Pan American Energy Targets REEs and Lithium in Pivotal 2026 Strategy

CALGARY, AB – January 08, 2026 – Pan American Energy Corp. has unveiled a strategic roadmap for 2026, signaling a pivotal year for its dual-pronged exploration efforts targeting some of the world's most sought-after critical minerals. The company outlined plans to advance its Tharsis rare earth element (REE) and niobium project in the Northwest Territories and its Big Mack lithium project in Ontario, positioning itself at the forefront of Canada's push to build secure domestic supply chains for the green energy transition.

Following a year of foundational technical work in 2025, Pan American is now focused on translating geological data into high-confidence drill targets. The strategy underscores a broader industry trend: moving beyond speculative exploration toward systematic, data-driven programs designed to de-risk assets and attract the capital necessary to meet soaring global demand for battery and high-tech metals.

A Potential Winter Drill Program at Tharsis

The company’s Tharsis project, a carbonatite alkaline complex prospective for REEs and niobium, is a key focus for the coming year. In 2025, Pan American completed essential groundwork, including outcrop magnetic sampling and bathymetric surveys of Squalus Lake, to refine its understanding of the project's complex geology. This work has paved the way for a significant step forward in 2026.

Pan American announced it is evaluating a potential winter drill program at Tharsis, a move that could provide the first subsurface confirmation of mineralization. The exploration model is partly guided by magnetic patterns similar to those at the famed Oka Carbonatite Complex in Quebec, suggesting that low-magnetism zones at Squalus Lake could represent the mineral-rich core of the system. Initial analysis has been encouraging, with samples indicating that critical magnet metals neodymium and praseodymium—essential for high-performance permanent magnets in electric vehicles and wind turbines—consistently account for 24% of the total rare earth values. Furthermore, QEMSCAN analysis has identified bastnasite as the primary host for REEs, a mineral commonly processed in major rare earth mines globally.

Niobium, another target at Tharsis, is seeing its market profile rise. Primarily used to create high-strength, low-alloy steel for construction and automotive manufacturing, its demand is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of nearly 7% through 2035, driven by new applications in aerospace, defense, and next-generation batteries. A successful discovery would place Pan American within a jurisdiction actively promoting its critical minerals endowment, including some of the world's largest undeveloped niobium and REE resources.

Advancing Ontario's High-Grade Lithium Potential

Simultaneously, the company is advancing its Big Mack Project in the Paterson Lake area of northwestern Ontario, a region rapidly emerging as a significant North American lithium hub. The project targets lithium-cesium-tantalum (LCT) pegmatite mineralization, a geological formation known for hosting high-grade lithium deposits.

Work in 2025 focused on integrating the latest drilling results with historical data to build a robust geological framework. For 2026, the plan is to update the geological model and further prioritize drill targets. Recent drill results have validated the project's potential, with assays returning high-grade intercepts such as 1.71% lithium oxide (Li₂O) over 19.6 meters and a notable 2.75% Li₂O over 1 meter. These grades are competitive with established deposits in the region, including the nearby Separation Rapids project owned by Avalon Advanced Materials.

Mineralogical analysis confirmed that petalite, a key ore mineral for lithium, comprises up to 75% of the mineralized samples. This is significant as the lithium market is forecast to rebound in 2026, with some analysts projecting spodumene concentrate prices could rise over 50% from 2025 lows. The growth is not only fueled by EVs but also by a massive expansion in grid-scale energy storage systems, which could account for a third of all lithium demand by 2026.

The Methodical Science Behind the Exploration

Pan American's approach emphasizes a disciplined, science-first methodology. This strategy was underscored by CEO Adrian Lamoureux in the company's announcement.

“Last year, we continued to build on a strong technical foundation at Tharsis and Big Mack,” said Lamoureux. “The work completed helped us refine geological understandings and improved our ability to prioritize exploration targets. Now our focus remains on disciplined and cost-effective technical advancement that will support well-justified exploration decisions.”

This commitment to "disciplined and cost-effective technical advancement" is crucial in the junior exploration sector, where capital is precious. By integrating multiple datasets—from magnetic surveys to detailed mineralogy—the company aims to increase the probability of success before committing to costly drill programs. This methodical process of strengthening target confidence is what separates promising prospects from economically viable deposits.

Bolstering Market Presence for a Critical Year

In a concurrent move to support its ambitious field programs, Pan American announced the appointment of Independent Trading Group, Inc. (ITG) as a market maker for its shares on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE). For an exploration-stage company, ensuring a stable and liquid market for its stock is paramount for attracting and retaining investor interest.

A market maker like ITG contributes to a fair and orderly market by continuously providing buy and sell quotes, which helps tighten the bid-ask spread and can mitigate excess volatility. This move is often a precursor to increased corporate activity and is designed to strengthen a company's capital markets profile as it advances its projects toward significant milestones, such as a maiden resource estimate or a major drill campaign.

The timing aligns with a powerful geopolitical tailwind. Western governments, including Canada, have committed billions to developing secure, domestic critical mineral supply chains to reduce reliance on foreign sources. Canada's nearly $4 billion Critical Minerals Strategy provides a supportive framework for companies like Pan American, creating a favorable environment for exploration, permitting, and eventual development. As Pan American enters 2026, it does so with two highly prospective projects, a clear technical path forward, and strategic alignment with both market demand and national policy.