ELEC Electric Royalties Ltd

VANCOUVER, BC, April 13, 2022 /CNW/ - Electric Royalties Ltd. (TSXV: ELEC) (OTCQB: ELECF) ("Electric Royalties" or the "Company") is pleased to announce an asset update on its current royalty portfolio.

Brendan Yurik, CEO of Electric Royalties, commented: "We are pleased to close Q1 2022 with significant progress at a number of projects in our rapidly growing royalty portfolio.  In particular, we have seen encouraging drill results announced for the Cancet (lithium), Seymour Lake (lithium), Graphmada (graphite) and Mont Sorcier (vanadium) projects. Additionally, we are eagerly awaiting the results of the upcoming PEA on the Battery Hill manganese project, which has the potential to generate significant royalty revenues at such time as the project moves from development into production.  Following a successful resource update earlier in the year, testing confirmed the suitability of Authier spodumene for conversion into lithium hydroxide, ahead of their engineering studies incorporating Authier into a joint mine plan with Sayona Mining's recently acquired Canada Lithium mine.  Furthermore, we are keen to see continued progress at the Graphmada mining complex as they work to complete a resource update as part of planning to restart production, another potential source of near-term royalty revenues.  We are expecting more significant project updates on our royalty assets in 2022."

Recent highlights since the Company's previous development update on March 2, 2022:

• Battery Hill Manganese Royalty – Manganese X Energy Corp. (TSXV: MN) recently commissioned a second manganese market report focused primarily on the North American markets, which will provide timely market data to support the preparation of the Preliminary Economic Assessment ("PEA") for the Battery Hill Project in New Brunswick.  As a result of the market report, the PEA is expected to be a more accurate reflection of the recent substantial price increase of manganese¹ and will take into consideration the increase in demand for high-purity manganese products (see MN news release dated March 29, 2022).
  
  
• Authier Lithium Royalty – Sayona Mining Limited (ASX:SYA; OTCQB:SYAXF) announced confirmation of the quality of its Authier spodumene product, following successful testing by leading lithium-ion battery innovator NOVONIX at its Battery Technology Solutions laboratories in Nova Scotia, Canada (see SYA news release dated April 4, 2022). The positive results show that the Authier product performs as well as competing commercially available battery-grade lithium hydroxide.

• Cancet Lithium Royalty – Winsome Resources Limited (ASX: WR1) provided an update on the 2,000-metre drilling campaign at the Cancet Project in Quebec. Large, visible spodumene crystals have been observed in a thick zone of pegmatites encountered in the drill program, with the first batch of samples undergoing assay at the SGS laboratory (see WR1 news release dated March 29, 2022).  Results to date from the ongoing drilling campaign support data gathered in previous drill campaigns and complement WR1's knowledge of the extent of the pegmatite deposit.  The campaign is on track to be completed by mid-April 2022.

• Seymour Lake Lithium Royalty – Green Technology Metals Limited (ASX:GT1) has announced the Phase 1 drilling program at Seymour Lake that was designed to evaluate potential along-strike and down-dip extensions of the North Aubry deposit, has now been completed with 16 holes drilled for a total of 5,895 metres (see GT1 news release dated March 17, 2022).  All holes in the Phase 1 program intersected pegmatite along strike and down dip (see GT1 news release dated March 8, 2022).  The intercepts returned solely from the upper pegmatite at North Aubry range in thickness up to 42.7 metres, with the widest intervals located in the northern extensions of the deposit. Both the northern and down-dip extents of the pegmatite are wide open to further expansion.  Phase 2 drilling at the Central Aubry zone has now commenced.  The Phase 2 program comprises a planned 31 holes for approximately 5,100 metres. Building on recent and highly encouraging geophysical survey and geological mapping work, Phase 3 exploration drilling has also commenced at the Pye prospect, located approximately 1 km east of the Aubry complex.  An initial 26 holes are planned at Pye for approximately 2,000 drilling metres.

• Bissett Creek Graphite Royalty – Northern Graphite Corporation (TSXV: NGC) announced on March 9, 2022, that Minviro Ltd. ("Minviro") has completed an update of its ISO-compliant Life Cycle Assessment on the production of graphite concentrate and lithium-ion battery anode material from the Bissett Creek deposit in central Ontario, including the benefits of an electric mining fleet. Life Cycle Analysis is a cradle-to-gate study that assesses project impacts from the point of resource extraction to the production of graphite concentrate. Minviro has estimated that by using electricity from the Ontario grid to power both the mining fleet (rather than diesel) and the processing plant (instead of using natural gas), the Global Warming Potential of the Bissett Creek project could be reduced by approximately 80 per cent, from 2.2 kilograms of carbon-dioxide-equivalent² per kg of graphite produced to 0.45 kilograms of carbon-dioxide-equivalent ("CO₂ eq"). NGC commissioned Minviro's report to help guide the company in developing a carbon neutral project. Additionally, Minviro benchmarked the potential carbon footprint of Bissett Creek against the production of Chinese natural and synthetic graphite and the upgrading into battery anode material. Specifically, Bissett Creek is estimated to have a carbon footprint of 6.3 kg of CO₂ eq per kg of product compared to the carbon footprint of Chinese CSPG³ produced from natural graphite estimated at 16.8 kg of CO₂ eq and 17 kg of CO₂ eq if produced from synthetic graphite. The full report is available at http://www.northerngraphite.com/project/bissett-creek-project/technical-info/.
  
