Trilogy Metals Reports Fiscal 2021 Year End Results and Files Technical Report for the Bornite Resource Estimate
Trilogy Metals Inc. (TMQ) reported a net loss of $21.7 million for the year ending November 30, 2021, compared to a net income of $161.8 million in 2020. The significant loss was primarily due to a $175.8 million gain on asset derecognition in the previous year. Exploration expenses rose to $143,000, while total expenditures for operating activities decreased to $5.1 million. The company aims to advance its Upper Kobuk Mineral Projects with a 2022 budget of $28.5 million, which includes drilling and geological work. However, they anticipate needing additional financing for future operations.
- Approved $28.5 million budget for 2022, focusing on exploration and development activities.
- Significant progress made in the Ambler Access Project, gaining necessary permits and funding agreements.
- Plans to advance Arctic and Bornite projects with extensive drilling planned for 2022.
- Net loss of $21.7 million for fiscal 2021 compared to a profit of $161.8 million in 2020.
- Increased exploration expenses indicate higher operational costs without corresponding revenue.
- Company may require additional funding beyond current cash reserves to support future operations.
VANCOUVER, BC, Feb. 11, 2022 /PRNewswire/ - Trilogy Metals Inc. (TSX: TMQ) (NYSE American: TMQ) ("Trilogy Metals", "Trilogy" or "the Company") announces its financial results for the year and fourth quarter ended November 30, 2021. Details of the Company's financial results are contained in the audited consolidated financial statements and Management's Discussion and Analysis in our annual report on Form 10-K which will be available on the Company's website at www.trilogymetals.com, on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and on EDGAR at www.sec.gov. All amounts are in United States dollars unless otherwise stated.
President's Message
2021 was another pivotal year for the Company as it marked the resumption of in-the-field activities at the Upper Kobuk Mineral Projects ("UKMP"), including significant advancements at the Arctic Project – part of the UKMP. Despite the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, which resulted in the suspension of the 2020 field program, the team at Ambler Metals LLC ("Ambler Metals") – our 50/50 joint venture company with South32 Ltd. ("South32") – was able to complete the 2021 program in a safe and effective manner.
Without Ambler Metals' incredible, hard-working, and loyal employees, the 2021 field program would not have been successful. During the 2021 program, Ambler Metals employed on average approximately 70 people at site, of which approximately
I also want to acknowledge the Ambler Metals management team, led by Ramzi Fawaz, Kevin Torpy and Rebecca Donald, for their exceptional job in keeping everyone safe through the implementation and management of our Covid-19 safety program. During the summer field season, over 1,000 Covid-19 tests were administered for site travel, of which only one positive case was identified at camp on the very last day of the season. The Ambler Metals team is committed to the safety and well-being of its employees and will continue implementing rigorous safety protocols.
Ambler Access Project
Throughout the last year, there has also been incredible progress in advancing the Ambler Access Project ("Ambler Access Project" or "AAP"), which is the proposed 211-mile (340-km) industrial-use-only road from the UKMP to the Dalton highway.
Recall that in 2020, our infrastructure partner – the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority ("AIDEA") – received the Joint Record of Decision ("JROD") from the United States Bureau of Land Management ("BLM"), and the Section 404 Permit from the United States Army Corps. of Engineers ("USACE"). These are the two key permits required for the road. As previously disclosed, lawsuits were filed shortly thereafter by a coalition of national and Alaska environmental non-government organizations in response to the BLM's issuance of the JROD for the Ambler Access Project and the lawsuits are ongoing.
Subsequently, there have been several positive developments with the AAP starting with a funding agreement between AIDEA and Ambler Metals, in which both parties have each committed
Also in early 2021, AIDEA signed agreements for Right-of-Ways for the AAP with the BLM and the National Parks Service. AIDEA also signed a land access agreement with Doyon, Limited, which is an Alaska Native regional corporation. This agreement allows AIDEA to carry out feasibility and permitting activities on Doyon land.
During the summer of 2021, AIDEA commenced formal field work on the proposed road. The budgeted
Arctic Project
Despite challenging weather and recruitment issues, we were still able to make tangible progress at the Arctic Project. During the summer drilling campaign, we drilled 18 drill holes totaling 4,131 meters. The goal of this program was to convert a portion of the mineral resources from the indicated category to the measured category and provide material for metallurgical testing and geotechnical information. So far, we have released the drilling results for six holes, all of which hosted significant intervals of high-grade mineralization. We are already planning for the 2022 field season which will encompass 10,000 meters of drilling, with three drills starting up in late spring.
