IGS Study Proposes Innovative and Sustainable Development of Oka Deposit

Rhea-AI Summary

Nio Strategic Metals (TSXV: NIO, OTCQB: NIOCF) reported metallurgical results from an IGS study on the Oka niobium deposit, prepared for CTRI under the Éléments08 initiative. Tests on 95 historical drill-core samples confirmed strong niobium, phosphate and rare earth element (REE) content in zones targeted for mining.

Flotation of a composite sample produced a pyrochlore concentrate grading 52.75% Nb2O5 at 81.14% niobium recovery, compared with a 2011 baseline of 44.5% Nb2O5 at 71.7% recovery, using a simpler flowsheet. The concentrate also contained 11.75% TREO, mainly cerium, neodymium and praseodymium, plus zirconium and tantalum. The study indicates potential for hydrometallurgical extraction of REE, niobium, tantalum and zirconium, evaluation of phosphate monetization (historical samples at 4.29% P2O5), and shows residue thorium and uranium contents reduced from 2,000 to 824 ppm and 1,000 to 120 ppm, respectively.

Positive

• Nb2O5 concentrate grade 52.75% at 81.14% recovery, versus 44.5% at 71.7% in 2011
• Pyrochlore concentrate contains 11.75% TREO plus 2.0% ZrO2 and 0.49% Ta2O5
• Rare earth oxides in composites up to 0.935% TREO in high-grade Nb sample
• Residue thorium reduced from 2,000 ppm to 824 ppm
• Residue uranium reduced from 1,000 ppm to 120 ppm
• Historical resource samples show 4.29% P2O5, supporting phosphate by-product potential

Negative

• None.

AI-generated analysis. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.

See more from StockTitan in Google Search and AI answers. Adds StockTitan as a preferred source · opens Google

Add on Google Not now

Metallurgical Tests Confirm Niobium and Rare Earths Content

Montreal, Quebec--(Newsfile Corp. - August 4, 2026) - Nio Strategic Metals Inc. (TSXV: NIO) (OTCQB: NIOCF) ("Nio" or the "Corporation"), a critical mineral exploration company, is pleased to announce the results of the metallurgical study, The sustainable and optimized development of niobium and other critical and strategic minerals (CSM) of the Oka deposit, which was prepared by IGS Impact Global Solutions ("IGS"), for the Centre technologique des résidus industriels ("CTRI") as part of the Éléments08 initiative. CTRI is a Rouyn-Noranda based applied research and technology transfer centre on industrial tailings.

In addition to confirming and characterizing the strong presence of niobium, phosphate and other rare metals, IGS provides an innovative solution to process the concentrate from the deposit in a remote location, thereby reducing the local environmental impact.

The study investigates the opportunity to maximize the recovery value of the mined concentrate by using hydrometallurgical extraction of rare earth elements ("REE"), niobium, tantalum and zirconium. IGS also recommends further tests to assess the monetization of phosphate while producing the pyrochlore concentrate, as samples of the historical resource have tested 4.29% P₂O₅ (see Table 1).

IGS tested 95 samples taken from historical drill cores of the S60 and HWM2 zones to create a composite sample representative of the historical resource (see Table 1). The significant presence of REE was confirmed in the zone targeted for mining. The results, summarized in Table 2, demonstrate that the total rare earth oxide ("TREO"), content is 0.507% TREO for the composite simulating that of the 2011 feasibility study (FSG) and 0.935% TREO for the composite (HGG) designated as high-grade in Nb₂O₅.

A high-grade Nb composite sample (HGG), prepared at CTRI, was sent to SGS for a mineralogical study performed using TIMA (Tescan Integrated Mineral Analyzer) and electron microprobe analysis (EMPA). Flotation test work performed on the metallurgical test composite delivered, in open circuit, a pyrochlore concentrate grading 52.75% niobium pentoxide (Nb₂O₅) at a niobium recovery of 81.14% — a substantial improvement over the historical baseline of 44.5% Nb₂O₅ at 71.7% recovery established in the 2011 feasibility work. This was achieved with a markedly simpler flowsheet.

