Penikat Project
The Penikat Project is a high-grade PGE-nickel-copper deposit located in North-West Finland. The project includes a multi-million ounce Exploration Target prepared in accordance with the JORC Code and represents an opportunity to define a significant resource of Platinum Group Elements which are defined as a critical resource within the EU.It is our goal to define a low-impact, modern and sustainable project delivering Platinum Group Elements to the EU. The high-grade and narrow nature of the mineralisation could make the project well suited to becoming a low impact underground project, utilising brownfield industrial sites in the area.
Community
We are looking forward to sharing our environmental research and exploration plans with the Simo and Keminmaa communities.
Penikat is a project with emphasis on the natural environment and we recognise and empathise with the concerns surrounding the preservation of the area’s exceptional environment and heritage. We are excited to restart our engagement with the community to share the knowledge and our plans that we have developed as a result of three years of research.
Our Engagement
Since late 2021, we've actively engaged with local stakeholders to demonstrate our commitment to community involvement. These collaborations have involved meetings with key interest groups such as Simo and Keminmaa communities, ELY Lapland, Metsähallitus, and Finnish reindeer herders.
The land, primarily owned by Metsähallitus, is sparsely populated, with a few residential properties and summer houses, all excluded from our application areas. Though occasionally used by Finnish reindeer herders, the rocky terrain limits consistent use, as confirmed by discussions with the Simo reindeer association in November 2021.
Through these interactions, we've discovered that the area serves as seasonal hunting grounds for moose and game birds. To accommodate these land users, we've tailored our drilling program to minimize any impact on their activities.
Community Commitments
- Proactive and Transparent Communication:
- Our primary objective is to establish, understand, and nurture trust-based relationships with all stakeholders, including surrounding communities, tourism, and recreational users of the land.
- Engagement Efforts:
- Our team are working closely with the Simo and Keminmaa communities in order to understand and develop relationships.
- The ultimate objective is to enable these communities to actively guide the shared success of our projects in the long term.
- Future Planning and Engagement:
- Before finalising future plans, Kingsrose will build on progress and learnings to date, remaining committed to proactive and transparent engagement with key stakeholder groups, the community and environmental bodies.
Our commitment to maintaining dialogue extends throughout 2024. We aim to expand our interactions with additional interest groups to better understand concerns and foster trust among stakeholders.
Public Meetings
We held a meeting with the Simo community on the 6th September 2024 to share our plans and listen to feedback for Area 1 of the Penikat Project.
The slides presented at the event can be found here: 6.9.2024 Simo Community Meeting Presentation.
See our feedback form in order to engage with us about our meetings or plans.
Environment
The Penikat project spans an area that is rich in biodiversity. Our licences cover land that is under the European Union's Natura 2000 environmental designation.
Over the last three years we have carried out industry leading environmental impact assessments to evaluate, minimise and mitigate any impacts we may have during exploration. Our commitment to environmental preservation runs deep, which is reflected in our unwavering dedication and drive to go beyond what is expected by regulators, and set new standard for the exploration industry.
Natural Environment
The Natura 2000 initiative, a cornerstone of European biodiversity conservation, covers approximately five million hectares in Finland. Our project intersects with Natura 2000 and mire conservation areas, we submitted a comprehensive Natura 2000 Assessment Report alongside our exploration license application. This also forms part of the application process for the issuance of a derogation permit by the Ministry of the Environment, allowing controlled land access via snowmobiles.
Our Natura 2000 report, prepared by Finnish environmental experts, integrates meticulous exploration planning, mitigation measures, and extensive studies spanning multiple seasons to evaluate habitat communities and protected species under both national and EU laws. These include detailed project descriptions, thorough fauna assessments, flora surveys, and impact assessments.
The assessment also considered interactions with wind power projects 2 and 3 and part area 1 of Kingsrose project. The Natura report concluded that these interactions are unlikely to have a significant weakening effect on the protection grounds of the Natura area.
As a result of these thorough flora and fauna surveys we were able to adjust drill access routes and drill pad locations. Together with the following leading practice commitments, the report concluded that potential impacts of proposed exploration activities were either not present or insignificant and localised.
Furthermore, the regional environmental authority, ELY, has thoroughly evaluated our Natura 2000 Assessment for Area 1 of the Penikat project and concluded that our proposed exploration drilling will not adversely affect the integrity of the Natura 2000 area. This assessment underscores our commitment to responsible environmental stewardship at Penikat.
