LAURION Mineral Exploration Inc. (TSX-V: LME | OTC: LMEFF | FSE: 5YD) has provided an update on environmental, technical, and regulatory work at its 100%-owned Ishkōday Gold and Polymetallic Project in Northwestern Ontario. The company is advancing two initiatives: recovery and remediation of a historical surface waste rock stockpile and a proposed Advanced Exploration Project involving dewatering and rehabilitation of the historical Sturgeon River Mine shaft.
The surface stockpile initiative has reached a regulatory milestone with the submission of a Recovery of Minerals Permit application to Ontario's Ministry of Energy and Mines, including a Recovery and Remediation Plan under section 152.1 of the Mining Act and Ontario Regulation 463/24. The stockpile, a legacy of decades-old mining operations, contains mineralized material that LAURION seeks to recover through removal and off-site processing, followed by remediation. This approach is expected to avoid new infrastructure or underground development, offering a potentially non-dilutive source of value while addressing a historical environmental liability.
Separately, LAURION is preparing a Permit to Take Water (PTTW) application for dewatering the flooded Sturgeon River Mine shaft, targeting submission in Q4 2026. The shaft extends approximately 642 metres below surface with 15 historical underground levels and has been flooded since operations ceased in 1942. The proposed Advanced Exploration Project would involve removing the shaft cap, installing a temporary headframe, and controlled dewatering to enable underground exploration drilling and sampling. A detailed hydrogeological impact assessment will support the PTTW application. The company is also preparing an Advanced Exploration Closure Plan and additional environmental approvals, with submissions targeted for early 2027.
Over the past five years, LAURION has completed a comprehensive environmental baseline program, including terrestrial ecology, species at risk and bat studies; aquatic and benthic studies; groundwater and surface water monitoring; shaft water and hydrogeological studies; and a Stage 1 Archaeological Assessment. These studies establish existing conditions and inform mitigation and remediation measures, positioning the company to meet regulatory requirements and manage potential environmental effects.
Indigenous and stakeholder consultation remains central to the project. LAURION engages with Animbiigoo Zaagi'igan Anishinaabek First Nation, Bingwi Neyaashi Anishinaabek First Nation, and Biinjitiwaabik Zaaging Anishinaabek First Nation through an Indigenous Joint Steering Committee and project-specific discussions. Public consultation will also occur as part of the Closure Plan process.
Management emphasizes the importance of this work. "Five years of rigorous, independent environmental baseline work is not a small undertaking," said Cynthia Le Sueur-Aquin, President and CEO. "Recovering potentially economic residual mineralization within the stockpile, and doing so responsibly, is exactly the kind of value-additive, environmentally sound project our shareholders should expect." She added that dewatering the shaft could provide safe underground access to evaluate gold-bearing structures not fully explored before 1942, while rehabilitating a legacy mine hazard.
The initiatives matter because they demonstrate LAURION's progress toward permitting and potential extraction of residual value from historical mine waste, while also reopening access to a past-producing mine for modern exploration. If approved, the stockpile recovery could generate near-term cash flow without dilutive financing, and the shaft dewatering could unlock new geological understanding of the mineralized system. The project remains exploratory, with no commercial production proposed at this stage. For more information, visit www.LAURION.ca.
