Critical One Energy Inc. (formerly Madison Metals Inc.) has announced the awarding of a contract to Geotech Ltd. to conduct an advanced airborne geophysical survey over its flagship Howells Lake Antimony-Gold Project in Ontario, Canada.
The survey aims to build on antimony discoveries announced in the company’s 14 May 2025 press release and to identify new high-priority antimony and gold targets, reinforcing Critical One’s position as the operator of Canada’s largest undeveloped antimony deposit.
“This state-of-the-art, highly advanced airborne geophysical survey programme marks a significant step in unlocking the full potential of the Howells Lake Project”, said Duane Parnham, Executive Chairman and CEO of Critical One. “By leveraging best-in-class technology, we aim to expand our antimony discoveries and pinpoint new gold targets, driving value for our stakeholders and contributing to North America’s critical minerals supply chain.”
Geotech is a globally recognised leader in airborne geophysical technologies. The survey will cover the entire 13 990 ha. Howells Lake Project, utilising cutting-edge helicopter-borne VTEM (electromagnetic) and horizontal magnetic gradiometer technology to map subsurface geological structures at depths of 500 m or more. This investment in the project follows the company’s antimony discovery successes and is deemed essential to defining potential locations to expand the extent of antimony and gold mineralisation, both proximal to the known mineralisation and across the property that covers more than 25 km of favourable geological structure and domains.
Using the information it has assembled to date, Critical One has been able to define parameters in the general alteration package in the areas of the known antimony and gold mineralisation that it can now use to look for other areas with similar signatures in overall geophysical data. With new and more detailed geophysical data, the company will be in a position to quickly identify other areas with similar geophysical footprints proximal to the known antimony and gold mineralisation.
Critical One is the first to control the entire area and explore for antimony and gold mineralisation in 40 years. When the last exploration was undertaken in the vicinity of the known mineralisation, antimony was valued at a fraction of its current price. The Geotech airborne survey that will commence this month will be the first airborne geophysical survey flown over the project area in more than two decades. The depth penetration, available computer modelling and the sophistication of the equipment will provide the company with detailed, high-quality project data that will be of use for years to come in identifying high-quality targets and interpreting the structure and geology of the area as Critical One pursues new antimony and gold mineralisation.
Antimony, a critical mineral essential for military defence, battery technologies, and flame retardants, is in high demand due to global supply constraints, with over 80% of the world’s supply controlled by China and Russia. The Howells Lake Project, strategically located near Ontario’s Ring of Fire corridor, positions Critical One to address the current supply chain challenge while advancing gold exploration in a Tier-1 mining jurisdiction.