| (Vancouver) – Martin Vydra, President of Giga Metals Corp. (TSX.V: GIGA) (OTCQB: HNCKF) (FSE: BRR2) announced today that the Company is investigating expansion of processing at the Turnagain Ni/Co project to include Mixed Hydroxide Precipitate (MHP) production in its next phase of studies. MHP is a chemical form of nickel and cobalt that is experiencing rapid demand increase for its role in the supply chain for lithium ion batteries. |
| “MHP is quickly establishing itself as the intermediate of choice by the battery industry in the manufacturing of metal salts (NiSO4 and CoSO4) and is being pursued to directly produce precursors and cathode active materials.” said Mr. Vydra. “We know from previous testwork and engineering that Turnagain concentrate is amenable to processing into high quality MHP.” |
| Currently MHP is produced globally at four commercial facilities: Ramu, VNC-Goro, Ravensthorpe and Gordes. All of these operations utilize high pressure acid leaching (HPAL) of laterite ores and the current annual global supply capacity is estimated at 125,000 tonnes of Ni contained in MHP. Additionally, six projects have been announced, five of which are in Indonesia, which are expected to bring MHP production capacity to 400,000 tonnes per year of contained Ni by 2025. This would rival the market of Class I briquettes, powder and oxides, which are currently the major source of raw material for battery grade NiSO4 production, and implies a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 33% in MHP production compared to estimated CAGR of 4% for nickel and 8% for cobalt, according to a McKinsey study. Historical hydrometallurgical testwork was on Turnagain concentrates of lower grades compared to the current high-grade concentrate as shown in the table below. Concentrate Grades for Past Testwork and PEA Results Ni % Co % Fe % S % Mg % Cu % Historical 4.5 – 10 0.2 – 0.5 20 – 45 10 – 25 5 – 19 0.2 – 0.3 2020 PEA Concentrate (Table 13.8) 20 1.2 32 26 4.4 0.5 As summarized in the 2020 PEA, 17 historical tests indicated high extractions of nickel and cobalt (>97.5%) at both low and high-temperature pressure oxidation conditions, and in both sulphate and chloride systems. Testwork further demonstrated the ability to process the resulting leach solutions to recover copper and produce high-quality MHP. Due to the superior quality of the solutions from a sulphide pressure oxidation compared to HPAL laterite leach liquors, the MHP produced was a higher-grade product with lower manganese (Mn) content than currently commercially available. Manganese is considered a deleterious element in MHP. Mixed Hydroxide (MHP) Grades for Commercial Product and Turnagain Results Ni+Co % Mg % Mn % Cu + Fe % HPAL Commercial Product (3 Projects) 40-43 1.8 – 2.8. 2.8 – 6.1 0.1 – 0.2 HPAL Commercial Product (Average 3 Projects) 41 2.3 4.6 0.14 New Indonesia Project 1 (expected) 44 0.4 7.3 0.27 Turnagain MHP (historical sample) 49 1.4 0.2 <0.1 “There are more than 30 facilities that are, or are capable of processing MHP to produce NiSO4 and CoSO4 in Asia alone and that number is growing,” said Mr. Vydra. “We also understand that processing of MHP to produce precursors and cathode active materials (PCAM/CAM) directly, bypassing NiSO4 and CoSO4 production, is becoming a focus in an effort to reduce manufacturing steps in the lithium ion battery supply chain and decrease costs. According to Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, MHP payables have been averaging over 87% for nickel and well above 75% for cobalt in 2021. We think that MHP is evolving into a liquid and transparent market that will continue to offer higher payables than smelters. As the only large scale North American greenfields nickel project solely focused on the battery materials market, we feel it is important to demonstrate to investors and potential partners the ability to deliver a product that is increasingly becoming recognized as the standard for raw material supply to this industry.” 1High pressure acid leaching: a newly introduced technology in Indonesia; Gultom T and Sianipar A – Harita Nickel; IOP Conf Ser: Earth Environ Sci; 413 012015 (2019) |
| About Giga Metals Giga Metals Corporation is focused on metals critical to modern batteries, especially those used in Electric Vehicles and Energy Storage. The Company’s core asset is the Turnagain Project, located in northern British Columbia, which contains one of the few significant undeveloped sulphide nickel and cobalt resources in the world. Turnagain is the only undeveloped Canadian nickel project of this scale that is focussed on the battery market rather than the steel market. On behalf of the Board of Directors, “Martin Vydra” MARTIN VYDRA, PRESIDENT GIGA METALS CORPORATION Tel – 604 681 2300 |
