January 6, 2022 - TheNewswire - Vancouver, BC - Surge Battery Metals Inc. (the “Company” or “Surge”) (TSXV:NILI) (OTC:NILIF) (FRA:DJ5C) is pleased to announce that it has recently staked a 663 ha. (1,640 acres) property in the Teels Marsh Playa, Mineral County, Nevada.  The property is located in an active region for both lithium exploration and production, about 84 km northeast of Albemarle’s (NYSE: ALB) Silver Peak brine mining operation in a similar geologic setting, and adjoining the Dajin Lithium Corp’s (TSXV: DJI) Teels Marsh Lithium project on the southwestern edge of the playa.  

 

To date, limited exploration has been conducted on the property including a gravity survey and various lithium brine and sediment samples.  Playa sediment samples from the property have shown lithium values to 104.5 ppm Li and nearby hot springs sediments have been found to carry up to 500 ppm Li values during sampling.

 

The property covers two sub-basins and a connecting buried paleo-channel defined in a detailed gravity survey conducted in 2020.  These features may contain trapped lithium rich brines or volcanic ash aquifers similar to the Clayton Valley deposit setting.

 

Surge plans to conduct additional exploration this spring designed to identify sites for drill tests and plans to review all previous exploration results on the Teels Marsh West Project, including other potential sites in the vicinity. This will be accomplished in early 2022, in order to guide a Spring/Summer 2022 exploration program aimed at locating lithium bearing montmorillonite clay deposits and lithium rich brines within the basins.  

 

Metallurgical testing of montmorillonite clay, a non-Hectorite clay, in nearby Clayton Valley indicates low-cost processing can be achieved by leaching with low acid consumption (125 kg/t) and high lithium recovery over 85 per cent Li.  These high extractions prove that the dominant lithium-bearing minerals present are not hectorite, a refractory clay mineral which requires roasting and/or high acid consumption to liberate the lithium. (Refer to Cypress Development’s Pre-Feasibility Study on Clayton Valley Lithium Project).

 

About Teels Marsh West:

 

Shallow auger holes and drill-holes (<60 m) show that unconsolidated basin fill deposits include clays, clastic rocks silts and sands), evaporate deposits, and volcanic ash. With the exception of clays, these rocks represent potential sources of permeability. Volcanic ash beds could host significant zones of permeability, due to the relative proximity of Teels Marsh to young volcanic centers at Mono Craters (near Mono Lake) and Long Valley, California, both located approximately 70 km to the southwest. These ash layers have proven to be the most productive brine sources in Clayton Valley (an active geothermal area).

 

The Bishop Tuff, which is believed to represent an important zone of permeability at Clayton Valley, (80 km to the SE of the only North American lithium brine deposit which is being mined by Rockwood Lithium Inc.) is likely present in the subsurface at Teels Marsh.

 

Direct evidence of an active geothermal system in the Teels Marsh area has recently been gathered by researchers at the Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, University of Nevada, Reno and the Desert Research Institute. This evidence comes from mapping anomalously high temperatures at a depth of only 2 meters below the basin surface: these temperatures are as high at 35C compared to background temperatures of approximately 16-18C. The temperature anomalies occur in two separate zones, both of which are adjacent to a Quaternary fault on the western margin of Teels Marsh basin. The two temperature anomalies have a combined strike length parallel to the fault of almost 4 km. A USGS geochemical survey conducted in 1976 reported lithium values as high as 850 ppm from samples taken from springs marginal to these fault structures.

 

Mr. Greg Reimer, Company President & CEO states “The area is getting a lot of attention as EV battery production builds up in Nevada and globally.  This particular property has recently become available for staking and Surge’s Nevada-based QP, Mr. Alan J. Morris CPG, is familiar with both the property and area having worked in this immediate area in the past. This project is adjacent to the Dajin Lithium Corp’s Teels Marsh project which comprises a land position of 3,202 hectares and 403 Placer claims. Dajin has worked extensively on their claims having completed the construction of the engineered roads and drill pads in preparation for the drilling of four production sized exploration wells.   This is a highly prospective lithium property, and we look forward to continuing to increase the value of our strategic lithium exploration assets in Nevada, for the benefit of all our shareholders.”

 

Qualified Person

 

The technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved Alan J Morris, CPG, the project geologist and Qualified Person on the Teels Marsh West Project.

 

About Surge Battery Metals Inc. surgebatterymetals.com

 

The Company is a Canadian-based mineral exploration company active in the exploration for nickel-iron alloy and Copper in British Columbia and lithium in Nevada whose primary listing is on the TSX Venture Exchange. The Company's maintains a focus on exploration for high value battery metals required for the electric vehicle (EV) market.

 

Nevada Lithium Claims

 

The Company owns a 100% interest in 95 mineral claims located in Elko County, Nevada. The Northern Nevada Lithium Project is located in the Granite Range about 34 line- km southeast of Jackpot, Nevada, about 73 line-km north-northeast of Wells, Nevada. The target is a Thacker Pass or Clayton Valley type lithium clay deposit in volcanic tuff and tuffaceous sediments of the Jarbidge Rhyolite package. The project area was first identified in public domain stream sediment geochemical data with follow up sediment sampling and geologic reconnaissance.

 

The Company has entered into a Property Option Agreement to earn an undivided 80% interest in the San Emidio Desert Lithium Project, subject to a 2% NSR, located 60 miles Northeast of Reno, Nevada from Lithium Corporation (OTCQB: LTUM).  The San Emidio Desert Lithium Project consists of 60 mineral claims comprising a total of 4,800 acres and is located in the San Emidio Desert.

 

Nickel Projects, Northern BC

 

The Company has entered into a Property Option Agreement to earn an undivided 80% interest in certain mineral claims from Nickel Rock Resources Inc.

  

The Surge Nickel Project consists of two non-contiguous mineral claims groups consisting of 6 mineral claims in the Mount Sidney Williams area (HN4) covering 1863 hectares immediately south of and adjacent to the Decar Project and the Mitchell Range area (N100) covering 8659 hectares, located in Northern British Columbia. Three of the claims are subject to 2% NSR, including the (HN4 claim and the two southernmost claims of the N100 claims).

 

The exploration stage project is in the Trembleur Lake area of central British Columbia, partially adjacent to FPX Nickel Corp.’s Decar Nickel Project, which is an advanced project targeting awaruite, a nickel-iron alloy mineral, hosted by serpentinized ultramafic intrusive rocks of the Trembleur Ultramafic Unit.

 

Caledonia Project, Vancouver Island, BC

 

The Company has entered into a Property Option Agreement to acquire a 100% interest in 7 mineral claims including the Caledonia, Cascade and Bluebell claims, subject to a NSR between 1-2%. Located in the Nanaimo Mining Division on northern Vancouver Island. The claims are 7 km north-west of BHP's past producing Island Copper mine. During its prime operating period the Island Copper mine was Canada's third-largest copper producer. The Caledonia Project claims area lies within a 50-kilometer-long copper belt northwest of the Island Copper mine.

 

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

 

“Greg Reimer”

 

Greg Reimer, President & CEO

604-428-5690

 

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This news release may contain forward‐looking statements which include, but are not limited to, comments that involve future events and conditions, which are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Except for statements of historical facts, comments that address resource potential, upcoming work programs, geological interpretations, receipt and security of mineral property titles, availability of funds, and others are forward‐looking. Forward‐looking statements are not guaranteeing future performance and actual results may vary materially from those statements. General business conditions are factors that could cause actual results to vary materially from forward‐looking statements.