Giga Metals Sells Royalty on Turnagain Nickel-Cobalt Project
July 12 2018 TSX.V - GIGA
Giga Metals Sells Royalty on Turnagain Nickel-Cobalt Project
Vancouver, British Columbia –- Giga Metals Corp oration (TSX.V: GIGA) (FSE: BRR2)
(“Giga Metals” or “the Company”) announced today that the Company has agreed to sell a 2% Net
Smelter Return (“NSR”) royalty on all future metal production from the Turnagain Nickel-Cobalt
Project (the “Turnagain Project”), located in north central British Columbia, to Cobalt 27 Capital
Corp. (“Cobalt 27”) for US$1 million cash payment and US$9 million in common shares of Cobalt
27, at the deemed equity issue price of C$10.50 per share, for a total of 1,125,000 shares. (the “NSR
Agreement”).
HIGHLIGHTS
• Royalty sale highlights the potential of the Turnagain Project.
• Provides funds to advance one of the largest undeveloped sulphide nickel-cobalt
projects in the world (in terms of total contained nickel) to the Pre-Feasibility stage.
• Turnagain Project is located in the politically stable jurisdiction of British Columbia,
Canada.
• Turnagain ore is ideally suited to be refined into cobalt and Class 1 nickel required by
battery manufacturers globally.
• Giga Metals aims to supply cobalt and nickel to the market by the time significant
deficits have been projected due to the anticipated growth in electric vehicles and
energy storage systems.
• The royalty is over both nickel and cobalt.
"Giga Metals is pleased to welcome Cobalt 27 as a royalty holder on the Turnagain Project. Cobalt
27's acquisition of a 2% NSR further highlights the Turnagain Project as one of the world's premier
battery metals projects ,” said Mr. Jarvis. “Turnagain's position as a potential supplier of critical
battery metals has been confirmed by recent approaches from Asian battery manufacturers who are
focused on obtaining access to cobalt and nickel concentrate from conflict-free jurisdictions. This
transaction is transformational for the Company and underscores the value of the Turnagain
project.”
The cash and marketable securities to be received by the Company from this transaction, combined
with the cash on hand of approximately C$3.8 million, will provide the necessary capital to advance
the Turnagain Project to the Pre -Feasibility stage and beyond. The Company has started a 9,600
metre drill program to test several high impact exploration targets, as well as to provide data to
support the Pre-Feasibility Study scheduled for completion in the third quarter of 2019.
The Sale of a 2% NSR Royalty on the Turnagain Project
Giga Metals has agreed to sell a 2% NSR royalty to Cobalt 27’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Electric
Metals Streaming Corp., for US$1 million in cash payable on closing, and US$9 million in common
shares of Cobalt 27 (the “Cobalt 27 Shares”), at the deemed equity issue price of C$10.50 per share,
for a total of 1,125,000 shares. The Cobalt 27 Shares will be subject to the following trading
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restrictions: one-third of the Cobalt 27 Shares will have a statutory hold period of 4 months; one-
third will have a hold period of 8 months; and one-third will have a hold period of 12 months from
the closing date.
Under the terms of the NSR Agreement, 75% of the proceeds are to be used by Giga Metals to
complete the work required to advance the Turnag ain Project through to Pre -feasibility and for
exploration at Turnagain. Within one year of the signing of the NSR Agreement, Cobalt 27 has the
right to appoint one member to Giga Metals’ board of directors. Giga Metals has the right to
repurchase 0.5% of the 2% NSR ( “Repurchase Option”) for US$20 million , which if exercised
would result in a 1.5% remaining NSR. The one-time Repurchase Option is only exercisable prior
to the fifth anniversary of the NSR Agreement. Cobalt 27 will have a right of first r efusal on any
future sale by Giga Metals of a royalty or product stream or similar instrument.
Haywood Securities Inc. has acted as financial advisor to Cobalt 27 in connection with the
transaction and has provided a verbal opinion to its board of director s to the effect that, as of the
date of such opinion and subject to the assumptions, limitations, and qualifications stated in such
opinion, the transaction is fair, from a financial point of view, to Cobalt 27.