Arctic Permitting
In the fall of 2021, Ambler Metals engaged Stantec to conduct a permitting preparedness review for the Arctic Project. After a thorough review, Stantec concluded that the permitting strategy is sound, and the permitting package can proceed with minor changes. Ambler Metals is now making the recommended changes to the permitting package and expects to file the permitting application, which will start the formal permitting process for the Arctic Project, with the United States Army Corps. of Engineers in 2022. We continue to anticipate that the permitting process will take 24 to 30 months.
Bornite Project
While the immediate focus has been on Arctic, we want to remind investors that Bornite is still a remarkable asset. This was highlighted when we announced a new resource estimate in January 2022. Like Arctic, Bornite has extremely high copper grades, specifically the South Reef area which hosts inferred resources of 35.3 million tonnes at a grade of
___________________________ |
1 NI 43-101 Technical Report on the Bornite Project, Northwest Alaska, USA with an effective date of December 31, 2021 and release date of February 11, 2022. |
Going Forward
We are very excited about our prospects for 2022 as we move expeditiously towards the exploration and development of our assets at the UKMP. The joint venture partners have already approved a
Ambler Metals will be recruiting over 60 direct hire positions for the 2022 field season, in addition to approximately 50 positions hired through contractors. As part of its workforce development plans, Ambler Metals will be kicking off several vocational training programs
involving participants from the local NANA and Doyon regions.
We look forward to continuing what has been a productive 2021, and we thank you for being on this journey with us.
Sincerely,
Tony Giardini
President & CEO
Annual Financial Results
The following selected annual information is prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP.
in thousands of dollars, | ||
Selected financial results | Year ended November 30, 2021 $ | Year ended November 30, 2020 $ |
Exploration expense | 143 | - |
Mineral properties and feasibility study | - | 2,610 |
General and administrative | 1,517 | 1,650 |
Investor relations | 602 | 537 |
Professional fees | 818 | 1,347 |
Salaries | 2,007 | 1,411 |
Salaries – stock-based compensation | 3,472 | 3,564 |
Gain on derecognition of assets contributed to the joint venture | - | (175,770) |
Share of loss on equity investment | 13,082 | 2,855 |
Comprehensive earnings (loss) for the year | (21,660) | 161,767 |
Basic earnings (loss) per common share | (0.15) | 1.14 |
Diluted earnings (loss) per common share | (0.15) | 1.12 |
For the year ended November 30, 2021, we reported a net loss of
Liquidity and Capital Resources
We expended
At November 30, 2021, we had
Future cash requirements may vary materially from current expectations due to a number of factors, including foreign exchange denominated office related costs and insurance renewal costs. The Company will need to raise additional funds to support its operations and administration expenses. Future sources of liquidity may include equity financing, convertible debt, or the exercise of options. The continued operations of the Company are dependent on its ability to obtain additional financing or to generate future cash flows.
Outlook for 2022
On January 11, 2022, the Company announced the approval of the 2022 program and budget for Ambler Metals of approximately
On February 7, 2022, the Company announced the approval of the 2022 program and budget for the Ambler Access Project of approximately
The Company has approved a 2022 cash budget for corporate activities of approximately
2021 Project Activities
Upper Kobuk Mineral Projects
In a press release dated May 17, 2021, the Company announced that Ambler Metals had finalized the details of the 2021 exploration field program at the UKMP for the previously approved
Drilling productivity at the UKMP was behind schedule during the 2021 field season due to adverse weather conditions in the district and challenges with the contractor staffing the drill rigs. As a result, a total of 7,325 meters of the originally planned drill program were completed. Despite the lower-than-expected drill productivity, all planned geotechnical drilling at the Arctic Project was completed and sufficient mineralized material was recovered to complete the planned metallurgical program. The summer 2021 drill program was completed on September 23, 2021.
Arctic Project
The 2021 field season plan for the Arctic Project focused on drilling in order to extract additional material for metallurgical work and for the conversion of mineral resources into the measured category. The metallurgical program associated with this drilling was to support variability test work and pilot plant work. Technical activities at the Arctic Project commenced in early June with initial work focused on infill drilling to further improve the confidence of the Mineral Resources from the Indicated to Measured category. During the field season a total of 18 holes were completed at Arctic comprising 4,131 meters of core. All the core has been logged and sampled.
