# First Atlantic Nickel & Cobalt Drills First Discovery Hole at Alloy Max South Zone with Drill Hole XL-26-18: Best Near-Surface Visible Awaruite to Date at Alloy Max, Ending in Open Mineralization; XL-26-17 Extends Alloy Max North; Drilling Now Spans 2.4 km of Strike and 1 km of Width at Alloy Max Canonical Atlas analysis: https://atlas-staging.minestarters.com/news/first-atlantic-nickel-cobalt-drills-first-discovery-hole-at-alloy-max-south-zone--6e654920-dda3-4630-b225-2f09d1ec65e6 Original source: https://orestocks.com/company/FAN.V/press-releases/6740195822579107 Publisher: orestocks Original announcement: 2026-10-13T11:00:00.000Z Analysis by Minestarters Atlas Atlas analysis published: 2026-10-13T11:46:05.303Z Atlas analysis updated: 2026-10-13T11:46:05.303Z - Company: First Atlantic Nickel & Cobalt Corp. - Ticker: FAN.V - Exchange: Unavailable - Region: Newfoundland and Labrador - Primary commodity: Nickel - Secondary commodities: Cobalt, Iron ore - Document categories: Drill results, Other - Extracted: 2026-10-13 11:46:06 UTC Narrative sentiment: 0.80 · Bullish ## Minestarters Atlas summary First Atlantic Nickel & Cobalt has announced the discovery of the Alloy Max South Zone via drill hole XL-26-18, which intersected abundant near-surface awaruite. Additionally, hole XL-26-17 has extended the Alloy Max North Zone, bringing the total drilled strike length to 2.4 km. Reasoning: The announcement reports a significant discovery hole \(XL-26-18\) and a major step-out \(XL-26-17\) that expands the project footprint, though specific Ni/Co assay grades for these new intercepts are not provided, relying instead on visual awaruite observations. - Positive factor: Discovery of new Alloy Max South Zone - Positive factor: Significant step-out extension to the north - Positive factor: Large-scale strike and width expansion - Positive factor: High-quality visual mineralization \(awaruite\) - Negative factor: Drill hole XL-26-18 unable to advance through faulted ground - Negative factor: Lack of assay grades for the new discovery hole \(visual only\) Facts used in scoring: 2 ## Classification and evidence **Step-Out Extension** Polarity: positive Definition: Mineralization extended beyond the previously known limit. Why it applies: XL-26-17 is described as a significant step-out to the north and east. Evidence · text > XL-26-17, a significant step-out to the north and east **QA/QC Disclosed** Polarity: positive Definition: Release includes QA/QC disclosure — certified lab, QP sign-off, or stated methods \(blanks, standards, duplicates\). Why it applies: The document includes a sign-off by a Qualified Person \(Adrian Smith, P.Geo\). Evidence · text > The qualified person is a member in good standing of the Professional Engineers and Geoscientists Newfoundland and Labrador \(PEGNL\) ## Extracted facts Stored fact records: 2. Some facts used in scoring do not have a stored record. ## Drill Results (2) ### XL-26-18 [Link to this fact](https://atlas-staging.minestarters.com/news/first-atlantic-nickel-cobalt-drills-first-discovery-hole-at-alloy-max-south-zone--6e654920-dda3-4630-b225-2f09d1ec65e6#fact-drill-facts-0) Pipestone XL · nickel #### Identity - Hole ID: XL-26-18 - Project: Pipestone XL - Commodity: nickel - Region: canada\_nl - Reported Region: canada\_nl - Ticker: FAN.V #### Geometry - Intercept: 40 m - From: 0 m - To: 40 m - Intercept Depth: 0 m #### Classification - Program: exploration - Sample Type: drill - Group ID: XL-26-18:0-40 - Mining Method: unknown #### Location - Location: Alloy Max South Zone - Dip: -60 ° - Loc. Source: document #### QA/QC - QP Signed: Yes #### Review - Needs Review: No - Interp. Status: scored - Historical: No #### Dates - Event date: 2026-10-13T00:00:00.000Z Reasoning: Discovery hole showing high-quality visual mineralization but lacks assay confirmation. - Positive factor: Discovery of new zone - Positive factor: Abundant near-surface awaruite - Negative factor: No assay grades reported - Negative factor: Drill stopped in faulted ground Evidence · text > Discovery hole XL-26-18... intersected abundant, large-grain, visibly disseminated awaruite within approximately 35 metres of surface #### Tags used in scoring **No QA/QC Disclosure** Polarity: negative Definition: Release does not disclose QA/QC — lab certification, CP/QP sign-off and assay protocols cannot be checked from this document. Why it applies: qaqc\_disclosed is not true **Cut-off Undisclosed** Polarity: negative Definition: High-grade interval reported without stating the cut-off grade used for compositing. Why it applies: no cutoff\_grade was stated **Nearology Play** Polarity: neutral Definition: Value premise rests on proximity to a known deposit rather than own results. Why it applies: proximity is offered as the value premise: "\# First Atlantic Nickel & Cobalt Drills First Discovery Hole at Alloy Max South Zone with Drill Hole XL-26-18: Best Near" ### XL-26-17 [Link to this fact](https://atlas-staging.minestarters.com/news/first-atlantic-nickel-cobalt-drills-first-discovery-hole-at-alloy-max-south-zone--6e654920-dda3-4630-b225-2f09d1ec65e6#fact-drill-facts-1) Pipestone XL · nickel #### Identity - Hole ID: XL-26-17 - Project: Pipestone XL - Commodity: nickel - Region: canada\_nl - Reported Region: canada\_nl - Ticker: FAN.V #### Geometry - Intercept: 351 m - From: 0 m - To: 351 m - Intercept Depth: 0 m #### Classification - Program: exploration - Sample Type: drill - Group ID: XL-26-17:0-351 - Mining Method: unknown #### Location - Location: Alloy Max North - Dip: -60 ° - Loc. Source: document #### QA/QC - QP Signed: Yes #### Review - Needs Review: No - Interp. Status: scored - Historical: No #### Dates - Event date: 2026-10-13T00:00:00.000Z Reasoning: Significant step-out hole confirming extension of mineralization with increasing grain size. - Positive factor: Significant step-out to the north - Positive factor: Largest awaruite grain measured to date - Negative factor: No assay grades reported Evidence · text > XL-26-17... intersected visibly disseminated awaruite with grain size increasing downhole #### Tags used in scoring **No QA/QC Disclosure** Polarity: negative Definition: Release does not disclose QA/QC — lab certification, CP/QP sign-off and assay protocols cannot be checked from this document. Why it applies: qaqc\_disclosed is not true **Cut-off Undisclosed** Polarity: negative Definition: High-grade interval reported without stating the cut-off grade used for compositing. Why it applies: no cutoff\_grade was stated **Nearology Play** Polarity: neutral Definition: Value premise rests on proximity to a known deposit rather than own results. Why it applies: proximity is offered as the value premise: "\# First Atlantic Nickel & Cobalt Drills First Discovery Hole at Alloy Max South Zone with Drill Hole XL-26-18: Best Near" ## How Atlas produces this analysis Minestarters Atlas uses automated extraction to summarize mining announcements, identify reported measurements, and classify supporting evidence. Sentiment reflects the extracted narrative and classification rules; it is an interpretation, not a reported measurement. Evidence quotes and context are provided where available. Missing data, low-confidence results, and review flags indicate limitations. Check the original publisher announcement before relying on an interpretation.