Hilo Mining and Capella Minerals Announce Signing of Definitive Agreement to Earn up to 80% in Finnish Lithium Project
Hilo Mining and Capella Minerals Announce
Signing of Definitive Agreement to Earn up to
80% in Finnish Lithium Project
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - March 20, 2023) - Hilo Mining Ltd. (TSXV: HILO) ("
Hilo
"
or the "
Company
") is pleased to announce that it has entered into a definitive earn-in agreement (the
"
Earn-In Agreement
") with Capella Minerals Limited (TSXV: CMIL) (OTCQB: CMILF) (FSE: N7D2)
("
Capella
") to earn up to an 80% interest in a portfolio of lithium (lithium-cesium-tantalum, or "LCT") and
rare-earth element ("REE") pegmatite reservations held by Capella in central Finland (the "
Property
").
The portfolio consists of five lithium (lithium-cesium-tantalum, or "LCT") and rare-earth element ("REE")
pegmatite reservations in central Finland. These reservations cover a total area of 2,300 square
kilometers and are focused on LCT pegmatite complexes located within the Järvi-Pohjanmaa and
Seinäjoki lithium-permissive tracts as defined by the Geological Survey of Finland ("GTK"). Four of the
reservations (Nabba, Lappajärvi W, Lappajärvi E, and Kaatiala) lie immediately adjacent to, and to the
south of, Keliber Oy's spodumene mine development project in the Kaustinen district.
"I'm pleased to announce the Earn-In Agreement and look forward to partnering with Capella on the
exploration and development of this
project," said Jeremy Poirier, the Chief Executive Officer of the
Company. He continued, "I'm excited about the prospect to be part of the growth of lithium and REE
production in Finland, which I believe itself has the potential to become one of Europe's major sources of
these critical commodities."
Eric Roth, Capella's President and CEO commented: "We are extremely pleased to be partnering
together with Hilo on the advancement of this highly-prospective portfolio of lithium-REE projects in
central Finland. Little systematic exploration has been undertaken in recent years within this belt, and our
immediate goal will be to bring priority target areas with spodumene-bearing pegmatites to drill-ready
status. We look forward to keeping all stakeholders updated on our progress."
Hilo is focusing on Finland as a direct result of its favourable geology for spodumene-hosted pegmatite
deposits, the mining friendly jurisdiction, and the ratification on March 16, 2023, of the European
Commission Critical Raw Minerals Act ("ECRM"), which has been designed to support the development
of a resilient European supply chain of both lithium and REE's. The ECRM includes the setting of
benchmarks by 2030 for domestic capacities in the fields of critical metal extraction, processing, and
recycling. Hilo's enhanced Li-REE portfolio provides the Company an opportunity to become one of the
EU's major sources of these commodities.
In parallel, the Norwegian government has also thrown support behind the construction of a lithium-ion
battery gigafactory in the northern city of Mo I Rana. This plant, which is currently expected to enter in to
operation in 2025, is part of a broader governmental strategy to take advantage of the abundance of
low-cost renewable (hydroelectric) energy in-country and become a major contributor to future lithium
battery production.
Further information on the portfolio of lithium-REE projects in central Finland is available at:
https://capellaminerals.com/projects/lithium-ree-finland/central-finland-portfolio/
The European Commission's March 16, 2023, News Release relating to the implementation of the
Critical Raw Minerals Act may be found at:
https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_23_1661
Terms of the Earn-In Agreement
Hilo has the option to earn a 51% interest in the Property (the "
Initial Option
") by (i) making a cash
payment of $100,000 and issuing 100,000 common shares to Capella upon receiving TSX
Venture Exchange approval of the Earn-In Agreement; (ii) completing $500,000 in expenditures on
the Property and issuing 150,000 common shares to Capella on before the first anniversary of the
Earn-In Agreement; and (iii) completing an additional $500,000 in expenditures on the Property,
paying $100,000 in cash and issuing 250,000 common shares to Capella on or before the second
anniversary of the Earn-In Agreement. Upon exercise of the Initial Option, Hilo will become the
operator of the Property.
