Montney In-Basin Silica Sand
Location
Northwest Alberta and Northeast British Columbia
Access
Primary and secondary highway access
Size
Over 150,000 contiguous hectares
AMI Silica
AMI Silica, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Athabasca Minerals Inc., is the owner of the Montney In-Basin Silica Sand Project in the vicinity of Dawson Creek, Alberta and Fort St John, British Columbia. This Project broadens the strategic growth and advancement of AMI Silica to become the ‘in-basin’ leader for the supply of premium domestic silica sand. AMI Silica has completed certified testing (STIM-LAB Inc. and Loring Laboratories Ltd.) on a 70/170 domestic sand sample with the following results:
| Sphericity | 0.7 |
| Roundness | 0.6 |
| Acid Solubility | 2.3% |
| Silicon Dioxide (SiO2) content | 98.5% |
| Crush Value | 8k |
These preliminary results indicate that the Montney In-Basin Project sand aligns with the specifications for sands used in hydraulic fracturing (API Standard 19C).
The Montney basin represents over 50% of the entire frac sand demand in Canada. In late 2019, AMI completed its first phase of delineation drilling for its proposed Montney In-Basin Premium Quality Domestic Sand Project. The Montney Silica Sand Delineation & Development program is being re-adjusted for cashflow management purposes, in relation to concurrent demands related to the Duvernay Project. Together with its existing joint-venture (JV) partner, the parties are taking a measured approach concerning expenditures in order to confirm the most suitable and cost-effective location for development within the 150,000 hectare area in which the JV holds mineral leases.
Firebag Frac Sand
Location
North of Fort McMurray, Alberta within the Wood Buffalo region of North East Alberta.
Access
Via Highway 63, and is near water and power sources
Size
80 acres approved, 420 acres in application
AMI Silica
Resource Estimate
Per the NI 43-101, the Athabasca Firebag Project has an indicated resource of 38.2 million tonnes with the following breakdown of products:
- 4.5 million tonnes of 20/40
- 19.3 million tonnes of 40/70
- 13.4 million tonnes of 70/140
- 1.0 million tonnes of 140/170
AMI Silica’s Firebag Project is located 95 km north of Fort McMurray, Alberta and is accessible via Highway 63. The planned operation is expected to produce industrial proppants for use in the hydraulic fracturing of oil and gas wells. Independent testing by both Stim Lab and Proptester confirmed a high-quality product with crush strength meeting or exceeding American Petroleum Institute and International Standards Organization standards for proppant.
