Key Takeaways:
Critical One Energy Inc. (CSE: CRTL) (OTCQB: MMTLF) announced drill results from its Howells Lake project in Ontario, including a 4.0-meter intercept of massive stibnite grading 70.2 percent antimony, a grade approaching pure metal.
"Hole 6 is the proof of concept we needed," Duane Parnham, CEO of Critical One, said in a May 15 press release. "It demonstrates that our Howells Lake Project has the grade and purity to be a strategically meaningful North American antimony source."
The 4.0-meter high-grade section was contained within a broader 8.0-meter interval grading 42.2 percent antimony. A second, deeper zone in the same hole returned 7.3 meters grading 1.62 percent antimony. The company confirmed that all eight holes drilled to date near the historic Howells Lake East Antimony Zone intersected visible stibnite mineralization.
The results position Howells Lake as a candidate for direct shipping ore (DSO), which could supply North American military and industrial buyers and reduce reliance on Chinese and Russian-controlled supply. Antimony is a critical mineral used in fire retardants, batteries, and defense applications.
The near-pure stibnite discovery—pure stibnite is 71.7 percent antimony—is significant as Western governments seek to secure supply chains for critical minerals. Currently, there are no primary antimony mines operating in the United States or Canada, with the majority of global supply controlled by China, Russia, and Tajikistan.
The high-grade nature of the Howells Lake intercept means the ore could potentially be mined and shipped directly to a processor without significant on-site upgrading, a cost-effective model known as DSO. This aligns with a broader push across Canada to revive its mining sector, particularly in critical minerals, as seen in government strategies in provinces like New Brunswick, which historically hosted North America's largest antimony mine at Lake George.
The Howells Lake Antimony-Gold Project is located approximately 120 kilometers west of the Ring of Fire access corridor in Ontario. The company's recent drilling campaign was designed to test historic antimony zones. While the high-grade results are from core lengths and true widths have not yet been determined, the intersection of visible stibnite in all eight holes suggests a potentially large mineralized system.
Critical One noted that assays over 5 percent antimony are considered semi-quantitative and will require further analysis. The company plans to host an investor webinar on May 19, 2026, to discuss the discovery's significance. The results provide a strong Canadian counterpart to other regional explorers, such as Antimony Resources (CSE:ATMY), which is advancing the Bald Hill Antimony Property in New Brunswick.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
