Joint Venture Places NorthMet And Mesaba Under Single Management

ST PAUL, MN-  PolyMet Mining Corp. has entered into an agreement with Teck American Inc., to form a 50:50 joint venture that will place their respective NorthMet and Mesaba resources containing high-demand copper, nickel, cobalt and platinum group metals (PGM) under single management. These resources consist of Measured and Indicated resources of 795 million tons and 1,740 million tons for NorthMet and Mesaba, respectively, and further Inferred resources of 458 million tons and 1,612 million tons, respectively.

PolyMet and Teck will become equal owners in PolyMet Mining, Inc., which will be renamed NewRange Copper Nickel LLC. This name pays homage to the location of the resource and the rich mining heritage of the region, the new, modern methods of responsible mining to which the company is committed, and the new and diverse metal production it will bring to the Iron Range economy.

"This extraordinary venture links the expertise, experience and financial resources of PolyMet, Teck and Glencore to develop the NorthMet mine when the remaining permit proceedings are complete, and study the mine development options for Mesaba," said Jon Cherry, PolyMet Chairman, President and CEO. Following closing of the transaction, Glencore will retain its majority equity interest in PolyMet.

"With both projects representing approximately half of the known resources of Minnesota's Duluth Complex under NewRange Copper Nickel, Minnesota emerges as a global leader and major force in developing strategic minerals to feed the North American supply chain for clean energy technologies, electric mobility and modern societal use. The total assets of the NorthMet and Mesaba deposits make this one of the largest clean-energy mineral resources in the U.S. and globally."