The concentrate additionally contained 11.75% TREO — of which approximately 83% is cerium oxide (CeO₂), 9% neodymium oxide (Nd₂O₃) and 3% praseodymium oxide (Pr₆O₁₁) — together with 1.5% zirconium (Zr), equivalent to 2.0% zirconium oxide (ZrO₂), and 0.4% tantalum (Ta), equivalent to 0.49% tantalum pentoxide (Ta₂O₅). The full rare earth distribution of the concentrate is detailed in Table 3.

Michel Bourassa, founder of Soutex, commented, "these results demonstrate once again how the rock of the Oka deposit is rich in niobium and rare earths and, moreover, is amenable to various metallurgical treatment processes."

Bruno Dumais, President and Chief Operator Officer suggested that "The study points to a potential increase in the project's value by enabling a better niobium recovery; recovery of phosphate as a by-product (historically sent to tailings); and the extraction of REE that would otherwise be disregarded and lost in the slag."

Importantly, the new approach would minimize the environmental impact of the residues as the tests demonstrated it was possible to significantly reduce the thorium and uranium contents from 2,000 and 1,000 parts per million (ppm) to 824 and 120 ppm, respectively (see Table 4). This solution innovates in its approach, as well as provides a de-risking plan to rehabilitate the tailings on the old mining site.

The Corporation looks forward to communicating on the results of the CTRI sponsored study on water management and other environmental aspects of the sustainable development of the Oka deposit.

The technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved on behalf of the Corporation by Pierre-Jean Lafleur, P.Eng., a geological consultant and a qualified person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

Table 1. Composition of the individual drill-core samples used to produce the metallurgical test composite (IGS)