About Giga Metals’ Turnagain Nickel-Cobalt Project
The Turnagain Project hosts the Horsetrail nickel -cobalt deposit, among the world’s largest
undeveloped nickel-cobalt sulphide deposits, located in British Columbia, Canada. Giga Metals
owns 100% of the project which hosts a NI 43-101 Mineral Resource containing:
Measured & Indicated: 4.1 billion pounds of nickel and 253 million pounds of cobalt
Inferred: 4.3 billion pounds of nickel and 280 million pounds of cobalt
The Mineral Resource estimates include Inferred Mineral Resources tha t are normally considered too speculative
geologically to have economic considerations applied to them that would enable them to be categorized as Mineral
Reserves. Mineral Resource has been prepared by AMC Mining Consultants (Canada) Ltd., December 2011
Engineering studies are underway with an objective of producing a Pre -Feasibility report by the
third quarter of 2019 . Extensive metallurgical work indicates a clean concentrate grading 18%
nickel and 1% cobalt is reliably achievable using simple “off-the-shelf” processing technology.
Further metallurgical and comminution test work has begun in support of a Pre-Feasibility Study.
The Turnagain project covers a large, relatively underexplored land package prospective for
additional ultramafic-hosted nickel-cobalt discoveries. Turnagain is one of the few projects in a
stable jurisdiction that can potentially deliver large quantities of cobalt and nickel to meet the
growing needs of the electric vehicle and energy storage markets at a time when many re search
analysts are projecting there will be shortages in the cobalt and nickel re quired by battery
manufacturers.
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About Cobalt 27 Capital Corp.
Cobalt 27 Capital Corp. is a leading electric metals investment vehicle offering exposure to metals
integral to key technologies of the electric vehicle and battery energy storage markets. The
Company owns 2,982 Mt of physical cobalt and is acquiring the w orld’s first producing cobalt
nickel stream on the low -cost, long-life Ramu Nickel-Cobalt Mine and a cobalt stream on Vale's
world-class Voisey's Bay mine beginning in 2021 including the announced underground expansion.
The Company also manages a portfoli o of eight royalties and intends to continue to invest in a
cobalt-focused portfolio of streams, royalties and direct interests in mineral properties containing
cobalt, while potentially adding to its cobalt physical holdings when opportunities arise. For further
information please visit Cobalt 27’s website at www.cobalt27.com.
Scientific and technical information disclosed in this document has been reviewed and approved
by David Tupper, P. Geo., a Qualified Person consistent with NI 43-101.
On behalf of the Board of Directors,
“Mark Jarvis”
MARK JARVIS, PRESIDENT & CEO
GIGA METALS CORPORATION
Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in
policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this
release.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking information which is subject to a variety of risks and
uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ from those
projected in the forward -looking statements. Forward looking s tatements in this press release
include that the Company will close the proposed transaction of the sale of the NSR ; that the
proposed transaction gives the Company the capital required to advance the Turnagain project in
a meaningful way; the timing and completion of a 10,000 metre drill program; the completion and
release of a Pre -Feasibility Study in the third quarter of 2019; the timing and completion of
additional exploration and step-out drilling; that there will be significant deficits in the cobalt and
nickel market in the future; and that the Turnagain deposit will be able to supply cobalt and nickel
to battery manufacturers.
These forward-looking statements are 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. Risks that could change or prevent these statements from coming to
fruition include that the Company may not receive regulatory approval on the proposed
transaction, the value of the consideration paid in Cobalt 27 shares may change dramatically after
the Company receives them and there may not be a market for the Cobalt 27 shares when the
Company wishes to sell them; changing operational costs for mining and processing; increased
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capital costs; the timing and content of upcoming work programs may be interrupted or delayed;
geological interpretations based on drilling that may change with more detailed information; the
availability of labour, equipment , infrastructure and markets for the products produced; and
despite the current expected viability of the project, conditions changing such that the minerals on
our property cannot be economically mined, or that the required permits to build and operate the
envisaged mine cannot be obtained. The forward-looking information contained herein is given as
of the date hereof and the Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise such information
to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.
Suite 203 – 700 West Pender St., Vancouver, BC, Canada V6C 1G8
T: 604-681-2300 E: [email protected] W: www.gigametals.com