E-Power Starts Metallurgical Testwork at SGS Canada Inc

E-Power Resources Inc. is pleased to report the start of metallurgical testwork on three samples from the Company’s Tetepisca flake graphite property located in the Cote-Nord region of Québec. The objective of the testwork is to evaluate metallurgy on the samples targetting graphite concentrates > 95% graphite carbon (“Cg”) with maximum flake size and recovery. Deliverables will include head characterizations including total carbon (“Ct”) and Cg concentrations, size fraction analyses with flake size distributions, and Cg grade and composition concentrate. The results of the study will be used by E-Power to focus continued evaluation of the Tetepisca flake graphite property. The metallurgical testwork is being completed by SGS Canada Inc. at their Lakefield, Ontario facility.

James Cross, President and CEO of E-Power commented: “Our Tetepsica property hosts a number of surface showings with the potential to be flake graphite resources. The 2024 propspecting on our northern claim group added to this inventory with the discovery of several new showings characterized by multiple high graphite grade samples with underlying conductor continuity. Our ongoing metallurgical test work is designed to evaluate the metallurgy and concentrate characteristics; determining, comparing, and contrasting the response from several showings. We intend to continue to evaluate the geology, mineralogy, and metallurgy of the property through the 2025 field season with the objective of prioritizing targets for drilling and resource delineation.

During the 2024 field season, a total of 1,037 kilograms (1.037 tonnes) comprising four bulk samples including the Captain Cosmos (1), Syndicate (1) and Graphi West (2) graphite showings were collected (Figure 1). Field duplicates, consisting of 2 to 3 kg samples taken from each of the bulk sample excavation sites returned Cg values that are consistent with and above the average resource Cg grade in the Tetepisca district (approximately 14% Cg). The results are presented table 1 below. The final report on a detailed mineralogy study on samples from the three target areas utilizing reflected and transmitted light petrography and a Scanning Electron Microscope is pending. Preliminary results of the study document a range of graphite grain sizes, associated gangue mineralogy and graphite grain-gangue mineral textures. All three samples contain large to jumbo flakes free of metamorphic intergrowths or inclusions supporting a positive metallurgical response.

Table 1: Cg Results from Advanced targets and comparison with historical results

Figure 1. Map of Tetepisca Property and location of bulk samples.

Preliminary evaluation of flake graphite recovery from the four Tetepisca samples was completed at Volt Carbon Technolgies Inc. (“Volt”) using Volt’s proprietary dry separation techniques. The study consisted of several trial air separation runs on selected samples from each zone followed by determination of Ct and Cg of the resulting concentrates. The results confirm the presence of large and jumbo flake in all samples and indicate that graphite can be separated from Tetepisca ore feed using Volt’s dry separation technique. A high value of 96.4% Ct and 93.5% Cg was attained from the +14 mesh fraction of a trial run from the Syndicate showing and a high value of 95.8% Ct and 91.7% Cg was attained from the +40 mesh fraction of a trial run from the Graphi-West showing. The average Cg results for all trial runs of flakes +30 mesh (Jumbo) was 90.90% Cg for the Syndicate showing and 90.32% Cg for the Graphi-West showing. The average analytical results for all trial runs of flakes +40 mesh (Jumbo+Large Flakes) was 90.45 for the Syndicate showing and 89.60 for the Graphi-West showing.

The metallurgical test work being completed at SGS Canada Inc. will provide E-Power with, among other information, ore feed head grades, recovery factors, concentrate compostion, and flake size analysis which will contribute to the evaluation of resource delineation targets.