brines which are relatively near the surface. The CSAMT survey results of
the Jackpot Lake Project demonstrate a large consistent body of very low resistivity –
consistent with highly concentrated lithium brine behavior – throughout the property,
predominantly above bedrock depths of 625 meters.
The CSAMT Survey and report was conducted and prepared by Hasbrouck Geophysics,
who has extensive experience of both surveying and data processing for brine -bearing
basin environments across the southwestern U.S.
Figure 2- Left, gravitational surveying outlined the footprint of the Jackpot lithium brine
anomaly. Right, CSMAT survey slices showing a cross-section of the anomaly illustrating the
highly enriched brines throughout the property in red.
Based on the above, the Purchaser intends on completing an aggressive exploration program by
drilling both shallow and deep holes to test the targets outlined by the CSAMT Survey at possible
higher concentration brine zones with the goal of completing a 43-101 resource estimate by Q4 of
2022.
James Walker, CEO of Ares Strategic Mining, stated, "We are pleased to have USHA as a partner
for Jackpot. Our goal was to find a well-structured and capitalized company that could move the
project forward and look forward to supporting USHA as shareholders and strategic partners.
Ares is busy building the Utah fluorspar operation, and know USHA have the capacity and
resources to invest in this lithium project which we cannot provide due to our own commitments.
We have huge confidence that USHA can successfully develop this project, especially at a time
when lithium is so in demand.”
Deepak Varshney, CEO of Usha Resources, stated, "We are thrilled to add Jackpot Lake to our
growing portfolio of “green” projects and thank Ares for partnering with us to move this project
forward. Our goal is to identify high-quality projects that are near or drill-ready with high-upside
that can be achieved through the completion of relatively inexpensive work programs. Lithium
brine deposits have a significant cost adva ntage over lithium clay deposits in that lithium
mineralization is much less difficult and expensive to process. They can also be explored through
smaller drilling programs that can result in the Company identifying resource estimates much
more economically. The addition of Jackpot means that 2022 will be an extremely active period
for USHA with three planned drill programs giving our shareholders a number of potential
catalysts across our various projects.”
The Transaction
Under the terms of the Transaction, USHA will be able to acquire a 100% interest in the Property
in exchange for the following consideration:
• $75,000 payable within five days from receiving approval from the TSX Venture Exchange
(the “Exchange”).
• $500,000 payable in common shares (the “Shares”) of the Company within five days from
the date of Exchange approval, to be issued at a deemed value at the greater of the 10-day
VWAP or Discounted Market Price;
• $225,000 payable through a combination of cash or Shares of the Company (at the
discretion of the Company), up to a maximum of 1,500,000 Shares, on the six -month
anniversary date, to be issued at a deemed value at the greater of the 10 -day VWAP or
Discounted Market Price; and
• $225,000 payable through a combination of cash or Shares of the Company (at the
discretion of the Company), up to a maximum of 1,500,000 Shares, on the twelve-month
anniversary date, to be issued at a deemed value at the greater of the 10 -day VWAP or
Discounted Market Price.
Additionally, the Company will be requ ired to complete no less than $1,000,000 worth of
Expenditures on the Claims within two years unless the Option has been exercised in full. The
Vendor will return a 1% Gross Overriding Royalty (the “GORR”), subject to a buyback provision
by the Company, whereby the Company may acquire, at any time, one-half of the GORR for
$1,000,000. The Option Agreement and the transactions contemplated therein, including the
issuance of the Shares, is subject to the approval of the Exchange. All securities issued in
connection with the Transaction will be subject to a four-month-and-one-day statutory hold period.
At this time the Company would also like to announce that its Director and Chairman, Karl Marek,
will be leaving the Ares board after completing a move to Ireland from Canada, to pursue new
business opportunities. Karl played an instrumental part in founding Ares in 2020 and has been a
great asset to the company these previous years. We would very like to thank him very much for
all the time and effort he has invested, and of course wish him every success in his new endeavors
in Ireland.
Ares also announced that it intends to settle an outstanding accounts payable for $17,916.81, owing
to certain creditor wishing to settle through shares, through the issuance of 41,667 common shares
of the Company at a deemed price of $0.43 per common share. The Debt was accrued pursuant to
a SEO services invoice submitted on November 2021.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF
ARES STRATEGIC MINING INC.
James Walker
Chief Executive Officer and President
For further information, please contact James Walker by phone at 604-345-1576 or by email at
DISCLOSURE AND FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS:
Companies typically rely on comprehensive feasibility reports on mineral reserve estimates to reduce the
risks and uncertainties associated with a production decision. Historically, situations where the issuer
decides to put a mineral project into production without first establishing mineral reserves supported by a
technical report and completing a feasibility study have a higher risk of economic or technical failure,
though some industrial mineral ventures are relatively simple operations with low levels of investment and
risk, where the operating entity has determined that a formal prefeasibility or feasibility study in
conformance with NI 43-101 and 43-101 CP is not required for a production decision. Based on historical
engineering work, geological reports, historical production data and current engineering work completed
or in the process by Ares, the Company intends to move forward with the development of its Utah asset.
Certain information in this news release may contain forward-looking statements that involve substantial
known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements are often identified by terms
such as “will”, “may”, “should”, “anticipate”, “expects” and similar expressions. All statements other than
statements of historical fact included in this news release are forward-looking statements that involve risks
and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual
results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important
factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company’s expectations include the
failure to satisfy the conditions of the relevant securities exchange(s) and other risks detailed from time to
time in the filings made by the Company with securities regulations. The reader is cautioned that
assumptions used in the preparation of any forward-looking information may prove to be incorrect. Events
or circumstances may cause actual results to differ materially from those predicted, as a result of numerous
known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the
Company. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking information. Such
information, although considered reasonable by management at the time of preparation, may prove to be
incorrect and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. Forward-looking statements
contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking
statements contained in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and the Company
disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise such information, except as required by applicable
law.