Canada Nickel’s Crawford project gets fast-tracked

Ontario has named Canada Nickel’s (TSXV: CNC; US-OTC: CNIKF) polymetallic Crawford project as the second to be advanced under its One Project, One Process (1P1P) permit fast track framework. Shares of the company soared to a new yearly high.

With the 1P1P fast tracking, the province hopes construction can start on Crawford by the end of the year, which would allow the mine to open by the fourth quarter of 2028, provincial Energy and Mines Minister Stephen Lecce said Tuesday at a news conference in Timmins. Lecce had previously voiced strong support for Crawford at the International Metals Symposium in London, just over one month ago.

“We’re committed to (…) use the authority to advance the Western world’s largest nickel deposit, the largest critical mineral mine in the country,” Lecce told reporters. “We’re talking about a project that could add $70 billion – just for the mine alone – to Canada’s national economy, $5 billion in direct investment. This is how we do nation-building.”

Canada Nickel CEO Mark Selby, centre, speaks at a news conference in Timmins, Ont. on Tuesday. Credit: Ontario Government

Dual approval

Crawford is the only project in the country to gain fast track status from both a province and Ottawa, after Prime Minister Mark Carney referred it to the Major Projects Office in November.

It’s also the second project picked for the 1P1P program after Frontier Lithium’s (TSXV: FL; US-OTC: LITOF) PAK project in northwestern Ontario was added in October.

The fast-track initiatives aim to cut permit times for advanced projects in half as other Western governments seek to accelerate critical mineral development to build supply chains outside Chinese control.

Canada Nickel shares gained 16% to $2.10 apiece Tuesday afternoon in Toronto, valuing the company at about $485 million.

Green mine credentials

The project, just 40 km north of Timmins, stands out for its claimed low carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions due to a planned in-process tailings method of carbonization. It involves injecting a concentrated source of CO₂ into tailings in the mill, geologically sequestering carbon in the tailings while they’re in the processing circuit, instead of after. It could capture and store 1.5 million tonnes per year of carbon.

“Crawford has been designed from the outset to reflect the future of mining,” Canada Nickel CEO Mark Selby told reporters. “[Sequestering carbon] enables us to deliver clean, reliable nickel with a made-in-Ontario, climate advantage for critical minerals production, in stark contrast to the high carbon, high environmental impact nickel produced in Indonesia under Chinese controlled supply chains.”

41-year life

With an initial life of 41 years, Crawford could produce 3.5 billion lb. of nickel, around 53 million lb. of cobalt, 490,000 oz. of palladium and platinum, 58 million tonnes of iron and 6.2 million lb. of chromium, according to a 2023 feasibility study. Its deposit gives it the world’s second-largest reserves of nickel.

Based on an 8% discount rate, Crawford has an estimated post-tax net present value of $2.6 billion and capital costs of $3.5 billion for its first and second stages. Annual earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization would be $811 million, with free cash flow pegged at $546 million.

The project benefits from the relationships that Canada Nickel has worked to build with Indigenous communities in the Timmins region, Mattagami First Nation Chief Jennifer Constant said.

“Long gone are the days where First Nations input in terms of sustainability and environmental issues are not factored in,” Constant said. “When we when we talk about respect… everyone knows that is the standard of what we expect for all relationships within our territories.”