Plan View
Plan view of the Graal property showing the late-time electromagnetic (EM) response, the location of the MHY, Gravi and Discovery zones, open areas along the mineralized trend, and regional drill results. The dashed lines mark the traces of the cross sections presented for each zone below: A–A′ (Discovery), B–B′ (MHY) and C–C′ (Gravi).
MHY Zone
Gravi Zone
Discovery Zone
Exploration History
Graal sits in ground the Quebec government first mapped systematically in 1970, inside the Lac-Saint-Jean Anorthositic Suite, the largest anorthositic complex in the world. Five decades of work by government geologists, prospectors, Virginia Gold Mines, SOQUEM, and two operators of the modern era have built the dataset Coniagas explores with today.
1970
Mapping under the Ministry of Natural Resources' Grenville Project. NQN Mines Ltd flies an airborne electromagnetic survey and conducts geological mapping (GM 27034).
1986–1988
Prospector Lionel Lefebvre excavates trenches on showings known since the 1970s.
1996
Virginia Gold Mines options a claim block containing a copper-nickel showing from the Mining Fund Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean and begins prospecting.
1997
Virginia flies a helicopter-borne Mag-EM survey and drills the first 18 holes on the property, totalling 1,998 m (GM 56023). The same year, C. Hebert of the MRNQ flags the nickel-copper-cobalt potential of the northern Lac St-Jean anorthosite during regional fieldwork. Trench sampling returns up to 4.3% Cu with 0.32% Ni and 0.05% Co (sample RT-97-C235).
1998–1999
The MHY grid is extended; magnetometric and Max-Min surveys follow (GM 56382). Government mapping at 1:50,000 covers the surrounding SNRC sheets.
2000
Two Virginia drill campaigns total 2,625 m (GM 58807, GM 58815). Hole 1279-00-08 returns 0.50% Cu, 0.84% Ni and 0.10% Co over 10.15 m.
2002
SOQUEM runs a pulse DEEP-EM electromagnetic survey (GM 60717).
2003
SOQUEM and Virginia complete eight holes totalling 1,147 m on the MHY grid (GM 60730). Hole 1279-03-40 intersects 0.80% Cu and 1.03% Ni over 10.25 m, including 2.75% Cu and 1.06% Ni over 1.5 m.
2004
A 1,085 m campaign adds six new holes and deepens one 2003 hole to intersect mineralization at depth (GM 61185).
2021–2022
Canada Silver Cobalt Works (now Nord Precious Metals Mining) drills 64 holes totalling 16,788 m in three campaigns, supported by borehole EM, fixed-loop TDEM and SQUID surveys. The program defines massive-sulphide mineralization at the MHY, Gravi and Discovery zones, with intersections up to 28.9 m (0.41% Cu, 0.73% Ni, 0.09% Co in GRL-22-60), mostly 50-100 m below surface.
September 2023
Under an arrangement agreement dated September 13, 2023, CCW agrees to transfer the Graal property to Coniagas Battery Metals.
January 2024
The NI 43-101 Technical Report on the Graal Nickel & Copper Project is completed by GoldMinds Geoservices and Laurentia Exploration, consolidating all work to date.
2025
Laurentia Exploration is engaged to design the next drill program (February). Field work begins on the southern claims (May). A research partnership with Université du Québec à Chicoutimi advances understanding of the mineralized system (August). The drilling authorization is received (September), and a property-wide helicopter-borne TDEM survey is launched (November).
May 2026
The 468 line-km HTDEM survey confirms the bowl-shaped conductive architecture of the MHY-Gravi area and identifies new untested conductors north and south of the known zones. Coniagas stakes an additional 87 km², more than doubling Graal to 148 km². An AI-assisted targeting study integrates the geophysical and geochemical datasets to rank drill targets.
Planned
9,500 m of drilling toward a maiden mineral resource estimate in 2027, alongside the first systematic airborne survey of the D'Artagnan property.
Historical results (pre-2021) have not been verified by the Company's Qualified Person.
FROM THE NI 43-101 TECHNICAL REPORT
Core Photos
GRL-22-60 — MHY Zone — Box 12–19 (49.10 m – 83.20 m)
GRL-22-61 — MHY Zone — Box 17–19 (71.70 m – 77.60 m)
NRC-22-24 — Gravi Zone — Box 28–36 (120.40 m – 159.00 m)
NRC-21-03 — Discovery Zone — Box 29–31 (134.70 m – 147.20 m)
NRC-21-03 — Discovery Zone — Box 29–31 (134.70 m – 147.20 m)
NI 43-101 Technical Report (January 2024)
Complete drill tables, geophysics and project history.