Canada Nickel Announces the Referral of the Company's Crawford Project to the Major Projects Office by the Government of Canada

On November 14, 2025, Canada Nickel Company announced that its flagship Crawford Nickel Project has been officially referred to the Major Projects Office by the Government of Canada. This office is tasked with coordinating and accelerating the regulatory process for projects of national significance. The release includes supportive quotes from Tim Hodgson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, highlighting the project's alignment with Canada's clean economy and critical minerals strategy. CEO Mark Selby stated that this recognition is encouraging and that the company looks forward to working with the Major Projects Office to unlock the financing and permitting required to begin construction by the end of 2026.

This news is a significant and material positive development for Canada Nickel. The referral of the Crawford project to the Major Projects Office provides substantial validation from the federal government and is a critical de-risking event for both permitting and financing.

Reviewing the company's progress over the past year reveals a clear and successful strategy of engagement with government and First Nations partners: - Permitting: The company filed its Impact Statement in November 2024 and received federal conformity in December 2024, becoming the first mining project to reach this stage under the 2019 Impact Assessment Act. The referral to the Major Projects Office is the culmination of these efforts and should streamline the path to final permits. - Government Support: The project was recognized as a "Critical Minerals Priority" by the Ontario government in June 2025. This latest federal support aligns provincial and national interests, creating a powerful tailwind for the project. - First Nations Partnerships: The company has signed key agreements, including a landmark $20 million convertible note investment from the Taykwa Tagamou Nation (TTN) and a contracting agreement with the Mattagami, Matachewan, and Flying Post First Nations. These partnerships significantly de-risk the social and community aspects of the project.

While the company has executed well on these critical non-technical milestones, its financial position remains precarious. The July 31, 2025 financials showed only $7.4 million in cash against $36.4 million in current liabilities, resulting in a working capital deficit of approximately $28 million. The company is reliant on short-term bridge loans and periodic equity raises to fund its significant exploration and development expenditures.

The primary challenge remains securing the estimated $2 billion in initial capital required to construct the Crawford mine. The referral to the Major Projects Office does not provide this capital directly, but it serves as a powerful endorsement that will be crucial in attracting the necessary project financing from strategic partners, banks, and government agencies. This news makes the difficult task of raising $2 billion more achievable. The market has reacted strongly, with the stock price surging to new 52-week highs, confirming the material importance of this milestone.

Canada Nickel Company Inc. is a mineral exploration and development company focused on advancing its portfolio of nickel sulphide projects in the Timmins Nickel District of Ontario, Canada.

Its flagship asset is the Crawford Nickel-Cobalt Sulphide Project, which is one of the largest undeveloped nickel sulphide resources globally. The project is currently in the advanced permitting and financing stage following the completion of a Feasibility Study and Front-End Engineering Design (FEED). A key differentiating feature of the project is the company's proprietary and patent-pending IPT (In-Process Tailings) Carbonation process, which is designed to capture and sequester CO2 in the mine's tailings, potentially making Crawford a net-zero carbon or even carbon-negative source of nickel for the electric vehicle and stainless steel industries.