Following exercise of the Initial Option, Hilo will have a further option to earn an additional 29%
interest in the Property (the "
Final Option
") by (i) completing $500,000 in expenditures on the
Property, paying $150,000 in cash and issuing 750,000 common shares to Capella on or before
the third anniversary of the Earn-In Agreement; and (ii) completing $1,000,000 in expenditures on
the Property, paying $150,000 in cash and issuing 750,000 common shares to Capella on or
before the fourth anniversary of the Earn-In Agreement.
If, on the date of the exercise of the Final Option, the Property hosts a mineral resource equal or
greater than 10 million metric tons with a minimum average grade of 1.0% Lithium Oxide (Li2O)
the Company will make a bonus cash payment of $500,000 and issue 1,000,000 common shares
to Capella.
The parties have the option to form a joint venture upon exercise of the Initial Option or to defer the
joint venture formation until the exercise of the Final Option.
The transaction remains subject to TSX Venture Exchange approval.
Hilo also clarifies that the 800,000 restricted share units announced in its March 6, 2023 will vest one
year from the date of grant in accordance with the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange.
Qualified Persons and Disclosure Statement
The technical information in this news release relating to the Finnish Li-REE projects has been prepared
in accordance with Canadian regulatory requirements set out in NI 43-101, and approved by Eric Roth,
Capella's President & CEO, a Director, and a Qualified Person under NI 43-101.
Mr. Roth holds a Ph.D.
in Economic Geology from the University of Western Australia, is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of
Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM) and is a Fellow of the Society of Economic Geologists (SEG). Mr. Roth
has 30 years of experience in international minerals exploration and mining project evaluation.
About Hilo Mining Ltd.
Hilo Mining Ltd. is a junior mining company currently focussed on the Champ precious metal property
near Castlegar, British Columbia. In addition, the Company is currently reviewing additional
opportunities to increase shareholder value.
About Capella Minerals Ltd.
Capella is engaged in the acquisition, exploration, and development of quality mineral resource
properties in favourable jurisdictions with a focus on European base and battery metals projects.
In Norway, the Company's focus is on: i) the advanced exploration-stage Hessjøgruva copper-cobalt
project and the adjacent Kongensgruve and Kjøli projects in the northern Røros mining district, Trøndelag
province, ii) the discovery of satellite high-grade copper-cobalt deposits around the past-producing
Løkken copper mine, Trøndelag province, and iii) the discovery of new copper-cobalt deposits in the
former Vaddas-Birtavarre mining district of northern Norway.
In Finland, the Company's focus is on the discovery of lithium and rare-earth element deposits at both its
Perho reservation and a portfolio of reservations under JV to Hilo Mining in Central Finland. In addition,
the Company is currently permitting exploring the Katajavaara-Aakenus gold-copper project in the
Central Lapland Greenstone Belt together with JV partner Cullen Resources Ltd.
The Company also retains exposure to exploration success in precious metals projects through its active
Canadian Joint Ventures with Prospector Metals Corp at Savant (Ontario) and Yamana Gold Inc. at
Domain (Manitoba). The Company also retains a residual interest (subject to an option to purchase
agreement with Austral Gold Ltd) in the Sierra Blanca gold-silver divestiture in Santa Cruz, Argentina.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
For Hilo Mining Ltd
Jeremy Poirier, CEO
Telephone: 604-722-9842
For Capella Minerals Ltd
Eric Roth, CEO
Email:
Karen Davies,
VP Investor Relations
+1.604.314.2662
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the
policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this
release.
Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Information
This news release contains forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities
legislation. Forward-looking information is typically identified by words such as: believe, expect,
anticipate, intend, estimate, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature,
refer to future events. Such statements include, without limitation, statements regarding the future
results of operations, performance and achievements of Hilo including the completion of the
transactions contemplated in the Earn-In Agreement, future exploration results on the Property and
the future development of lithium-REE deposits in Northern Europe. Although Hilo believes that such
statements are reasonable, it can give no assurances that such expectations will prove to be correct.
All such forward-looking information is based on certain assumptions and analyses made by Hilo in
light of their experience and perception of historical trends, current conditions and expected future
developments, as well as other factors management believes are appropriate in the circumstances.
This information, however, is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could
cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking
information. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ from this forward-looking
information include those described under the heading "Risks and Uncertainties" in Hilo's most
recently filed MD&A. Hilo does not intend, and expressly disclaims any obligation to, update or revise
the forward-looking information contained in this news release, except as required by law. Readers are
cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information.
To view the source version of this press release, please visit
https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/159010