  NGC (see NGC news release dated March 30, 2022) summarized important developments in the critical minerals industry in the Province of Ontario. NGC believes that Bissett Creek is the most advanced critical minerals development project in Ontario and would greatly benefit from these developments given its high margin, large flake characteristics and its proximity to potential lithium-ion battery manufacturers.

• • In mid-March, the Ontario government announced the launch of a Critical Minerals Strategy, setting a five-year roadmap to establish the province as a reliable global supplier of responsibly sourced critical minerals. This strategy seeks to leverage Ontario's wealth of raw materials, close proximity to manufacturing plants and markets, and green hydroelectric power to facilitate the production of products with high ESG standards and low carbon footprints.
    
    
  • On March 23, 2002, Stellantis and LG Energy Solution announced they will establish Canada's first ever large-scale production lithium-ion battery plant in Windsor, Ontario. The new Windsor plant will require approximately 60,000 tonnes of natural graphite per year to reach its projected production capacity of 45 gigawatt hours per year.
    
    
  • This news followed the announcement on March 16, 2022, that Honda will upgrade its Alliston, Ontario plant, with the 2023 Honda CR-V hybrid among the first models to be built. Honda plans to sell only zero emission vehicles in North America by 2040 and it will upgrade its other plants over the next 20 years.
    
    
  • LG Energy Solution announced on March 23, 2022, two new projects in Michigan, just across the US border from Ontario. It is expanding its lithium-ion battery cell plant in Holland, Michigan and has a third joint venture with GM to build another cell plant in the City of Lansing and Delta County, Michigan.
    
    
  • Bissett Creek is the nearest graphite deposit to these megafactories, which provide NGC with a unique opportunity to deliver a secure, local, responsibly-sourced supply of graphite.
    
    
• Graphmada Graphite Royalty – Greenwing Resources (ASX:GW1) provided an update on its drilling program at the Graphmada Graphite Mining Complex in Madagascar (see GW1 news release dated March 8, 2022).  Forty-three (43) diamond drill holes for a total of 1,715 metres have been completed to date, representing a significant portion of the current diamond drilling program.  Drilling has recorded significant intercepts of graphite mineralization.  The drilling program continues with the goal of providing a Mineral Resource upgrade for Graphmada and supporting studies to undertake large-scale mining and processing operations.

• Mont Sorcier Vanadium Royalty – Voyager Metals (TSXV: VONE) reported assay results for the final six holes from its 2021 infill drill program of 42 holes totaling 15,178 metres at its Mont Sorcier iron and vanadium project in Chibougamau, Quebec (see VONE news release dated March 29, 2022).  The results are in line with previous results of drilling in 2018 and 2020.  VONE expects to provide an updated resource report in Q2 2022 to form a basis for the ongoing Mont Sorcier Feasibility Study.  The goal of the 2021 drill program was to upgrade a sufficient portion of the current North Zone Inferred Mineral Resources to the Measured and Indicated Categories to support a minimum 20-year mine life as the basis for a Feasibility Study.

David Gaunt, P.Geo., a qualified person who is not independent of Electric Royalties, has reviewed and approved the technical information in this release.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors, 
Brendan Yurik 
CEO

Electric Royalties is a royalty company established to take advantage of the demand for a wide range of commodities (lithium, vanadium, manganese, tin, graphite, cobalt, nickel, zinc and copper) that will benefit from the drive toward electrification of a variety of consumer products: cars, rechargeable batteries, large scale energy storage, renewable energy generation and other applications.

Electric vehicle sales, battery production capacity and renewable energy generation are slated to increase significantly over the next several years and with it, the demand for these targeted commodities. This creates a unique opportunity to invest in and acquire royalties over the mines and projects that will supply the materials needed to fuel the electric revolution.

Electric Royalties has a growing portfolio of 18 royalties, including one royalty that currently generates revenue. The Company is focused predominantly on acquiring royalties on advanced stage and operating projects to build a diversified portfolio located in jurisdictions with low geopolitical risk, which offers investors exposure to the clean energy transition via the underlying commodities required to rebuild the global infrastructure over the next several decades towards a decarbonized global economy. 

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange), nor any other regulatory body or securities exchange platform, accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

This news release includes forward-looking information and forward-looking statements (collectively, "forward-looking information") with respect to the Company within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. Forward looking information is typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipate, intend, estimate, postulate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. This information represents predictions and actual events or results may differ materially. Forward-looking information may relate to the Company's future outlook and anticipated events and may include statements regarding the financial results, future financial position, expected growth of cash flows, business strategy, budgets, projected costs, projected capital expenditures, taxes, plans, objectives, industry trends and growth opportunities of the Company and the projects in which it holds royalty interests.

While management considers these assumptions to be reasonable, based on information available, they may prove to be incorrect. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company or these projects to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and other factors include, but are not limited to risks associated with general economic conditions; adverse industry events; marketing costs; loss of markets; future legislative and regulatory developments involving the renewable energy industry; inability to access sufficient capital from internal and external sources, and/or inability to access sufficient capital on favourable terms; the mining industry generally, the Covid-19 pandemic, recent market volatility, income tax and regulatory matters; the ability of the Company or the owners of these projects to implement their business strategies including expansion plans; competition; currency and interest rate fluctuations, and the other risks.

The reader is referred to the Company's most recent filings on SEDAR as well as other information filed with the OTC Markets for a more complete discussion of all applicable risk factors and their potential effects, copies of which may be accessed through the Company's profile page at www.sedar.com and at otcmarkets.com.

SOURCE Electric Royalties Ltd.