WRITTEN BY Adam Orlando
This article is a sponsored feature from Mining.com.au partner Nine Mile Metals. It is not financial advice. Talk to a registered financial expert before makinginvestment decisions.
The Bathurst Mining Camp (BMC) is one of the world’s oldest base metals mining districts and one of Canada’s largest volcanic massive sulphide (VMS)deposits. Located in the Miramichi Highlands of New Brunswick, Canada, thecamp covers 3,800km2 and hosts 95 copper, lead, zinc, silver, and goldoccurrences and 45 deposits.
The host geology is referred to as the Bathurst Super group. It remains one of the most prospective districts globally for VMS (see image below ), which are 2 accumulations of metal sulphides that precipitate from heated hydrothermal fluid associated with volcanically active under-sea environments.
Mining of the Bathurst Mining Camp dates back as early as 1911 when the Nepisiguit Iron Ore Deposit was the only known resource. Today, this legendary and historically significant mining district is seeing a high-tech revival and at the forefront of this modern technological approach is Canadian exploration company Nine Mile Metals (CSE:NINE).
With four projects in the district in New Brunswick, covering 136.34km, Nine Mile Metals’ primary business objective is to explore its four VMS projects – Nine Mile Brook VMS Project, California Lake VMS Project, the Canoe Landing Lake (East –West) VMS Project, and the Wedge VMS Project.
Legendary mining district reimagined
As CEO Patrick J Cruickshank explains to Mining.com.au, the company is positioning itself for the boom in electric vehicles and green technologies requiring copper, lead, zinc, silver while providing a hedge with gold.
Exploration is backed by strong historical precedent and leading edge new geophysical technologies, utilising proprietary algorithms and data analytics todefine new mineralisation targets, vital for global clean tech growth.Cruickshank says Nine Mile Metals’ work is guided by the lessons of Brunswick’s success and the belief that the next world-class discovery is still waiting in Bathurst.
“We’re combining history with innovation to find it,” the CEO tells this news service.
The company is combining historical insight with modern exploration to unlock the next chapter in critical mineral discovery – all within the same neighbourhood as the world-renowned Brunswick #12 and #6 mines.
“The assets are world-class. There are deposits in our shadows to be discovered. And you know in this business, critical minerals are only going to get more important, whether you believe it’s EV or clean energy or just copper,base metals, right? Huge disconnect. And there hasn’t been a big discovery in many decades, and supply continues to be an issue with demand increasing on a global scale.” Cruickshank explains.
“We’re very confident going forward – we have a roadmap. We have just spentthe majority of 2024 completing cutting-edge geophysics on our entireWestern Portfolio, including California Lake, Canoe Landing and our priorityWedge VMS Project.
“Now it’s just a matter of executing our drill programs over our newly defined mineralised target trends and expanding on our Wedge Mine deposit to prove it’s far larger than originally thought. Last year in 2024 we were highly successful in proving the Wedge Mine has an entire new eastern extension previously not known. If we get the mine resource up to 10 million tons, you’ve got a mine.”
Nine Miles’ CEO details how being in a mining friendly jurisdiction within the legendary mining district now being re imagined is extremely important, and presents a plethora of benefits and opportunities.
“We operate in a 100% mining community with 80 years of exploration or production history, in the best mining jurisdiction in Canada, for example, we’ve never had a permit take longer than 30 days. That’s incredibly powerful for executing our programs in a timely and cost effective manner,” Cruickshank continues.
“We are on 100% Crown land, no Indigenous or First Nations issues whatsoever.And there is access to a deep water port year-round, Canadian rail, and a localmining-educated work base, with an incredibly supportive government withlocal support and resources to assist junior mining companies and supportthem to succeed.
“We have great project access, with serviced logging roads, ATV and snowmobile trails. Many of our Projects have year round access, except for once you get deeper into the Mining Camp on the western lands.
“As long as we have water access we can drill in the winter, it’s easier at times when the ground is frozen, we normally have full access from May – December on most of our lands, with some having year round depending on location and weather. Combined with the most cost effective drilling costs in Canada, we receive a tremendous capital cost return for our work programs, which equates to more metres per dollar than other exploration companies.”