No.	Drill hole	Lab no.	Zone	Mass (g)	Nb2O5	P2O5	Fe2O3	SiO2	Al2O3	MgO	CaO	Na2O	K2O	TiO2	MnO	BaO
					(wt %)
1	9722	80348	HWM2	374.7	0.520	2.950	2.620	3.670	0.210	2.000	49.100	0.170	0.210	0.100	0.780	0.330
2	9733	81359	S60	314.3	0.520	4.130	4.060	13.300	3.720	5.400	35.400	1.540	1.330	0.170	1.030	0.440
3	9744	81988	S60	335.5	0.520	4.390	4.260	2.900	0.030	2.880	45.800	0.270	0.140	0.080	1.540	0.380
4	9748	82321	S60	391.9	0.520	3.110	2.570	9.430	2.030	4.030	44.100	0.360	0.980	0.150	0.790	0.240
5	9748	82343	S60	360.2	0.520	3.810	1.670	2.480	0.070	2.450	50.400	0.100	0.120	0.060	0.650	0.100
6	9738	81624	S60	260.9	0.530	3.970	6.590	3.650	0.090	4.600	42.300	0.240	0.200	0.150	2.160	0.880
7	9741	81880	S60	312.4	0.530	3.770	15.600	5.890	0.250	6.800	33.700	0.250	0.370	0.310	2.800	0.360
8	9741	81949	S60	372.8	0.530	3.690	4.670	6.010	1.280	3.100	44.600	0.200	0.760	0.340	1.190	0.340
9	9744	82093	S60	327.5	0.530	2.200	4.690	13.600	4.180	7.490	35.600	0.260	2.630	0.590	0.930	0.800
10	9748	82349	S60	386.6	0.530	3.340	2.260	2.410	0.050	2.440	50.300	0.110	0.130	0.070	0.690	0.110
11	9748	82384	S60	412.8	0.530	2.660	1.170	4.010	0.600	2.370	49.100	0.330	0.480	0.120	0.600	0.230
12	9729	81091	S60	334.3	0.540	2.380	3.650	3.600	0.340	5.160	41.200	0.230	0.430	0.070	3.070	0.840
13	9729	81102	S60	299.2	0.540	3.500	9.940	7.990	0.210	8.960	37.000	0.200	0.200	0.320	2.230	0.270
14	9733	81389	S60	255.2	0.540	3.850	2.790	7.030	1.420	3.610	45.100	0.580	0.580	0.120	0.800	0.350
15	9738	81627	S60	281.6	0.540	4.810	11.300	4.720	0.070	5.750	39.500	0.180	0.200	0.270	2.070	0.460
16	9741	81925	S60	270.5	0.540	2.760	8.540	22.500	6.630	11.100	18.200	0.370	4.480	0.900	1.870	1.560
17	9744	82118	S60	178.1	0.540	2.990	4.630	21.100	7.800	8.740	28.000	0.530	3.170	0.490	0.900	0.530
18	9748	82319	S60	384.1	0.540	2.910	1.550	3.160	0.340	1.650	51.000	0.100	0.240	0.100	0.500	0.250
19	9749	82423	HWM2	440.6	0.540	3.080	2.030	4.670	0.460	2.410	49.600	0.150	0.400	0.130	0.480	0.190
20	9723	80412	HWM2	384.3	0.550	3.860	4.570	8.060	1.010	4.220	44.300	0.270	0.730	0.400	1.080	0.230
21	9724	80571	HWM2	362.9	0.550	3.080	2.870	4.970	0.610	2.660	48.000	0.210	0.330	0.340	0.770	0.200
22	9730	81246	HWM2	349.2	0.550	3.440	7.970	9.030	1.280	2.230	42.900	0.250	0.430	0.430	0.910	0.550
23	9738	81629	S60	310.7	0.550	4.200	7.000	3.890	0.150	5.190	41.300	0.230	0.190	0.170	1.820	0.980
24	9741	81869	S60	336.4	0.560	5.820	11.800	6.600	0.110	6.940	34.800	0.320	0.290	0.220	2.710	0.840
25	9744	82097	S60	433.7	0.560	2.720	6.970	17.900	5.700	9.150	29.500	0.350	3.270	0.680	0.960	0.850
26	9729	81096	S60	338.4	0.570	3.720	3.660	4.240	0.140	3.640	46.400	0.360	0.230	0.120	1.060	0.320
27	9741	81939	S60	415.2	0.570	1.990	6.680	22.800	7.000	11.300	24.600	0.470	3.680	1.010	1.110	0.830
28	9744	82036	S60	336.3	0.570	5.310	5.760	4.210	0.090	4.740	43.400	0.360	0.190	0.130	1.480	0.210
29	9733	81361	S60	327.3	0.580	5.800	11.100	8.280	0.600	8.880	34.200	0.390	0.520	0.340	2.220	0.470
30	9741	81935	S60	370.1	0.580	3.410	3.030	5.440	1.320	3.850	45.500	0.260	0.940	0.200	0.790	0.380
31	9741	81940	S60	350.7	0.580	2.680	2.490	6.610	1.720	2.730	45.800	0.160	0.560	0.280	0.530	0.370
32	9748	82341	S60	435.4	0.580	2.940	4.720	4.210	0.560	3.490	43.900	0.200	0.400	0.110	2.330	1.510