Regional Exploration Project
During the 2021 field season, two drill rigs were relocated from the Arctic Project to the Regional drilling program. Regional drilling was focused on near Arctic ("Arctic Hub") exploration targets, with the goal of discovering nearby copper-rich satellite deposits within a 3-to-5-kilometer radius of the Arctic deposit. Drilling was completed at the Arctic East and Southeast Arctic targets before moving drills to investigate other targets within the UKMP, including Snow and the Ambler Lowlands. A total of 8 holes were completed totaling 3,194 meters.
In addition to the regional drill program, geologists also carried out regional geological mapping within the Ambler VMS belt. Traverses were completed along creeks within the Center of the Universe prospect, the DH prospect, and in Jackass Creek (between the DH and Cliff prospects), the Bud-Sunshine-West Dead Creek prospect cluster, Dead Creek, Pipe, and the Nora prospects.
Geochemical soil sampling is ongoing within the Cosmos Hills around Bornite and the Ambler VMS Belt. The goal of this program is to follow-up on previous anomalous geochemical results and to investigate geophysical anomalies that were identified during the 2019 airborne versatile time domain electromagnetic survey.
Arctic Mine Permitting
Arctic mine permitting preparation work was ongoing during fiscal 2021 for filing of formal federal permitting documentation for the Arctic Project. An independent consulting company has completed a preparedness review of the draft permitting package for the Arctic Project and presented the results of this review to the technical teams of South32 and Trilogy. The review concluded that the Ambler Metals permitting strategy is sound and the permitting package can proceed with minor changes. Ambler Metals is now making the recommended changes to the permitting package and expects to file the permitting application, which will start the formal permitting process for the Arctic Project, with the USACE in early 2022. The Company expects to file the permit application during the first quarter of 2022, and for the overall permitting process to take 24 to 30 months to be completed.
Ambler Access Project
During the summer of 2020, the United States Bureau of Land Management ("BLM") issued the Joint Record of Decision ("JROD") for the AAP. Lawsuits were filed shortly thereafter by a coalition of national and Alaska environmental non-government organizations in response to the BLM's issuance of the JROD for the Ambler Access Project.
On January 6, 2021, BLM, the National Park Service and AIDEA signed Right-of-Way agreements giving AIDEA the ability to cross federally owned and managed lands along the route for the Ambler Access Project approved in the JROD. The authorizing documents with the two agencies are the final federal permits required for the Ambler Access Project.
During the second quarter of 2021, AIDEA signed a land access agreement with Doyon Limited to conduct feasibility and permitting activities to advance the Ambler Access Project and in September 2021 AIDEA signed a land access agreement with NANA Regional Corporation, Inc. to conduct similar activities.
On October 27, 2021, the federal defendants were granted a 60-day stay with respect to each of the lawsuits. In its request for the stay, the DOJ stated that it was necessary to "accommodate review of this matter by officials within the United States Department of the Interior who have engaged in various discussions with multiple parties involving this matter and in government-to-government consultations with tribal entities".
On February 7, 2022, the court granted a second request from the federal defendants for an extension to file their response to the plaintiff's brief. Ambler Metals had opposed the extension request. The federal defendants are now required to file their response no later than February 22, 2022.
Development Funding Agreement regarding the Ambler Access Project with the AIDEA
The 2021 field season for the Ambler Access Project consisted of cultural heritage work along the proposed 211-mile, east-west-running controlled industrial access road that would provide industrial access to the Ambler Mining District in Northwestern Alaska. The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority has prioritized cultural heritage work, aquatic habitat studies and geotechnical planning for this year's and next year's field seasons to progress the feasibility engineering and permitting work for the road. On August 9, 2021, the Governor of Alaska, Mike Dunleavy, visited the UKMP. During the visit, the Governor reiterated his strong support for the development of the Ambler Mining District and for the development of the Ambler Access Project. He also announced the formation of the Subsistence Advisory Committee Working Group which is to include Native stakeholders within the Northwest Arctic Borough and the Doyon Region who could be affected by the proposed road. This committee is being formed to develop the terms of reference for the formal Subsistence Advisory Committee that will provide guidance on subsistence and other matters for the design and operation of the road.
Bornite Technical Report
The Company also announces it has filed a National Instrument 43-101 technical report with the Canadian securities regulators relating to the Bornite Project which supports the resource estimate previously announced in a press release on January 20, 2022. The technical report is entitled NI 43-101 Technical Report on the Bornite Project, Northwest Alaska, USA and prepared by Bruce Davis, Robert Sim and Jeff Austin, all of whom are "Qualified Persons" under NI 43-101 (the "Bornite Technical Report").
