Clean Air Metals on the hunt for Ontario’s next large platinum group metals discovery

Situated near the prolific Lac des Iles mine, a pure play palladium producer Experienced leadership in Jim Gallagher, executive chairman and Abraham Drost, CEO Headquartered in Thunder Bay, a favorable jurisdiction home to sector-major Impala What Clean Air Metals does: Clean Air Metals Inc (CVE:AIR) (OTCQB:CLRMF) (FRA:CKU) is banking on the rising demand for platinum, palladium, copper and nickel. The company is a junior explorer developing its flagship high-grade polymetallic Thunder Bay North project. The consolidated property contains both the Current deposit and the Escape deposit, twin magma conduits. The Current deposit contains an indicated resource of 1,328,789 ounces of palladium equivalent (PdEq) with a grade of 3.44 grams per ton (g/t) PdEq. The Escape deposit which is open on strike houses an indicated resource of 505,369 ounces PdEq graded 3.67 g/t PdEq and is geologically open to expansion. Thunder Bay North is in the same mining district as the Lac des Iles mine, a world-class ore body with both an underground mine and surface operations. Jim Gallagher, the executive chairman of Clean Air Metals’ and former CEO of North American Palladium, is credited with advancing the Lac des Iles mine before the site and company were acquired for C$1 billion by PGM major Impala Platinum (JSE:IMP) (OTCMKTS:IMPUY) in 2019. Before the sale North American Palladium was the only pure-play palladium miner in the world. Clean Air Metals is focused on the low carbon emissions future, which is creating rising demand for palladium and platinum in the automotive and green hydrogen sectors. The firm is also in pursuit of additional clean energy metals - rhodium, copper and nickel - through greenfield exploration at a Norilsk-style multi-ounce nickel sulphide deposit. How is it doing: Clean Air Metals is currently conducting a drill program at the Escape Conduit Trend on the Thunder Bay North property. Since May 2021, positive assays from the ongoing drill were released, featuring thirty holes that registered varying grades of palladium, platinum, copper and nickel and led to the calculation of a half-million ounce palladium-equivalent resource. An additional 30,000 meters of systematic delineation drilling is planned for this year at the Escape project. The targeted drill will connect the Escape South and Steepledge South resource areas. At an initial resource discovery cost of C$9.00 per ounce, the Escape conduit is proving to be an extremely fertile PGE-Ni-Cu deposit. In May, the polymetallic explorer commenced an environmental baseline field data gathering in pursuit of a project permit for Thunder Bay North. On a corporate basis, Clean Air completed a $1.5 million installment payment to Panoramic Resources Limited (ASX:PAN) in May 2021. The payment was part of a $9 million deal that saw Clean Air take control of the Current magma conduit deposit. Equal payments totaling $3 million each are payable in 2022 and 2023. In October 2020, as part of the $6 million purchase price, Clean Air completed a $1 million cash payment directly to Rio Tinto Exploration Canada. The option agreement allowed Clean Air to acquire all rights, title and interest in the Escape Lake property with Benton Resources (CVE:BEX). Two remaining payments totaling C$2 million are slated for 2022 and 2023. Inflection points: 45,000-meter diamond drilling campaign at Thunder Bay North Test Norilsk-style multi-ounce massive sulphide targets Sample results coming What the broker says: Echelon Capital Markets has initiated coverage on Clean Air Metals with a 'Speculative Buy' rating and a C$0.80 price target. “The Escape Lake deposit remains open and will be subject to extensive systematic drilling in 2021,” Echelon analysts wrote in a note to clients. “Drilling will also aim to upgrade Inferred resources in the Beaver Lake Zone in the adjacent Current Lake deposit area and test geophysical anomalies identified in the Feeder Zone area underlain by the Escape Lake Fault at the southern base of the Current Lake intrusion. The target here is the source of Norilsk-style narrow, high-grade massive sulphide lenses further up. in the Current Lake conduit.” What the boss says: As part of the update announcing the baseline field data collection, Abraham Drost, CEO of Clean Air Metals said: “As the commitment to long term environmental baseline data collection demonstrates, the Company is committed to operating by the highest standards of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors.” He continued: “Clean Air Metals is a leader among its peers in the junior mining exploration and development space. This starts from the ground up with staff field health and safety protocols. The company's comprehensive COVID avoidance policy has been in place since February 2020 with zero incidence of infection among staff and service providers. Field staff and management have completed Indigenous cultural sensitivity training and review of the PDAC e3 Plus exploration best practices guidelines.” Contact the writer at georgia@proactiveinvestors.com Follow her on Twitter @MissInformd