33	9737	81641	S60	265.2	0.590	6.820	13.800	11.700	1.220	11.700	27.200	0.440	1.000	0.470	2.630	0.480
34	9737	81644	S60	110.9	0.590	4.850	4.460	4.570	0.730	4.150	40.900	0.180	0.570	0.200	2.420	1.650
35	9744	82043	S60	328.6	0.590	3.050	6.360	2.940	0.100	3.700	44.400	0.200	0.180	0.140	1.830	0.340
36	9722	80343	HWM2	392.1	0.600	3.410	3.230	14.300	3.000	5.360	39.200	0.770	1.230	0.340	0.670	0.250
37	9729	81104	S60	367.6	0.600	4.700	3.790	3.790	0.280	4.040	44.800	0.180	0.230	0.150	1.090	0.550
38	9746	82225	S60	367	0.600	5.220	23.000	8.560	0.270	10.500	20.700	0.170	0.320	0.450	4.310	2.560
39	9724	80565	HWM2	302.3	0.610	2.130	4.610	18.300	4.580	6.060	33.600	1.110	2.360	0.290	0.860	0.370
40	9749	82421	HWM2	343.6	0.610	2.280	1.660	4.000	0.390	2.250	50.500	0.100	0.350	0.110	0.520	0.100
41	9723	80397	HWM2	356.3	0.620	3.180	4.570	6.660	0.710	1.940	47.200	0.280	0.290	0.260	0.720	0.450
42	9728	80933	HWM2	406.2	0.630	2.870	2.540	4.350	0.240	2.390	49.800	0.170	0.230	0.150	0.740	0.200
43	9738	81632	S60	261	0.630	4.560	9.990	5.700	0.040	6.480	39.500	0.190	0.120	0.220	1.930	0.380
44	9741	81893	S60	322.1	0.630	5.790	15.000	6.490	0.230	7.980	31.700	0.240	0.320	0.310	2.990	0.530
45	9748	82342	S60	379.8	0.630	3.200	1.740	1.930	0.080	1.590	50.800	0.100	0.130	0.070	0.520	0.200
46	9733	81395	S60	256.9	0.640	3.580	2.210	3.670	0.850	2.320	47.400	0.320	0.500	0.100	0.880	0.670
47	9738	81630	S60	279.3	0.640	4.340	5.980	2.710	0.060	3.140	46.000	0.180	0.100	0.140	1.220	0.460
48	9738	81700	S60	323.9	0.640	4.120	36.200	11.800	0.520	6.490	18.000	0.690	0.620	0.770	4.100	0.700
49	9748	82334	S60	416.3	0.640	3.550	1.300	8.480	1.720	3.250	45.100	0.610	0.800	0.120	0.540	0.220
50	9727	80852	S60	354.1	0.650	4.260	4.890	3.670	0.050	4.020	44.300	0.280	0.190	0.120	1.400	0.510
51	9722	80347	HWM2	432.8	0.660	2.690	1.750	3.060	0.100	2.250	50.600	0.140	0.130	0.090	0.720	0.220
52	9749	82424	HWM2	410.8	0.660	3.140	3.100	5.010	0.410	1.930	50.000	0.210	0.330	0.150	0.580	0.420
53	9737	81648	S60	207.1	0.670	4.470	4.210	4.130	0.140	4.820	43.300	0.340	0.240	0.120	1.880	1.120
54	9738	81710	S60	226.9	0.670	2.540	7.540	7.940	1.460	4.010	38.200	0.160	0.970	0.330	1.320	0.360
55	9741	81905	S60	259.9	0.670	4.450	25.100	12.200	0.270	13.400	14.900	1.940	0.450	0.490	3.970	0.290
56	9741	81937	S60	332.3	0.670	3.520	1.380	2.190	0.050	2.060	51.000	0.150	0.130	0.060	0.620	0.130
57	9749	82420	HWM2	367.5	0.670	3.100	2.460	5.040	0.340	2.730	49.900	0.100	0.310	0.200	0.830	0.090
58	9738	81623	S60	259.6	0.680	4.410	5.280	3.760	0.020	4.470	44.100	0.260	0.180	0.140	1.650	0.420
59	9738	81625	S60	306.3	0.680	3.630	9.900	5.500	0.150	6.510	39.100	0.200	0.170	0.270	2.060	0.450
60	9738	81626	S60	261.9	0.680	4.410	15.700	5.190	0.240	5.830	33.000	0.230	0.410	0.390	2.750	1.070
61	9741	81891	S60	331.6	0.680	4.540	49.300	7.220	0.560	8.660	13.200	0.350	0.530	1.100	4.330	0.270
62	9748	82329	S60	345.6	0.680	4.120	4.810	5.600	0.380	2.280	47.200	0.200	0.280	0.190	0.670	0.110
63	9733	81366	S60	319.1	0.690	5.430	12.000	10.500	0.450	11.700	31.900	0.460	0.360	0.390	2.560	0.290
64	9741	81892	S60	340.8	0.690	7.660	13.500	6.900	0.110	8.450	32.300	0.410	0.270	0.280	3.180	0.520
