FPX Nickel Announces $14.4 Million Strategic Equity Investment from Major Global Nickel Producer Sumitomo Metal Mining
Suite 320 – 1155 West Pender Street
Vancouver, BC Canada V6E 2P4
Tel: 604.681.8600
e-mail: [email protected]
FPX Nickel Announces $14.4 Million Strategic Equity Investment
from Major Global Nickel Producer Sumitomo Metal Mining
Vancouver, January 17, 2024 – FPX Nickel Corp. (TSX-V: FPX, OTCQB: FPOCF) (“FPX” or the
“Company”) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a subscription agreement for a private placement
financing (the “Private Placement”) with a new cornerstone strategic investor, Sumitomo Metal Mining
Canada Ltd. (“ SMCL”), a wholly -owned subsidiary of Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. (TSE: 5713)
(“SMM”).
Under the terms of the Private Placement, FPX will issue 30,104,488 common shares (“Private Placement
Common Shares”) in the capital of the Company to SMCL at a price of $0.48 per Private Placement
Common Share, for gross proceeds of $14,450,154. Upon completion of the Private Placement, SMCL will
own 9.9% of FPX’s issued and outstanding common shares on a non-diluted basis.
“This strategic investment by Sumitomo Metal Mining represents another significant technical validation
of FPX’s Baptiste Nickel Project (“Baptiste” or the “Project”), and underscores our view that Baptiste is
a class-leading asset,” commented Martin Turenne, FPX’s President and CEO. “SMM is one of the world’s
largest nickel producers, with peer -leading expertise in mining, processing and refining products in the
stainless steel and electric vehicle battery supply chains. FPX is ple ased to be one of SMM’s p referred
partners as they look to expand their nickel production profile and diversify their supply chain to allied
partners in North America.”
Eiichi Fukuda, Executive Officer and General Manager of Mineral Resources Division of SMM stated,
“We expect that this investment will establish a strong relationship between SMM and FPX, with the aim
to contribute to SMM’s long term production target of 150,000 tonnes of nickel per year. We have a long
business history in Canada with a variety of partners, and we are excited to be working with FPX.”
The Company intends to use the net proceeds of the Private Placement primarily for exploration and
development activities at the Project, continuance of ongoing environmental baseline activities, feasibility
study readiness activities, and general corporate and administrative purposes. The Private Placement is
expected to close on January 22, 2024 and is subject to certain customary conditions, including acceptance
by the TSX Venture Exchange, as well as execution of an Investor Rights Agreement and a ROSO
agreement (each as described below). The Private Placement Common Shares issued pursuant to the Private
Placement will be subject to a hold period of four (4) months and one (1) day from the date of issuance in
accordance with applicable securities laws.
Transaction Details
Concurrently with the closing of the Private Placement:
• FPX and SMCL will enter into an investor rights agreement (the “Investor Rights Agreement” or
“IRA”) that provides, among other things, SMCL with certain rights in the event it maintains
minimum ownership thresholds in the Company, including the right to participate in equity
financings. Further, the IRA will include a covenant from SMCL to not vote against management’s
recommendations on ordinary matters to be approved by the shareholders of the Company, in each
case subject to certain customary conditions and exceptions. In addition, pursuant to the Private
Placement, SMCL has agreed to a two-year standstill with respect to the acquisition of additional
securities in FPX totaling greater than 14.9% of the common shares of FPX then issued and
outstanding on a non-diluted basis, other than pursuant to exceptions customary for a standstill of
this nature and acquisitions pursuant to SMCL’s rights under the Investor Rights Agreement. In
the event SMCL reaches and maintains a minimum ownership of 15% or more of the issued and
outstanding common shares of FPX on a non-diluted basis, SMCL will have the right to nominate
one director to FPX’s board of directors.
• FPX will grant a right of second offer (“ ROSO”) that provides SMCL the right, so long as it
continues to hold all of the Private Placement Common Shares, to negotiate, at market terms, one
or more offtake agreements with FPX for up to an aggregate of 60,000 tonnes of nickel from the
Project, with the timing and annual volume of such offtake to be negotiated at a later date. SMCL’s
offtake right will rank secondary to the offtake right previously granted by FPX to Outokumpu Oyj
(see the Company’s May 30, 2023 news release).
Based on the Company’s 2023 preliminary feasibility study (“PFS”), Baptiste has the potential to produce
an average of 59,100 tonnes of nickel per annum over a projected mine life of 29 years. There is no certainty
that the conclusions or results as reported in the PFS will be realized ( see the Company’s September 6,
2023 news release).
