Victory Metals launches 10,000-metre drill program

Victory Metals Inc. [VMX-TSXV] said Monday May 27 that it has launched a 10,000-metre drilling program to further define vanadium mineralization at its Iron Point Vanadium Project near Winnemucca, Nevada.

Victory owns 100% interest in the Iron Point Project and said it is well funded to advance the property towards resource estimation and a Preliminary Economic Assessment.

The company said Monday the Phase 11 program will consist of 49 holes of approximately 10,000 metres utilizing two reverse circulation drill rigs and one diamond drill rig. The program is designed to infill zones of vanadium mineralization defined in the company’s Phase 1 maiden drill campaign, as well as to test lateral and downward extensions of these zones.

The program will also provide sample materials for the next phase of metallurgical test work.

“Our team’s rapid advancement at Iron Point continues at full steam with the commencement of our Phase 11 drill program,” said Victory Metals CEO Colling Kettell. “In a span of nine months, we will have completed over 18,000 metres of drilling in addition to positive preliminary test work,” he said. “The Phase 11 program will provide representative samples from throughout the zones of mineralization, allowing us to more comprehensively define the metallurgical characteristics to support advancement of engineering work for economic studies.”

In the fall of 2018, Victory Metals began an 8,400-metre drill program to follow up on historical holes drilled by Newmont Mining Corp. [NEM-NYSE] in 1966 and Aur Resources between 1996 and 1997,

Newmont and Aur Resources were both drilling for gold, but intersected significant vanadium intervals at shallow depths.

Kettell said the results from the first eight holes not only confirmed the widespread nature of vanadium mineralization along and across strike, they have also extended vanadium mineralization to a depth of 175 metres [575 feet] with the discovery of the New High Grade Zone.

Highlights included 44 metres, grading 0.48% V₂O₅ in hole VM-02 and 27 metres, grading 0.56% V₂O₅ in drill hole VM-07.

Kettell went on to say that grades obtained by Aur Resources underrepresented vanadium values as their holes did not fully recover higher-grade mineralization hosted in fractured zones. Victory’s drilling with a centre return hammer returned higher vanadium values over greater intercept lengths, he said.

Vanadium is listed as a strategic metal in the U.S. It is used in the steel industry as a strengthening agent, creating a lightweight, high temperature alloy. Vanadium is also a battery metal. Vanadium Redox Batteries are being adopted at a rapid rate in China to support clean, baseload power from renewable resources.

Meanwhile, supply constraints and increasing demand recently drove vanadium prices above US$25 a pound. However, prices appear to have stabilized at around US$17.50 a pound. That marks a 350% increase from two years ago.

On Monday, Victory Metals shares were unchanged at 68 cent. The 52-week range is 37.5 cents and 77 cents.