Legacy discoveries, modern day pioneers
The BMC centrepiece is the Brunswick #12 mine – an underground lead-zinc-copper mine discovered in 1953 and entered production just over a decade later. The Brunswick #12 ore body is the largest deposit in the Bathurst area and was one of the largest underground zinc mines in the world into the late 1990sbefore the mine officially closed in 2013.
More than 335 million tonnes of high-grade ore has been mined at Brunswick#12 during that time, giving the mine legendary status for its exceptional size,grade, and longevity.
Notably, Nine Miles is positioned just 10km from Brunswick #12 and is actively exploring along the Wedge horizon and other targets with AI and proprietary advanced geophysics.
The BMC’s legacy may be 75 years in the making, however Cruickshank notes there remains significant potential for explorers like Nine Mile Metals to capitalise on what remains buried there, particularly for technologically minded explorers.
Nine Mile Metals is a new generation explorer working within this historically rich, under explored district using next-generation tools. UAV drones and re-processing utilising proprietary algorithms is part of its strategy.
Every 20 years or so, new geophysical technologies create a new wave of discoveries. Could the sector now be riding the crest of that wave?
“That’s where we are now. We believe in our technology and our partners. Now we just have to drill all those newly identified high priority targets, which we’re excited to start. So what makes us compelling is our quality of our assets,quality of our land power, drill results, our news, our press releases,phenomenal, phenomenal VMS deposits and results, with so much more to come,” the CEO tells Mining.com.au.
“Last year, we spent a lot of time and resources on completing cutting edge advanced UAV drone TDEM and BHEM geophysics and interpretation on our whole western portfolio, which is three projects – California Lake, The Wedge,and Canoe Landing Lake. We now have our 11 massive VMS Trend Targets with more than three years of drilling going forward.
“Two deposits in our shadows and we did some really fantastic success drilling on our Wedge deposit on the eastern flank and proved it’s bigger and that’s all new. Now we’re going to attack the western side of the deposit plus the whole trend to the West Wedge and TriBag target areas, 7km to 8km west of the Wedge Mine.”
In December 2024, Nine Mile Metals, via EarthEx Geophysical Solutions (EEX),conducted a Time Domain Electromagnetic Survey over the Tribag and West Wedge VMS Zone Areas. Previously in 2022, EEX had reprocessed the legacyMegaTEM and Aerodat airborne data, the late time conductance defining atotal of 11 priority VMS trends in the company’s Western Portfolio.
Priority target 1 overlies the Wedge Mine and while priority target 2 is theeastern extension of the Wedge Mine. About 4-6km northwest of the Wedge Mine are priority Targets 3 and 4 which directly correspond to the Tribag(Pb/Zn) and West Wedge (Cu-Pb-Zn) VMS mineral occurrences while target 7is about 6-8km northwest of the Wedge along the same (Wedge VMS Trend).
The overall extent of the Wedge VMS Trend is 8km. Two lines were also surveyed over Target 6 north of the Wedge and near the southern terminus of the California Lake East VMS Trend (Target 8) drilled in 2022 where eight drillholes confirmed VMS mineralisation with drill intersections up to 19m in width. It is believed Target 6 is the source of that system.
A total of 17.4-line kilometres of Time Domain Electromagnetics (TDEM) were surveyed by EEX, the “Maxwell Plate” modelled results of the strong conductors defining an outstanding cluster of seven individual targets associated with the Tribag and West Wedge VMS mineral occurrences. The modelled plates are along the same magnetic trend as the historic Wedge Mine.
Why Bathurst still matters
“So there’s been a lot of due diligence and new technology coming to thecamp. Since there is only 1% of mineralised outcrop in the BMC and complex geology over 470 million years of evolution, it will take a new technological approach to uncover the next series of VMS discoveries and I think we are leading that in the camp,” the CEO says.
“We believe in our technology processes and interpretation and last year put us comfortably in a position for continued successes on new targets starting this summer on the Wedge targets. The days of drilling on opinion and unlimited budgets are gone, we’re trying to do it scientifically and cost effectively. And the technology is phenomenal.
“We’re trying to be very prudent with our investor’s money so we’re not wasting drilling, right? It’s expensive. And you have to have some kind of roadmap. So we have that now.”