A copy of the Bornite Technical Report is available on the Company's website at www.trilogymetals.com and under the Company's profiles on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and EDGAR at www.sec.gov.
Qualified Persons
Richard Gosse, P.Geo, Vice President Exploration for Trilogy Metals Inc., is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Mr. Gosse has reviewed the technical information in this news release and approves the disclosure contained herein.
About Trilogy Metals
Trilogy Metals Inc. is a metals exploration and development company which holds a 50 percent interest in Ambler Metals LLC which has a 100 percent interest in the Upper Kobuk Mineral Projects in northwestern Alaska. On December 19, 2019 South32, which is a globally diversified mining and metals company, exercised its option to form a 50/50 joint venture with Trilogy. The UKMP is located within the Ambler Mining District which is one of the richest and most-prospective known copper-dominant districts located in one of the safest geopolitical jurisdictions in the world. It hosts world-class polymetallic VMS deposits that contain copper, zinc, lead, gold and silver, and carbonate replacement deposits which have been found to host high-grade copper and cobalt mineralization. Exploration efforts have been focused on two deposits in the Ambler mining district - the Arctic VMS deposit and the Bornite carbonate replacement deposit. Both deposits are located within land package that spans approximately 172,636 hectares. The Company has an agreement with NANA Regional Corporation, Inc., a Regional Alaska Native Corporation that provides a framework for the exploration and potential development of the Ambler mining district in cooperation with local communities. Our vision is to develop the Ambler mining district into a premier North American copper producer.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation including the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein, including, without limitation, proposed advancement of the Ambler Road Project, planned activities at the UKMP, the Outlook for 2022, the Company's anticipated budget for corporate activities and the Company's ability to fund its operations and the requirement for additional funding at Ambler Metals, resource and reserve estimates and the timing and amount of estimated future production and the net present value and internal rate of return at the Arctic Project, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are frequently, but not always, identified by words such as "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "potential", "possible", and similar expressions, or statements that events, conditions, or results "will", "may", "could", or "should" occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's expectations include the uncertainties involving the outcome of pending litigation, success of exploration activities, permitting timelines, requirements for additional capital, risks pertaining to the outbreak of the coronavirus (COVID-19), government regulation of mining operations, environmental risks, prices for energy inputs, labour, materials, supplies and services, uncertainties involved in the interpretation of drilling results and geological tests, unexpected cost increases and other risks and uncertainties disclosed in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended November 30, 2021 filed with Canadian securities regulatory authorities and with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and in other Company reports and documents filed with applicable securities regulatory authorities from time to time. The Company's forward-looking statements reflect the beliefs, opinions and projections on the date the statements are made. The Company assumes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements or beliefs, opinions, projections, or other factors, should they change, except as required by law.
Cautionary Note to United States Investors
This press release has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the securities laws in effect in Canada, which differ from the requirements of U.S. securities laws. Unless otherwise indicated, all resource and reserve estimates included in this press release have been prepared in accordance with Canadian National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") and the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum (CIM)—CIM Definition Standards on Mineral Resources and Mineral Reserves, adopted by the CIM Council, as amended ("CIM Definition Standards"). NI 43-101 is a rule developed by the Canadian Securities Administrators which establishes standards for all public disclosure an issuer makes of scientific and technical information concerning mineral projects. Canadian standards, including NI 43-101, differ significantly from the requirements of the SEC contained in SEC Industry Guide 7, and resource and reserve information contained herein may not be comparable to similar information disclosed by U.S. companies under SEC Industry Guide 7. In particular, and without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the term "resource" does not equate to the term "reserves". Under U.S. standards, mineralization may not be classified as a "reserve" unless the determination has been made that the mineralization could be economically and legally produced or extracted at the time the reserve determination. The SEC's new mining disclosure rules under Regulation S-K 1300 are closer, but not identical to NI 43-101 and CIM Definition Standards. As the Company is not yet subject to Regulation S-K 1300, it remains subject to SEC industry Guide 7. We have no reserves under SEC Industry Guide 7. Accordingly, information concerning mineral deposits set forth herein may not be comparable with information made public by companies that report in accordance with U.S. standards under either SEC's Industry Guide 7 or Regulation S-K 1300.
View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/trilogy-metals-reports-fiscal-2021-year-end-results-and-files-technical-report-for-the-bornite-resource-estimate-301480331.html
SOURCE Trilogy Metals Inc.
FAQ
What were Trilogy Metals' financial results for the year ended November 30, 2021?
What is Trilogy Metals' budget for 2022?
What key projects are being advanced by Trilogy Metals in 2022?