Introduction
In late 2022, Azimut’s completed a lithium potential assessment at the scale of the James Bay region, which identified multiple prospective lithium targets with even stronger footprints than known lithium deposits in the region. The Company acquired thirteen claim blocks by map designation to cover these unexplored targets, collectively forming the James Bay Lithium (“JBL”) Project (PR of January 23, 2023). All but one of the blocks lie within 75 km to the south of the Trans-Taiga Road, and 6 of these, including the largest claim block, are close to Newmont’s Eleonore mine. Lithium is considered a critical commodity by the Quebec and Canadian governments for economic security and the transition to a low-carbon economy.
The JBL Project covers strong regional Li, Cs, Rb, Ga and Sn anomalies in lake-bottom sediment that may reveal significant spodumene-bearing pegmatite bodies in close vicinity (classically at kilometre-scale or less). The claim blocks can be efficiently assessed using exploration protocols already implemented by Azimut at the scale of the James Bay region, notably through in-fill lake-bottom sediment surveys, advanced data processing and prospecting.