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Vortex Energy Corp Receives Final Technical Study Results for Robinsons River Salt Project
Vortex Energy Corp. had received the final technical study prepared by Lonquist Field Service (Canada), ULC for the Robinsons River Salt Project, located approximately 35 kilometres south of Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador. The study integrates available geological, seismic, gravity and drilling information to refine the interpretation of the Project’s subsurface salt structures, assess available information regarding salt quality, identify potential future drilling targets and recommend a staged program of further technical work. Seismic, gravity and drilling data support the presence of a substantial western salt structure, with the 2024 drill hole VTX-24-W-02 intersecting an interval of approximately 278 m gross salt. Seismic interpretation identifies a potential incremental step-out west of VTX-24-W-02 where the salt section may reach approximately 350 metres in thickness. Reprocessed gravity data indicate a large, untested eastern target that may be deeper and potentially contain cleaner salt than the currently drilled western structure; this interpretation is based on gravity data and remains unconfirmed by drilling. Next steps include detailed core analysis, source-water and disposal studies and technical planning. The study confirms that Robinsons River hosts a thick halite-bearing system and identifies additional exploration potential, particularly within the untested eastern block. It also establishes a clearer framework for evaluating salt quality, subsurface geometry, drilling risk and potential commercial applications. Additional technical work will be required before the Company can determine whether the Project is suitable for commercial salt production, brine production or underground energy storage. No mineral resource or reserve, commercial production rate, storage-cavern design, storage capacity or economic evaluation has been established for the Project. The latest Robinsons River interpretation incorporates legacy seismic surveys, airborne and surface gravity data, historical well information and the results of the Company’s recent drilling program. The study concluded that the western salt block is supported by the strongest combination of seismic, gravity and drilling control, with VTX-24-W-02 confirming the presence of a substantial halite-bearing interval within the interpreted structure. The study found that VTX-24-W-02 intersected an approximately 278-metre gross salt interval. The term “gross salt interval” includes the broader halite-bearing interval and should not be interpreted as 278 metres of continuous, high-purity halite. Legacy seismic data are considered sufficient to map the interpreted minimum extent of the western structure and indicate that the salt section may thicken locally toward a potential step-out target west of VTX-24-W-02. This proposed “Cloverleaf” location would represent an incremental step-out from the existing well and has an interpreted salt thickness of approximately 350 metres. As part of the study, previously acquired airborne gravity data were reprocessed after it was determined that the original processing had used an inappropriate terrain-correction. Revised terrain corrections were incorporated into an updated gravity inversion, providing an appropriate basis for comparing the gravity response with the seismic interpretation. Based on the seismic interpretation, the final gravity inversion used fixed assumptions for the geometry of the Ship Cove Limestone structure and an assumed salt density of 2.30 grams per cubic centimetre. Under those assumptions, the model indicates additional potential salt east of VTX-24-W-02 and comparatively less salt immediately west of the drill hole than represented by the seismic salt isochore model. The seismic and gravity datasets therefore provide related but not identical interpretations. Seismic data support the Cloverleaf step-out west of VTX-24-W-02, while the gravity-difference model indicates that the most substantial additional salt volume may occur farther east. These differences reflect the indirect nature of both datasets and will require additional density information and drilling control to resolve. The updated interpretation also identifies a western gravity anomaly beyond the currently defined salt structure and a larger eastern exploration target. The western anomaly is supported by gravity but occurs in an area where the available seismic data are considered marginal in quality. The eastern target occurs where a broad gravity low broadly coincides with seismic features interpreted as possible salt. The seismic support for this target is considered to be ambiguous. The prospective top of the eastern salt structure may occur approximately 1,100 to 1,300 metres below surface, and remains untested by drilling. The western block is considered to be shallower, closer to existing infrastructure and supported by a higher level of geological confidence. The eastern block is farther from infrastructure and deeper, but the gravity response may indicate a greater proportion of lower-density material and therefore potentially cleaner salt. This remains an exploration hypothesis and has not been confirmed through drilling, core analysis or open-hole density logging. The study reviewed the available descriptions of the VTX-24-W-02 core to provide a preliminary assessment of salt quality. The study describes the interval from 327.0 to 516.5 metres as a heterogeneous halite-bearing interval dominated by dark grey to black halite, with frequent mudstone interbeds, muddy salt, mud skins, fractures and minor cleaner translucent salt veins. Several comparatively thick intervals were described as higher-quality salt; however, mud-rich salt and salt-cemented mudstone intervals may materially reduce the overall salt percentage and influence the suitability of the deposit for potential commercial applications. Based solely on the available core descriptions, a preliminary, high-level assumption was made that salt may comprise approximately 65% to 75% by volume within the evaluated interval. This estimate is not based on systematic whole-interval chemical assays, does not represent a mineral-resource estimate and does not establish recoverable salt tonnage or suitability for cavern development. Detailed review of the existing core, measurement of representative rock densities and determination of the salt percentage by volume are recommended before the Company makes a decision regarding additional drilling. The approximately 278-metre gross salt interval extends from approximately 327 to 605 metres and is based on the broader lithological record. The detailed descriptions used for the preliminary salt-quality review cover the 189.5-metre interval from 327.0 to 516.5 metres.