First Cobalt Begins Geophysics Program At Idaho Project

TORONTO - First Cobalt Corp. reported the resumption of exploration activities at its Iron Creek cobalt-copper deposit in Idaho. As the cobalt market continues to strengthen, the Company is commencing geophysical surveys to trace extensions of mineralization and follow up on geophysical anomalies detected by previous work. Trent Mell, President & Chief Executive Officer, said, “Developing a domestic supply of cobalt and other critical minerals has taken a new urgency in 2020, as North America strives to become less reliant on foreign supply. The Idaho Cobalt Belt is a unique geological setting for primary cobalt deposits unlike any other areas in the world. New funding programs within the U.S. Department of Energy, the Department of State and the Department of Defense underscore the priority the U.S. government is placing on developing its domestic critical minerals supply chain. Since publishing an updated cobalt and copper resource estimate for Iron Creek earlier this year, we have had a three-pronged focus: extending cobalt mineralization to the east, extending copper mineralization to the west, and identifying new targets within a 2-kilometer radius on the property. This geophysics program will increase our confidence in existing drill targets that could expand the Iron Creek deposit and provide new targets. In 2019, we announced high grade cobalt assays up to 0.48% cobalt at a prospect 1.5 kilometers south of Iron Creek called Ruby. Ruby is exposed along a 300m strike extent and represents further near-surface potential for cobalt and copper mineralization on the First Cobalt's property."

The geophysical survey is expected to take three weeks to complete and consists of induced polarity and resistivity measurements covering the eastern and western portion of the Iron Creek cobalt-copper mineralized zone and extending beyond and along strike (Figure 1). In 1971, following development of 600m of underground workings that confirmed the consistency and continuity of cobalt-copper grades, geophysical surveys were conducted at surface to aid exploration for further resources. This data was recovered from files and maps, then reviewed and interpreted in light of borehole geophysical surveys conducted in 2018 by First Cobalt. The review indicated induced polarity and resistivity methods detect mineralization to 300m below surface, a depth at which past drilling has intersected mineralization.

In the west, mineralization is covered at surface by the Challis Volcanics, a relatively young rock sequence that is un-mineralized and is 50-70m thick. The western portion of mineralization is copper-rich consisting of 10-50cm semi-massive bands and stringers of chalcopyrite that are typically well detected by these electro-geophysical methods. First Cobalt drilling also encountered mineralization in the hanging-wall above the mineralized zone in this area that will also be potentially outlined by the geophysical survey.

The previous survey also detected a chargeable inducted polarity anomaly in the east that corresponds to the stratigraphic footwall below the Iron Creek resource. The upcoming program is designed to resolve the location of the anomaly for proper drill testing to determine if additional cobalt-copper mineralization is associated with the geophysical response. Footwall mineralization was encountered during resource drilling but has not been modeled for estimation since the intersections were widely spaced.

Iron Creek is a high grade underground primary cobalt deposit on patented property in the United States. It currently has an Indicated Resource of 2.2 million tonnes at 0.32% cobalt equivalent (0.26% cobalt and 0.61% copper) for 12.3 million pounds of contained cobalt and an Inferred Resource of 2.7 million tonnes at 0.28% cobalt equivalent (0.22% cobalt and 0.68% copper) for an additional 12.7 million pounds of contained cobalt. The resource estimate used a 0.18% cobalt equivalent cutoff grade. Drilling has outlined the strike extent of mineralization to over 900 meters and down-dip to over 650 meters. Mineralization remains open along strike and down-dip, suggesting strong potential for significant future resource growth. Thick mineralized zones of up to 30 meters of true thickness reflect broad stratabound lithological controls.

Iron Creek mineralization occurs as lenses and pods of pyrite, the dominant phase hosting cobalt, that are primarily concordant to the sedimentary layering in the host rocks. Chalcopyrite, the only copper mineral phase, is disseminated and also occurs as stringers cutting pyrite mineralization within the zone of mineralization.

The host rocks to mineralization are a finely inter-bedded sequence of siltstone and argillite with intermittent, less than 30cm thick, quartzite layers. Ripple and dune sedimentary structures are well-preserved throughout the mineralized sequence. A higher proportion of quartzite layers have been mapped above and below the mineralized zone at surface marking the stratigraphic hanging-wall and footwall to mineralization.

Several exposures of cobalt-copper mineralization occur within the property. At Ruby, surface channel sampling along 146 meters of the exposure returned several high-grade values, up to 7.6m of 0.26% Co and 10.7m of 0.24% Co, including 1.5m of 0.48% Co. Ruby is located 1.5 km from the Iron Creek deposit and occurs within a similar host-rock sequence that may be a structural offset to Iron Creek or a separate stratigraphic unit. Other exposures of mineralization in the southern portion of the property have not been drilled tested but do demonstrate further potential for future follow-up exploration. Iron Creek is one of many cobalt-copper resources and prospects within the Idaho Cobalt Belt where the United States Geological Survey has deemed these resources to be strategically important as a domestic supply of cobalt.