Environmental Commitments
We are dedicated to continually investing in and safeguarding the natural environment to minimise and monitor our ecological footprint. Our six-point pledge has been meticulously crafted to reflect our unwavering commitment to environmental care at the Penikat Project.
Six point pledge:
- Conduct annual flora surveys of proposed drill pads and access routes.
- Conduct annual bird of prey surveys to evaluate nesting area usage.
- Plan drilling activities to be undertaken during winter months and, when necessary, use artificial snow to protect vegetation, soil, and rock beneath access routes and drill pads.
- Utilise drilling equipment with closed water circulation systems and recovery of drill cuttings to minimise environmental impact. All equipment will be transported using wide rubber tracked vehicles.
- Respect established buffer zones around plant species occurrences and bird of prey nesting sites, refraining from any work within these areas.
- Enhance protection measures in sensitive and wet terrain areas by securing them with protective mats or nets. Following drilling completion, conduct annual surveys to monitor impacts and regeneration.
In conclusion, our commitment to environmental preservation at the Penikat project is unwavering. We strive to balance industry progress with sustainable practices, ensuring harmony with the natural world.
Exploration
Penikat is a world-class critical mineral PGE-nickel-copper project.
This project represents an opportunity to define a significant resource of Platinum Group Elements which are defined as a critical resource within the EU. Currently, our dependence on a select few locations for these minerals leaves our supply chains vulnerable, prompting the need for exploration to diversify our sources. With technological advancements, we must develop innovative methods to locate and extract these minerals to meet changing demands. PGEs are essential to decarbonising the automobile industry.
Overview
The Penikat project is a high-grade PGE-nickel-copper deposit located in North-West Finland. The project includes a multi-million-ounce Exploration Target prepared in accordance with the JORC Code and represents an opportunity to define a significant resource of Platinum Group Elements which are defined as a critical mineral within the EU.
Penikat stands out as one of the most promising Platinum Group Element (PGE) exploration projects globally, outside South Africa and Russia. The site boasts significant concentrations of palladium, platinum, rhodium, and iridium, accompanied by elevated levels of nickel and copper. This rich mineralisation is found near the surface within three tabular reefs situated in the Penikat layered intrusion. These characteristics closely resemble the mineralisation patterns observed in the Bushveld Complex in South Africa and the Stillwater Complex in Montana, USA.
Our goal is to define a low-impact, modern and sustainable project delivering Platinum Group Elements to the EU. The high-grade and narrow nature of the mineralisation could make the project well suited to becoming a low impact underground project, utilising brownfield industrial sites.
Location
- Penikat is located 25 kilometres east of the town of Kemi and associated port with rail connections.
- The port is currently used to export nickel and copper concentrates from other Finnish operations.
- 15 kilometres east of the underground Kemi chrome mine with abandoned open pit and surface mineral processing infrastructure.
- Penikat is in close proximity to large windfarm developments and main roads.
- Access is via paved main roads and unpaved forest roads into the centre of the project areas.
- It is an uninhabited area but located within the western part of the Martimoaapa-Lumiaapa-Penikat Natura 2000 conservation and mire reserve area.
Targets
Historical exploration has shown mineralisation to occur over a cumulative strike length of 23 kilometres within Kingsrose's mineral tenure, however the average depth of historical drilling is only 43 metres.
Analogous deposits extend to >1 kilometre down dip. At Penikat, rare deeper historical holes and historical seismic data indicate mineralisation extends to at least 1 kilometre below surface.
An Exploration Target in accordance with the JORC Code was estimated by Kingsrose following extensive relogging and resampling, yielding a range of 21 to 32 Mt at 4.0 to 7.4 g/t 6E (the sum of platinum, palladium, gold, rhodium, iridium, and ruthenium) for 2.8 to 7.7 Moz 6E. The potential quantity and grade of the PGE mineralisation at Penikat is conceptual in nature, there has been insufficient exploration to estimate a Mineral Resource and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the estimation of a Mineral Resource.
Area 1 includes 77 proposed drill pads to test portions of the SJ and AP reefs (Figure 2), which includes the ‘ballroom’ feature where historical drilling intercepted 8.8 metres @ 8.1 g/t Pd, 2.3 g/t Pt & 0.5 g/t Au from surface
Status
- Kingsrose has received a positive statement from the Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment of Lapland (ELY) following its review of the Natura 2000 Assessment prepared by the Company for Area 1 of the Penikat project.
