Lac Des Iles Palladium Mine

Exploration is central to Lac des Iles’ (LDI) future and will represent an important part of future growth for the mine and for the Company. Situated in unique geology, the LDI deposit is truly one-of-a-kind and it warrants continued exploration.  The exploration success achieved during the past few years gives management great encouragement that there is strong potential to continue to grow the Company’s palladium reserve and resource base through exploration.

LDI’s substantial +30,000-acre underexplored land package offers exploration upside that is further complimented by the underutilized, large 15,000-tonne per day mill and existing permits and surface infrastructure.  Beyond the mine expansion which is predominately based on the Offset Zone, there remains significant exploration upside near the mine, where a number of recent discoveries can potentially increase production at LDI. 

2012 Exploration Program

LDI Zones & Mineralized Areas:

NAP’s renewed commitment to exploration over the past couple of years has paid off, with a number of recent discoveries that can potentially increase annual production rates and extend LDI’s mine life.

• Roby Zone: currently being mined.
• Offset Zone: discovered in 2001, located below and approximately 250 metres south west of the Roby Zone. The Offset Zone remains open in all direction and continues to expand through exploration. LDI mine expansion is currently underway to access Offset Zone ore.
• Cowboy Zone*: discovered in 2009 during infill drilling of the Offset Zone, located 30 to 60 metres to the west of the Offset Zone. This new discovery has the potential to extend LDI’s mine life and could potentially impact the economics of the mine.
• Outlaw Zone*: discovered in 2009, located to the west of the Offset Zone and the Cowboy Zone.
• Sheriff Zone*: discovered in 2010, located approximately 100 metres south east of the Offset Zone.
• West Pit Target*: a 2009 surface exploration program identified a mineralized area near surface and adjacent to the Roby Zone open pit called the West Pit.
• North VT Rim Target*: drilling and trenching results indicate the presence of a zone of anomalous palladium assays which follows the contact with the Roby Zone to the east.

*The disclosure regarding these mineralized areas is conceptual in nature and there has been insufficient exploration to define a mineral resource in any of these areas. The current LDI mine plan does not include the three nearby underground zones: Cowboy, Outlaw, and Sherriff.