Peace River frac-sand quarry

RESOURCE CONTEXT

Peace River Paddy Member (up to 16.5 m friable quartz sand), Firebag ≈16 Mt, Bruderheim glaciofluvial sand

Peace River Paddy Member and Bruderheim sands already supply Montney frac sand; glass and solar grades are the next tier.

Official reserve statements for this commodity (1)

• Firebag silica resource16 Mt · Resource estimate · 2014Athabasca Minerals / Norwest PEA ↗

GEOLOGICAL SETTING

Prospectivity envelopes for Silica sand

• Peace River Formation quartzose sandsHighly favourable
  Cretaceous shoreface quartz arenite (frac / glass-grade silica)
• Basal McMurray / Firebag silicaFavourable
  Clean fluvial quartz sand beneath / beside the oil sands
• Bruderheim glaciofluvial sandProducing / drill-proven
  Reworked Quaternary quartz sand processed for industrial grades

Development regime

Tenure

Metallic & Industrial Minerals Tenure Regulation (AR 265/2022): permit — exclusive exploration right, indefinite term, no rent, $625 fee, assessment work $7/ha (first 2 years) → $13 → $20/ha; lease — 15-year initial + 15-year intermediate term, indefinite while producing, $3.50/ha rent. Quaternary sand on Crown land is held under a Surface Material Lease (Public Lands Act).

Royalty

$0.37/t silica sand from a sandstone lease (AR 350/93 s.12); surface materials pay Public Lands royalties.

DATASETS TO STACK HERE

Public layers that cover this site

• Bedrock geology of Alberta (Map 600 tiles)Alberta Geological SurveyWhich formation is at the bedrock surface: the first screen for outcropping targets such as silica sand, limestone, ironstone, bentonite, ammonite shell and shallow coal.
• Bedrock geology polygons (DIG 2013-0018, queryable)Alberta Geological SurveyAttribute-level bedrock mapping for screening host lithologies; heavy, so it loads only when zoomed in.
• Surficial geology of Alberta (Map 601 tiles)Alberta Geological SurveyCover type and thickness proxy; controls aggregate, placer, peat and indicator-mineral dispersal trains.
• Surficial sand & gravel deposits (DIG 2015-0027)Alberta Geological SurveyDirect aggregate and placer target layer; also screens silica sand and construction supply near demand centres.
• Bedrock topography (DIG 2020-0022 tiles)Alberta Geological SurveyBuried valleys and bedrock highs: where cover is thin (cheap stripping) and where preglacial gravels pool.
• Sediment (drift) thickness above bedrockAlberta Geological SurveyOverburden cost for open-pit targets and the depth of cover that geophysics must see through.
• Industrial mineral occurrences (DIG 2019-0027)Alberta Geological SurveyQuarry and industrial-mineral target inventory.
• AGS prospective areas for mineral explorationAlberta Geological SurveyThe survey's own view of where each commodity is prospective; compare with the Atlas knowledge-driven envelopes.

NEARBY OPERATIONS

Within reach

• NeoLithica — Peace River lithiumLithium brine · NeoLithica · ≈17 kmExploration
• Clear Hills iron–vanadium (Rambling Creek)Metallic exploration · Ironstone Resources (dormant) · ≈111 kmExploration
• First Helium — Worsley 15-25Helium · First Helium · ≈116 kmPermitting
• Buffalo Head Hills diamondsDiamond exploration · Star Diamond · ≈150 kmExploration
• LithiumBank — BoardwalkLithium brine · LithiumBank Resources (SLB FS/FEED) · ≈156 kmPilot / demonstration
• Alberta No. 1 geothermal (Greenview)Geothermal · Terrapin / No. 1 Geothermal LP · ≈172 kmPermitting