Firebird is located approximately 20 kilometres southwest of ALX’s Flying Vee Nickel Project, and near recent staking by Kobold Metals, a private U.S. company exploring for energy metals. Of the three known deposits present on the property, Axis Lake is the most significant Ni-Cu-Co deposit within the Firebird area.
Axis Lake Deposit
Ni-Cu-Co mineralization at Axis Lake appears semi-continuous over at least a 5 kilometre strike length parallel to the regional east-striking structural trend. Mineralization is comprised of a south-dipping, sulphide-rich layer varying 1½ to 10 metres thick and is hosted by strongly deformed, granulite facies mafic rocks (Geology of the Axis Lake East Zone Nickel-Copper Deposit, Tantato Domain, Northern Saskatchewan, Normand, 2015). Primary magmatic sulphide mineralization consists of pyrrhotite, pyrite, chalcopyrite and pentlandite ranging from finely disseminated to coarsely disseminated or semi-massive network to massive (Vivian and Lo, 2007). Preliminary analysis of published geochemical data of mineralized samples from the eastern part of the deposit shows remarkable similarities between this deposit and the world-class Voisey’s Bay nickel deposit in Labrador (Normand, 2015).
Rea Lake Deposit
Rea Lake is located approximately 1.6 kilometres southeast of Axis Lake. Rea Lake occurs within granulite facies garnetiferous felsic gneisses, iron formation and banded mafic rocks close to the apex of a major southwesterly plunging synform. Mineralization is hosted by an upper metaquartzite and a lower nortite and consists of nickeliferous pyrrhotite, pyrite and chalcopyrite disseminated throughout the country rock. The mineralized zone trends east-west and dips to the south. Rea Lake is estimated to be approximately 2,700 metres long, 90 to 240 metres wide and 30 metres thick (SMDI 1627). Significant proportions of the sulphides in this deposit are remobilized and contain more pyrite and chalcopyrite as compared to Axis Lake (Technical Report on Operations, April 1 to March 31, 2006, Fond du Lac Project, Red Dragon Resources Corporation, Hull, 2006).
Currie Lake Deposit
Currie Lake is located approximately 5.4 kilometres northwest of Axis Lake. Two parallel zones of mineralization consisting of disseminations and fracture fillings of pyrrhotite, pyrite and chalcopyrite hosted by sheared norites are separated by 15 metres of metaquartzites and metagreywackes. Two mineralized zones have been identified: the Upper Zone varies from 3½ to 30 metres in width and the Lower Zone varies in width from 1½ to approximately 60 metres (SMDI 1585).