Patriot Lithium (ASX: PAT) has secured rights over an additional 536 square kilometres in one of the largest and highest-grade lithium deposits in North America, in Canada’s province of Ontario.
The land package in the area, which has earned the nickname “Electric Avenue” due to the many battery metals projects it hosts, includes the Berens project from Midex Resources and the Borland project from Gold Canyon Resources and Guyana Frontier Mining Corp.
Upon exercising relevant options, and including Patriot’s Gorman project, the Aussie junior will own the largest claim in the “Electric Avenue” of North-West Ontario, with a regional claim package exceeding 890 square kilometres.
Managing director Nicholas Vickery said that adding the Berens and Borland areas positioned Patriot as a major player in “one of the most exciting lithium regions in the world”, where extensive vegetation and soil cover has seen limited prior work for lithium.
Shares of Patriot Lithium rose on the news, closing on Tuesday 24% higher at A$0.21 each, which leaves the miner with a market capitalization of A$13.06 million ($8.3m)
Patriot’s claims now adjoin and partially surround Frontier Lithium’s (TSX-V: FL) claims to the southeast, which contain the world-class PAK-Spark project. Drilling at this asset, has delivered 398m at 1.88% lithium.
Ontario has experienced a flurry of investments in battery metals since it launched its first-ever Critical Minerals Strategy in 2021, updated and published last year.
The company aims to kick off detailed exploration of its newly acquired properties as soon as possible.