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First Atlantic Nickel Highlights Relevance of Pipestone XL Awaruite Nickel-Cobalt Alloy Discovery to Address U.S. Critical Mineral Supply Chain Vulnerabilities Identified in January 14, 2026 White House Proclamation
Grand Falls-Windsor, Newfoundland and Labrador--(Newsfile Corp. - January 15, 2026) - First Atlan...
About this update from First Atlantic Nickel & Cobalt Corp.
[{"type":"text","content":"First Atlantic Nickel Highlights Relevance of Pipestone XL Awaruite Nickel-Cobalt Alloy Discovery to Address U.S. Critical Mineral Supply Chain Vulnerabilities Identified in January 14, 2026 White House ProclamationGrand Falls-Windsor, Newfoundland and Labrador--(Newsfile Corp. - January 15, 2026) - First Atlantic Nickel Corp. (TSXV: FAN) (OTCQB: FANCF) (the \"Company\" or \"First Atlantic\") notes that its Pipestone XL discovery of awaruite, a rare, naturally occurring nickel-iron-cobalt alloy, is relevant to critical mineral supply chain vulnerabilities outlined in the White House proclamation published January 14, 2026. The proclamation, titled \"Adjusting Imports of Processed Critical Minerals and Their Derivative Products into the United States\" states that processed critical minerals and their derivative products (PCMDPs) are being imported into the United States in quantities that may threaten to impair national security. The proclamation identifies nickel and cobalt as essential minerals for critical infrastructure, defense applications, and battery energy storage systems.The proclamation further notes that, \"Even where the United States has domestic mining capacity, such as for cobalt, nickel, and rare earth elements, the United States lacks the domestic processing capacity to avoid downstream net-import reliance.\"In response, the Secretary of Commerce recommended that the President \"negotiate agreements with foreign nations to ensure the United States has adequate critical mineral supplies and to mitigate the supply chain vulnerabilities as quickly as possible.\" Canada is considered a \"domestic source\" under Title III of the U.S. Defense Production Act (DPA) and produces 21 of the 50 minerals designated as critical by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), as well as 10 of the 12 NATO defense-critical raw materials1.USGS Identified Awaruite - A Rare Magnetic Nickel-Cobalt Alloy - as a Potential Solution to Nickel Concentrate ShortagesFirst Atlantic's Pipestone XL discovery represents the first large-scale reported drilled discovery of awaruite in the Western Hemisphere since the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) identified this rare magnetic nickel-cobalt alloy as a potential solution to nickel concentrate shortages in its 2012 annual report on nickel.The USGS stated: \"The development of awaruite deposits in other part...