Drilling is expensive for most exploration companies. Yet Nine Mile Metals sits at the lower end at C$85 a metre to drill. Comparatively, some peers pay upwards of US$150 with a number of Southwestern American companies spending US$200 a metre. Northern Canadian companies pay even more with remote access issues having to helicopter rigs on site and only have a two-month summer exploration season.
With global demand for copper, zinc, and other critical minerals surging, Nine Mile is uniquely positioned to meet this in a proven mineral belt where it is also proving why Bathurst still matters.
The reserves of the massive sulphide deposits in the BMC range in size from more than 1 million tons to the super giant Brunswick # 12 deposit (more than335-plus million tons). The average sulphide deposit is 12.7 million tons with average grades of 4.72 weight percent zinc, 1.78 wt % lead, 0,64 wt % copper,51g/ton gold, and 0.54g/ton silver, according to Geology for Investors.
Global copper demand is projected to grow by an average 2.5% annually toreach 33.2Mt by 2030, driven by investment in low emission technologies, data centres, and urbanisation. Key drivers for copper’s growth also include average global economic growth, rising usage in consumer appliances, energytransition infrastructure, and construction of data centres for use in AI.
Meanwhile, global zinc demand is forecast to grow at an average annual rate of 2.1%, reaching 15.4Mt by 2030, with Asia leading this growth. The global energy transition is poised to have mixed impacts on zinc demand.
While renewable energy infrastructure and construction is expected to boost zinc demand, the rise of EVs may cut demand, as automakers shift to lighter materials like aluminium and composites to lift vehicle efficiency.
Amid this backdrop, Nine Mile’s CEO declares BMC still matters.
“Critical minerals are necessary and are here to stay. The geopolitical landscape, as we have seen and witnessed recently around the globe,strengthens exploration companies in our sector, governmental support with tax advantaged investing, Exploration Assistance Grant Programs, and the need for sovereign funds and ‘Rock to Road’ expedited discovery to production
federal and provincial processing will happen,” CEO Patrick J Cruickshank explains to Mining.com.au.
“We are fortunate to be focused 100% on critical minerals exploration in the best jurisdiction in all of Canada in the third largest mining camp in the world withworld class deposits, and some geologists say we have only discovered about30% of what is still undiscovered in the camp with a Brunswick #12 massive deposit still out there waiting to be discovered.
“With metals prices soaring, VMS deposits offer huge financial upside, having five minerals to produce (copper, lead, zinc, silver, and gold). Several of those as you know are at all-time highs, we remain very focused on the goal and through our disciplined processes, we look forward to future success. We are only exploring critical minerals in a critical mineral camp.
“Many companies chase in favour style deposits and minerals, lithium,uranium, etcetera. And it’s always hard to tell people you’re looking for nextyear’s winners, not last year’s winners. That’s why advisors rebalance portfolios at the end of the year into last year’s not-so-good assets, because you’re trying to be ahead of that next up market, right?”
Nine Mile Metals, which is also listed on (OTCQB: VMSXF) and (FSE:KQ9) , iscertainly looking for next year’s winners. Will 2025 be the year for the company?Possibly.
The Nine Mile Brook VMS lens, the prize in the company’s Eastern Portfolio, is home to the highest grades in the entire Bathurst Mining Camp. Certified drill results show 10.12% Cu, 1% Zn, 1.41% Pb, 91.47 g/t Ag & 0.84 g/t Au over 15.10mending in a hard break, (broken lens) in one drillhole.
The company describes this as a ‘very special opportunity’ to explore for the additional lens that makes up the whole deposit. While complicated and challenging, there is belief Nine Miles’ technology and process will lead to it.
“We will next turn our attention to the geophysics and surrounding areas around the Lens in 2025. While we are executing Drilling on our new high priority targets in the western portfolio this summer, we will be interpreting and devising our roadmap for the Nine Mile Brook Project. The goal is obviously to find the next lens in the sequence,” Cruickshank continues.
“If we find the second lens, okay, game changer right? We are already speakingto interested parties on Nine Mile Brook, and exploring options there, and once we have that next level of success, we have majors that would be interested inthe project.”
Write to Adam Orlando at Mining.com.au
Images: Mining.com.au , Geoscience Canada & Nine Mile Metals