📋 Tender Overview
Scope :
Tamarack is a nickel-copper-cobalt project progressing towards feasibility studies. The project is located in the US state of Minnesota.
Talon Metals Corp, the operator of Tamarack, holds a 51% stake in the project. The company also has the option to increase the stake to 60% by completing a feasibility study and paying $10m to joint venture (JV) partner Rio Tinto.
Tamarack is one of the three high-grade nickel sulphide deposits in the world on infrastructure that were discovered in the 21st century. The other two are Eagle Mine in the US and Nova-Bollinger in Australia.
The project is expected to begin production in 2026.
The Tamarack project is located in central Minnesota. The site is situated in Aitkin County around 210km north of Minneapolis.
Overall, the project comprises Tamarack North and Tamarack South projects, with approximately 31,000 acres of private and state leases. The Tamarack Nickel Project is the only known undeveloped high-grade nickel deposit in the US.
The site can be accessed using an existing road which connects to the Minnesota State highway network.
The site hosts resources on less than 1km of 18km Tamarack Intrusive Complex (TIC). It also has multiple high-grade intercepts outside the resource area.
The TIC is an ultramafic to a mafic intrusive complex containing nickel (Ni)-copper (Cu) sulphide mineralisation. It also hosts cobalt (Co), platinum (Pt), palladium (Pd) (PGEs) and gold (Au).
As a multi-magmatic phase intrusion, TIC includes two pulses- The fine-grained olivine (FGO) and the coarse-grained olivine (CGO) intrusion.
According to drilling data, the Tamarack South Project FGO intrusive is identical to the FGO found within the Tamarack North Project. The magmatic layering also appeared to be continuous.
An 800m area of the 18km strike length hosts 3.639 Mt of 1.83% Ni, 0.99% Cu, and 0.05% Co in the indicated category, and 4.382 Mt at 1.58% Ni, 0.92% Cu, and 0.04% Co.
In July 2022, Talon announced drill results from the CGO East target area, a large stretch outside the Tamarack Project’s resource area. The drilling results confirmed that the area contains wide sheets of shallow mineralisation.
In September 2022, Talon reported assays from 17 drill holes demonstrating the continuity and thickness of the high-grade nickel and copper massive sulphide zone and the separate semi-massive sulphide zones.
Mining method and infrastructure
Talon plans to use underground mining methods for Tamarack and employ the best available technologies (BATs) to achieve efficiency and reduce environmental impact.
The recovery of Ni Concentrate and Ni Sulphate will use the same mining methods and infrastructure.
Bulk and selective mining methods (long hole stoping and drift and fill respectively) will also be used.
A decline ramp from the surface will be used by personnel to access the mine. This ramp will also be used to transfer material and supply the main fresh air