- Regional environmental authority, ELY, has reviewed the Natura 2000 Assessment prepared by Kingsrose for Area 1 of the Penikat project and determined that the proposed exploration drilling will not have a negative impact on the integrity of the Natura 2000 area.
- This Statement represents the primary environmental review in the process to obtain a permit for exploration drilling and is therefore an important and positive milestone.
Competent Person's Statement
The information in this website that relates to the Exploration Results at the Penikat Project was first reported by the Company in compliance with the 2012 edition of the JORC Code in ASX announcements: 28 June 2022, 5 May 2022, and 24 November 2021.
The Company confirms that it is not aware of any new information or data that materially affects the information included in the ASX releases referred to above and it further confirms that all material assumptions and technical parameters underpinning the exploration results and exploration target continue to apply and have not materially changed.
The information in this website that relates to Exploration Results is based on information compiled under the supervision of Andrew Tunningley, who is a Member and Chartered Professional (Geology) of the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and is Head of Exploration for Kingsrose Mining Limited. Mr Tunningley has sufficient experience that is relevant to the style of mineralisation and type of deposit under consideration and to the activity which he is undertaking to qualify as a Competent Person as defined in the 2012 Edition of the “Australasian Code for Reporting Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves.” Mr Tunningley consents to the inclusion in this website of the matter based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.
The Exploration Target estimate has been prepared by Mr. J.C. Witley (BSc Hons, MSc (Eng.)) who is a geologist with 33 years’ experience in base and precious metals exploration and mining as well as Mineral Resource evaluation and reporting. He is a Principal Resource Consultant for The MSA Group (an independent consulting company), is registered with the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions (“SACNASP”) and is a Fellow of the Geological Society of South Africa (“GSSA”). Mr. Witley has the appropriate relevant qualifications and experience to be considered a “Competent Person” for the style and type of mineralisation and activity being undertaken as defined by the 2012 Edition of the JORC Code. Mr Witley consents to the inclusion in this website of the matter based on his information in the form and context in which it appears.
Permitting
Our project intersects with Natura 2000 and mire conservation areas.
We have submitted a comprehensive Natura 2000 Assessment Report alongside our exploration license application.
Our Natura 2000 report, prepared by Finnish environmental experts, integrates meticulous exploration planning, mitigation measures, and extensive studies spanning multiple seasons to evaluate habitat communities and protected species under both national and EU laws. These include detailed project descriptions, owl and bird of prey surveys, protected species assessments, Capercaillie surveys, flora surveys, and impact assessments.
Preliminary Permitting Roadmap
The Penikat project comprises three exploration permit applications and two reservation notifications totalling 2012.5 hectares.
- Kingsrose owns 100% of the project through its subsidiary Kingsrose Exploration Oy.
- The project is subject to a 1% NSR royalty payable to Mr Andrew Dacey (the project vendor).
- Kingsrose is in the process of applying for Exploration Licences to permit drilling on the project.
- As the project area is located partially within a Natura 2000 network area and a mire conservation area, an exploration licence application must be accompanied by a Natura 2000 Assessment Report, which will facilitate a statement from the local Environmental Regulatory Body (ELY) to support the issuance of an Exploration Licence by the licencing authority TUKES, as well as a derogation permit issued by the Ministry of the Environment for operation within a mire conservation area.
Permitting Update
The Company received a positive statement from the regional environmental regulator (ELY) (see ASX announcement dated 24 January 2024). A positive statement was also received from the landowner (Metsähallius). The Company received a Derogation Permit from the Ministry of the Environment for Area 1 at the Penikat project, which allowed the Exploration Permit granting authority ‘Tukes’ to process the Company’s application for an exploration permit (see ASX announcement dated 14 June 2024). The exploration permit for Area 1 at the Penikat project was subsequently granted by Tukes on 2 July 2024 (see ASX announcement dated 2 July 2024).
The Company received an appeal against the granting of the Exploration Permit, which will be heard in the Administrative Court (see ASX announcement dated 12 August 2024). It is not uncommon for NGOs to appeal against granting of exploration permits in Finland. The appeal will be heard in the Northern Finland Administrative Court and will include statements from relevant authorities such as the mining regulator (Tukes). Additionally, Kingsrose will have the opportunity to provide a rejoinder to address the points raised in the appeal.
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