Andrew Osterloh, P.Eng., FPX’s Senior Vice President, Projects & Operations , FPX’s Qualified Person
under NI 43-101, has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical content of this news release.
Webinar and Presentation
The Company’s management will host a live webinar on Wednesday, January 17 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern
(11:00 a.m. Pacific) to provide a Company update and to answer questions from participants. Participants
can access the live webinar at the following link:
https://www.renmarkfinancial.com/live-registration/renmark-virtual-non-deal-roadshow-tsx-v-fpx-otcqb-
fpocf-2024-01-17-140000
About Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd.
SMM is an integrated producer covering from mineral resource development, smelting & refining, to the
production of battery materials and functional materials in Japan and internationally. SMM’s business
strategy of partnering with high -quality operators is evidenced by its strong portfolio of joint venture
overseas assets, including several large -scale base metal operations held in joint ventures with partners
including Teck Resources, Freeport-McMoRan and Lundin Mining. SMM has expertise, deep knowledge
and many years of experience in producing various types of nickel products and aims to increase its
production capacity of nickel from approximately 82,000 tonnes per annum currently to 150,000 tonnes per
annum in the long term.
About the Decar Nickel District
The Company’s Decar Nickel District represents a large-scale greenfield discovery of nickel mineralization
in the form of a naturally occurring nickel -iron mineral called awaruite (Ni 3Fe) hosted in an
ultramafic/ophiolite complex. FPX’s mineral claims cover an area of 245 km 2 west of the Middle River
and north of Trembleur Lake, in central British Columbia. Awaruite mineralization has been identified in
several target areas within the ophiolite complex including the Baptiste Deposit and the Van Target, as
confirmed by drilling, petrographic examination, electron probe analyses and outcrop sampling. Since
2010, approximately US $30 million has been spent on the exploration and development of Decar.
Of the four targets in the Decar Nickel District, the Baptiste Deposit has been the focus of increasing
resource definition (a total of 99 holes and 33,700 m of drilling completed), as well as environmental and
engineering studies to evaluate its potential as a bulk-tonnage open pit mining project. The Baptiste Deposit
is located within the Baptiste Creek watershed, on the traditional and unceded territories of Tl’azt’en Nation
and Binche Whut’en, and within several Tl’azt’enne and Binche Whut’enne keyohs. FPX has conducted
mineral exploration activities to date subject to the conditions of agreements with First Nations and keyoh
holders.
About FPX Nickel Corp.
FPX Nickel Corp. is focused on the exploration and development of the Decar Nickel District, located in
central British Columbia, and other occurrences of the same unique style of naturally occurring nickel-iron
mineralization known as awaruite. For more information, please view the Company’s website at
www.fpxnickel.com or contact Martin Turenne, President and CEO, at (604) 681 -8600 or
On behalf of FPX Nickel Corp.
"Martin Turenne"
Martin Turenne, President, CEO and Director
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release may contain “forward-looking information” within the meaning of applicable Canadian
securities laws, including those describing FPX's future plans, and the expectations of management that a
stated result or condition will occur. These statements address future events and conditions and so involve
inherent risks and uncertainties, as disclosed in the Company's periodic filings with Canadian securities
regulators. Actual results could differ materially from those currently projected by management at the time
of writing due to many factors the majority of which are beyond the control of FPX and its management.
In particular, this news release contains forward -looking statements pertaining, directly or indirectly, to
the following: the Priva te Placement, including, closing and the timing thereof, including receipt of TSX
Venture Exchange approval and the timing thereof; the final terms of the IRA and the ROSO and entering
into thereof; the use of proceeds of the Private Placement; future acquisition of common shares of FPX by
SMCL; the nomination and appointment to FPX's board of directors of a nominee of SMCL; potential
business synergies as a result of SMM’s investment in FPX; and future off-take agreements pursuant to the
ROSO; the advancement of exploration and development activities at the Project; the Project's potential
nickel production as set out in the PFS; and FPX’s contribution to SMM’s long term production goal of
150,000 tonnes; Readers are cautioned that the foregoing list of risk factors should not be construed as
exhaustive. These statements speak only as of the date of this release or as of the date specified in the
documents accompanying this release, as the case may be. The Company assumes the obligation to update
any forward-looking statement except as expressly required by applicable securities law.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider accepts responsibility for the
adequacy or accuracy of this release.