65	9746	82231	S60	373.2	0.690	4.660	22.300	13.200	0.650	8.300	20.200	0.220	0.510	0.560	4.010	0.770
66	9741	81898	S60	392.1	0.700	6.710	12.200	6.950	0.220	8.070	33.000	0.500	0.350	0.310	2.770	0.410
67	9744	81990	S60	430.2	0.700	5.160	17.300	7.030	0.200	5.460	35.000	0.380	0.310	0.380	2.430	0.210
68	9722	80351	HWM2	387	0.710	3.860	3.030	5.810	0.340	3.060	48.700	0.190	0.350	0.200	0.960	0.280
69	9729	81097	S60	305.2	0.710	3.140	6.570	9.930	2.160	7.720	36.500	0.380	1.660	0.260	1.340	0.430
70	9738	81633	S60	286.7	0.710	4.680	4.090	3.660	0.020	4.220	45.900	0.100	0.080	0.120	1.350	0.570
71	9738	81698	S60	286	0.710	4.430	38.400	13.100	0.280	5.850	19.600	0.760	0.420	0.820	3.240	0.560
72	9741	81920	S60	351	0.710	3.040	11.200	6.060	0.170	9.600	23.800	0.280	0.160	0.240	5.330	5.000
73	9738	81628	S60	269.1	0.720	4.670	15.400	7.850	0.170	8.610	33.100	0.310	0.230	0.330	2.860	0.380
74	9741	81942	S60	305.7	0.720	3.390	5.600	9.280	2.890	4.880	39.500	0.110	1.560	0.430	0.820	0.370
75	9723	80411	HWM2	331.9	0.730	3.100	1.990	5.180	0.290	2.630	48.900	0.250	0.240	0.160	0.870	0.220
76	9728	80988	S60	348.5	0.730	4.810	2.820	3.140	0.150	3.350	46.900	0.200	0.210	0.100	1.670	0.390
77	9727	80866	S60	365.5	0.740	3.120	4.850	4.840	0.730	4.030	41.000	0.370	0.630	0.150	2.950	2.190
78	9737	81643	S60	224.6	0.740	4.990	5.000	15.000	3.780	2.200	36.300	0.130	1.120	0.250	1.280	1.180
79	9733	81360	S60	326.8	0.750	6.200	4.660	4.130	0.340	4.180	44.400	0.280	0.350	0.180	1.200	0.410
80	9737	81647	S60	251	0.750	7.190	5.860	5.500	0.280	5.970	39.200	0.500	0.250	0.180	1.610	0.500
81	9744	82098	S60	401.5	0.750	3.780	2.720	8.700	2.000	4.900	43.100	0.410	1.060	0.210	0.830	0.270
82	9746	82188	S60	392.5	0.760	6.150	35.000	15.600	0.510	6.430	21.000	0.480	0.440	0.820	2.880	0.140
83	9723	80410	HWM2	390.2	0.770	2.760	2.500	4.500	0.400	2.960	48.000	0.230	0.300	0.150	0.760	0.220
84	9728	80991	S60	331.6	0.780	4.030	4.050	4.190	0.150	4.820	44.800	0.300	0.300	0.140	1.120	0.360
85	9733	81365	S60	355.4	0.780	7.120	12.200	9.100	0.440	10.500	32.800	0.500	0.360	0.420	2.290	0.340
86	9749	82426	HWM2	330.4	0.780	3.820	4.320	5.720	0.590	1.140	49.200	0.300	0.170	0.300	0.640	0.180
87	9741	81887	S60	314.5	0.790	6.610	8.940	4.500	0.020	4.630	42.600	0.300	0.160	0.160	1.680	0.230
88	9741	81888	S60	354.7	0.790	5.690	8.760	5.370	0.110	5.650	39.000	0.380	0.280	0.160	2.100	0.640
89	9748	82328	S60	357.1	0.790	4.250	5.080	18.500	5.460	8.750	30.800	0.660	3.180	0.310	0.910	0.410
90	9746	82185	S60	484.3	0.800	7.080	39.900	11.700	0.340	5.550	18.700	0.680	0.370	0.910	3.350	0.590
91	9736	81490	S60	340.8	0.810	2.880	12.900	8.420	0.270	9.650	31.700	0.240	0.340	0.250	2.650	0.680
92	9735	81581	S60	277.1	0.810	29.700	11.300	1.880	0.500	1.310	42.500	0.280	0.080	0.350	1.750	0.530
93	9738	81706	S60	321.3	0.810	6.050	39.800	13.100	0.240	5.320	21.300	0.390	0.210	0.910	3.070	0.290
94	9739	81802	S60	457.1	0.810	5.780	23.500	9.060	0.390	4.170	32.500	0.500	0.460	0.530	2.190	0.320
95	9749	82422	HWM2	234.7	0.810	1.880	3.460	20.400	5.320	7.050	33.700	1.230	2.420	0.250	0.760	0.190
Composite (IGS)			CM7-A	31,856.9	0.646	4.291	8.991	7.479	1.005	5.138	39.176	0.343	0.635	0.298	1.669	0.533
Reference test composite			Feed M7-A	-	0.650	3.970	9.470	6.100	0.600	4.920	38.800	0.230	0.420	0.260	1.900	0.490

