TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 05/23/14 -- Victory Nickel Inc. ("Victory Nickel" or the "Company") (TSX: NI) today announced that, as a result of completing the reclamation of the Seven Persons frac sand plant (the "7P Plant"), the reclamation deposit posted by the vendor of the 7P Plant has now been recovered from the Alberta Energy Regulator (the "AER"). This completes all of the conditions precedent under the 7P Plant Asset Purchase Agreement including satisfaction of the final payment (see news release of January 9, 2013) for the acquisition by Victory Nickel of the 7P Plant.
During 2013-2014 Victory Nickel and its subsidiary Victory Silica Ltd. ("Victory Silica") completed Phase 1 of its three-phased entry into the frac sand business by converting the 7P Plant into a 500,000 ton per annum frac sand processing plant near Medicine Hat, Alberta. Plant commissioning is ongoing, production and sales of high-quality 16/30, 20/40, 30/50 and 40/70 frac sand have begun and due diligence to advance to Phase 2 is underway.
About Frac Sand
Frac sand is a proppant used in the oil and gas business as a part of the hydraulic fracturing process - a means of increasing flow to the wellhead. Frac sand must have particular characteristics including achieving certain levels of crush resistance, sphericity and roundness, and it is therefore a relatively rare commodity. Vast quantities of frac sand are consumed, and more is needed all the time, as shale gas and oil plays in Canada and the US rise to prominence.
About Victory Silica Ltd.
Victory Silica Ltd. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company and is charged with a phased plan to establish the Company in the frac sand market. In Phase 1, the Company has begun processing sand imported from Wisconsin at the 7P Plant and selling the processed frac sand to customers on a spot basis. The 7P Plant is well located in an area populated with fracking companies, its potential customers, and is within only a few hours' trucking distance of major oil or gas play well sites. Phase 2, which includes the construction of a concentrator in Wisconsin, is expected to reduce costs and assure security of sand supply through the control of a frac sand mine in Wisconsin. In Phase 3, the Company intends to construct a larger frac sand plant to process and distribute both imported and domestic sand, which may potentially, but not necessarily, include sand mined as a co-product of development at the Company's Minago project. The Company has already identified a site in Winnipeg, Manitoba for this purpose.
About Victory Nickel
Victory Nickel Inc. is a Canadian company with four sulphide nickel deposits containing significant NI 43-101-compliant nickel resources and a significant frac sand resource at its Minago project. Victory Nickel is focused on becoming a mid-tier nickel producer by developing its existing properties, Minago, Mel and Lynn Lake in Manitoba, and Lac Rocher in northwestern Quebec, and by evaluating opportunities to expand its nickel asset base. Through a wholly-owned subsidiary, Victory Silica Ltd., Victory Nickel is attempting to establish a presence in the frac sand market prior to commencing frac sand production and sales from Minago.
Please visit the Company's website at www.victorynickel.ca. Should you wish to receive Company news via email, please email cathy@chfir.com and specify "Victory Nickel" in the subject line.
Forward-Looking Information: This news release contains certain forward-looking information. All information, other than information regarding historical fact, that addresses activities, events or developments that the Company believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future is forward-looking information. Forward-looking information contained in this news release includes, but may not be limited to the Company's plans and expectations regarding the progress and success of the Company's projects, including the Company's goals and business plan with respect to the frac sand business and the future demand for frac sand. The forward-looking information contained in this news release reflects the current expectations, assumptions and/or beliefs of the Company based on information currently available to the Company. With respect to the forward-looking information contained in this news release, the Company has made assumptions regarding, among other things, the Company's ability to generate sufficient cash flow from operations and access existing credit facilities and capital markets to meet its future obligations, goals and business plan, future prices for frac sand and by-products, future demand for processed frac sand and the Company's ability to obtain qualified staff and equipment in a timely and cost-efficient manner to meet the Company's demand. The forward-looking information contained in this news release is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from current expectations, including the need to obtain required approvals and permits from regulatory authorities, the volatility of commodity prices and geological, technical, drilling and processing problems. Any forward-looking information speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable law, the Company disclaims any obligation to update or modify such forward-looking information, either because of new information, future events or for any other reason.
Contacts:
Victory Nickel Inc.
René Galipeau or Sean Stokes
416.363.8527
416.626.0890 (FAX)
admin@victorynickel.ca
www.victorynickel.ca
CHF Investor Relations
Cathy Hume
416.868.1079
416.868.6198 (FAX)
cathy@chfir.com
