First Tellurium is committed to exploring for green and critical metals such as tellurium, gold and silver.
The company’s vision is to maximise returns to investors through its Impact Growth Model for mineral exploration, generating valuable critical metals discoveries.
First Tellurium is also helping empower and enrich its Indigenous partners through sustainable exploration.
Using a scaled approach, a minimal environmental footprint will be created while building low-cost, efficient operations that enable production on a shorter timeline.
Its tellurium projects in British Columbia and Colorado will help develop green technologies, as the demand for this important metal continues to increase.
First Tellurium’s flagship Deer Horn property represents a unique mineral asset with its high grades of silver, gold and tellurium.
Why tellurium is essential for the energy transition
Tellurium is one of Earth’s rarest elements, and it’s playing key roles in clean energy, battery storage and a growing list of technological uses.
Tellurium’s primary use is for manufacturing films essential to photovoltaic solar cells. When alloyed with other elements – such as cadmium – tellurium forms a compound that exhibits enhanced electrical conductivity.
Furthermore, tellurium is used in copying machines, as a colouring agent in ceramics and glass, and as a vulcanising agent in the chemical industry to make durable products, including an additive that improves rubber’s heat resistance.
Critical metals at the Deer Horn property
As North America’s only gold-silver-tellurium property with an NI 43-101 compliant tellurium resource, the Deer Horn property represents a unique critical minerals asset.
Exploration to date has outlined a 17.5 square-kilometre mineral zone that includes a copper-gold porphyry with extensive bornite on the surface and a 2.4-kilometre strike length of high-grade gold, silver and tellurium.
Key attributes of the property include:
- Silver & gold with high tellurium grades
- Recognised by First Solar Inc. as one of the world’s top tellurium properties
- Significant upside copper and tungsten porphyry potential
- Indigenous support
A Preliminary Economic Assessment (PEA) was completed in 2018 to establish grades, resources, recoveries and economic viability on a small portion of the main Au-Ag-Te vein system.
Co-operation with Indigenous communities
First Tellurium’s unique Cheona Metals First Indigenous partnership expands opportunities, opens up mineral ground that most companies don’t have access to and provides a vehicle for new beneficial partnerships.
The ‘small-mine’ strategy for the Deer Horn Project is expected to result in a minimal environmental footprint.
Additionally, planning for a smaller and more efficient project enhances cooperation with and assistance from federal, provincial, local and Indigenous governments.