 

Notes: Composite CM7-A (95 samples from 18 drill holes, zones S60 and HWM2; total mass 31,856.9 g) was assembled by IGS for the E08 metallurgical test program; assays are reported in weight percent (wt %). "Feed M7-A" is the head assay of the reference composite used in the 2011 feasibility-study test work, shown for comparison. Composite grades correspond to the mass-weighted average of the individual samples.
Source: IGS Impact Global Solutions Inc., report 'The sustainable and optimized development of niobium and other critical and strategic minerals (CSM) of the Oka deposit'

Table 2. Geochemical analysis of the FSG and HGG composite samples: Nb, Ta, Th, U, Zr, Sc and rare earth oxides (IGS)

	Grade %
	FSG composite	HGG composite
Nb2O5	0.489	1.165
Ta2O5	0.007	0.000
ThO2	0.021	0.001
UO2	0.003	0.000
ZrO2	0.035	0.002
Ce2O3	0.261	0.493
Dy2O3	0.003	0.005
Er2O3	0.001	0.002
Eu2O3	0.003	0.005
Gd2O3	0.005	0.010
Ho2O3	0.000	0.001
La2O3	0.108	0.177
Lu2O3	0.000	0.000
Nd2O3	0.079	0.154
Pr2O3	0.024	0.045
Sc2O3	0.001	0.002
Sm2O3	0.010	0.020
Tb2O3	0.001	0.001
Tm2O3	0.000	0.000
Y2O3	0.011	0.018
Yb2O3	0.001	0.001
TREO	0.507	0.935

 

Table 3: Rare earth element and oxide content of Oka niobium concentrate samples

Element (ppm)	IGS-E08	PNA15-11		Oxide (%)	IGS-E08	PNA15-11
Y	805	781		Y2O3	0.102	0.099
La	10,021	9,404		La2O3	1.177	1.103
Ce	79,408	79,800		CeO2	9.754	9.803
Pr	3,104	3,174		Pr6O11	0.375	0.383
Nd	9,279	9,239		Nd2O3	1.082	1.078
Sm	1,077	1,130		Sm2O3	0.125	0.131
Eu	294	308		Eu2O3	0.036	0.038
Gd	773	808		Gd2O3	0.089	0.093
Tb	53	65		Tb4O7	0.006	0.008
Dy	289	291		Dy2O3	0.033	0.033
Ho	32	36		Ho2O3	0.004	0.004
Er	81	84		Er2O3	0.009	0.010
Tm	9	12		Tm2O3	0.001	0.001
Yb	70.4	72		Yb2O3	0.008	0.008
Lu	3	6		Lu2O3	0.000	0.001
TREO					12.801	12.793
LREO (La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu)					12.548	12.536
HREO (Gd-Lu, Y)					0.253	0.257
HREO/LREO					2%	2%

 

Table 4: Mass balance of the concentrate leach test - significant lower Th and U values in the Residue

Product	Mass (g)	Mass (%)	Concentration (ppm)
			Th	U	La	Ce	Pr	Nd	Sm	Eu	Gd	Tb	Dy	Ho	Er	Tm	Yb	Lu	Ag	V
Residue	18.78	93.90	824	120	6,970	41,000	3,140	9,890	1,110	252	297	37	168	21.20	45.20	5.08	26.20	2.48	0.50	59
Feed	20.00	100.00	2,000	1,000	13,300	73,700	5,370	17,900	2,320	591	833	109	503	63.50	136.00	15.80	88.20	8.45	2.30	135
Recovery by residue (%)			38.69	11.27	49.21	52.24	54.91	51.88	44.93	40.04	33.48	32.22	31.36	31.35	31.21	30.19	27.89	27.56	20.41	41.04

 

Note: Recovery by residue (%) = (residue concentration × residue mass) ÷ (feed concentration × feed mass). Values below 100% indicate the proportion of each element retained in the leach residue; the balance reports to the leach solution.

