Phase 2 Metallurgical Testwork at Horden Lake
Pivotal has initiated Phase 2 metallurgical testwork at Horden Lake, a project it fully owns. The company is exploring the potential to increase recoveries of nickel, gold, silver, platinum, and palladium, aiming to boost revenues and improve project economics. Horden Lake already holds a 37Mt resource at 1.1% copper equivalent, with significant growth potential.
Enhancing Value Through Metallurgical Work
The company is starting the next stage at Horden Lake by conducting new metallurgical testwork to extract more value from by-product metals. Phase 2 focuses on improving processing for nickel, precious metals, and PGMs, ensuring that the concentrate is more valuable and enhancing the overall project economics.
In Phase 1, which concluded in 2025, Pivotal Metals reported copper recoveries ranging from 87-94%, producing clean, high-grade concentrates without penalty elements. The company also noted good recoveries of gold, silver, and palladium, along with separate high-grade nickel concentrates containing additional cobalt, copper, and palladium credits. However, there was still room for improvement.
This next round of work aims to extract even more value from all the metals present. Pivotal’s goal is to enhance nickel recovery and maximize the extraction of gold, silver, platinum, and palladium. Results from this phase are expected by the end of Q2 and will be used for further engineering and economic studies.
Managing director Ivan Fairhall emphasized that the testwork aims to further boost copper recoveries and optimize processing to better target the full suite of other metals. “The program represents an important step in de-risking the project and positioning it for future development and potential strategic engagement,” he said.
More Than Just a Metallurgy Update
Horden Lake is not just a small project; it’s a sizeable one. The 2025 resource stands at 37Mt at 1.1% copper equivalent, with most of the resource located in a shallow, pit-friendly zone. Beyond copper, the project offers a mix of nickel, palladium, platinum, gold, silver, and cobalt. The numbers include 234,000t of copper, 72,000t of nickel, 12.27Moz of 3E, 5.23Moz of silver, and 5,231t of cobalt, totaling 407,000t CuEq.
Location is another key advantage. Horden Lake is situated in Quebec, approximately 131km from Glencore’s former Matagami copper mine and adjacent to the James Bay highway. This provides easy access to infrastructure in a well-established mining area. Cheap hydro power and government support add to the project’s appeal.
Improved by-product recoveries could also facilitate financing options, including potential streaming arrangements alongside equity. This is a crucial reason why this work matters—it’s not just about lab results but making Horden Lake easier to fund as it progresses.
Two-Sided Upside
Pivotal Metals has two clear angles for investors. At Horden Lake, the company possesses what many junior miners are seeking: a shallow copper project in a proven mining area, with a 37Mt resource and straightforward metallurgy. There is still room for improvement, and every technical success here could influence the market’s perception of the project.
The Belleterre project offers exploration upside as well. Pivotal is currently drilling and running geophysics across its Quebec land, targeting copper-nickel-PGM and copper-gold systems. The rig recently completed work at Midrim East, moved to Alotta, and will soon begin operations at Lac Croche and Lorraine. This should result in numerous assays coming through in Q2.
Pivotal has more than one opportunity to capture investor attention. If it continues to enhance Horden Lake while achieving exploration success at Belleterre, the company can build its development case and discovery upside simultaneously.
However, copper remains the primary focus. Strong demand driven by electrification, renewables, EVs, grid upgrades, and data centres makes large new copper projects highly sought after. Finding and funding such projects is challenging, which is where advanced assets like Horden Lake can become attractive.