About Nio Strategic Metals

Nio Strategic Metals is an exploration and development company, with a focus on becoming a ferroniobium producer. The Corporation holds niobium and critical metals properties located in Oka and near Mont-Laurier in the Province of Québec. Nio is committed to developing those deposits in an environmentally responsible manner — supplying strategic materials the world needs while driving innovation, creating high-quality jobs and strengthening the local economy.

For more information on the Corporation, please refer to the Corporation's public documents available on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca) or on the Corporation's website (https://niostratmet.com/) or contact:

Bruno Dumais, President and Chief Operating Officer
bdumais@niometauxstrategiques.com
514-560-7623
Jean-Sebastien Blanchette, Chief Financial Officer
jblanchette@niometauxstrategiques.com
917-399-0437

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of any of the securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful, including any of the securities in the United States of America.

Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (together, "forward looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Statements, other than statements of historical facts, may be forward-looking statements. Generally, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of terminology such as "plans", "expects", "estimates", "intends", "anticipates", "believes" or variations of such words, or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might", "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved", the negative of these terms and similar terminology although not all forward-looking statements contain these terms and phrases. Forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results, performance, prospects and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the risk factors set out in Nio Strategic Metals' annual and/or quarterly management discussion and analysis and in other of its public disclosure documents filed on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca, as well as all assumptions regarding the foregoing. Although Nio Strategic Metals believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on these statements, which only apply as of the date of this news release, and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed time frame or at all. Except where required by applicable law, Nio Strategic Metals disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/307909

FAQ

What did Nio Strategic Metals (OTCQB: NIOCF) announce about the Oka deposit on August 4, 2026?

Nio Strategic Metals announced metallurgical results from an IGS study on the Oka niobium deposit. According to Nio, tests confirmed strong niobium, phosphate and rare earth contents, and outlined process options to recover niobium, REE, tantalum, zirconium and potentially phosphate from historical drill-core composites.

What niobium recovery and grade did Nio (NIOCF) report from the new Oka metallurgical tests?

The flotation tests produced a pyrochlore concentrate grading 52.75% Nb2O5 at 81.14% niobium recovery. According to Nio, this compares with a 2011 feasibility baseline of 44.5% Nb2O5 at 71.7% recovery and was achieved using a markedly simpler processing flowsheet.

What rare earth element grades were identified in Nio Strategic Metals’ 2026 Oka study for NIOCF?

The study reported total rare earth oxide contents of 0.507% TREO and 0.935% TREO in composite samples. According to Nio, the pyrochlore concentrate contained 11.75% TREO, mainly cerium oxide, neodymium oxide and praseodymium oxide, outlining additional critical mineral recovery potential.

How does the new Oka process reduce thorium and uranium levels according to Nio (NIOCF)?

Tests showed residue thorium reduced from 2,000 ppm to 824 ppm and uranium from 1,000 ppm to 120 ppm. According to Nio, this approach both lessens environmental impact and supports a de-risking plan for rehabilitating tailings at the historical Oka mining site.

What does the IGS metallurgical study suggest about phosphate by-product potential at Nio’s Oka project (NIOCF)?

The study recommends further tests to assess monetization of phosphate as a by-product alongside pyrochlore concentrate production. According to Nio, historical resource samples tested 4.29% P2O5, indicating that phosphate historically sent to tailings might be commercially recoverable.

Which organizations were involved in the 2026 metallurgical study of Nio’s Oka deposit (NIOCF)?

The study was prepared by IGS Impact Global Solutions for CTRI as part of the Éléments08 initiative. According to Nio, CTRI is an applied research and technology transfer centre focused on industrial tailings and also sponsors a complementary water management and environmental study.

Who qualified the technical information in Nio Strategic Metals’ Oka metallurgical results for NIOCF?

The technical information was reviewed and approved by geological consultant Pierre-Jean Lafleur, P.Eng. According to Nio, he acts as the qualified person under National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, providing regulatory assurance over the disclosed metallurgical data.