MAX Power Mining Corp. (CSE: MAXX; OTC: MAXXF; FSE: 89N) drilled its Lawson 5 well to 2,175 meters and pulled 62 meters of core. The release reporting it contains no hydrogen concentration reading. About seven hours later, the same company announced it would study AI data centers powered by that hydrogen.
MAX Power’s Lawson 5 Well Reaches 2,175 Meters in Saskatchewan
Lawson 5 is a 30-km step-out from the four wells that make up the Lawson Complex near Central Butte, Saskatchewan, MAX Power reported on October 27. It sits along the western edge of the Prairie Evaporite, a buried salt formation. The well has been cased, with steel pipe set in the hole so it can be tested later, and it will be folded into the company’s upcoming Lawson completions program. Lawson 6 is already drilling about 8 km to the southeast.
Natural hydrogen is hydrogen gas produced underground by geological reactions, not manufactured from water or natural gas. At Lawson 5, the company’s evidence is what it saw in the rock. In the deepest section, covering the lower Deadwood Formation and the Precambrian basement, MAX Power described more pronounced iron redox reactions and serpentinization than at earlier Lawson wells, along with strong hematite oxidation. Serpentinization is a reaction between water and iron-rich rock that can release hydrogen. The company associated those features with elevated natural hydrogen along near-vertical faults.
The release gives no hydrogen concentration or flow rate for Lawson 5.
Chief Geoscientist Steve Halabura told investors it remains unknown whether Lawson 5 hit a separate hydrogen system or one connected to the Lawson Complex, a question he said more drilling and geophysical work will address. Lawson 5 skirted the edge of the salt wall, according to Halabura; Lawson 6 has a better chance of drilling straight through the Prairie Evaporite. Higher in the hole, the Lower Interlake formation holds zones the company considers prospective for helium, which may be tested during completions.
MAX Power Starts Completions at Bracken, Lawson Testing Next Week
Completions are the work that turns a drilled hole into a well that can actually be flow-tested. MAX Power has started that program at Bracken, its target in Saskatchewan’s far southwest near the Montana border. Crews then head north next week to begin testing the Lawson Complex, where the company plans to measure flow and hydrogen concentrations, and to estimate volume.
That testing is the step that matters. Every finding to date describes the presence of natural hydrogen, not how much can be produced. MAX Power’s own cautionary language, in its second release of the day, states that identifying natural hydrogen does not establish commercially recoverable resources or reserves, or show that production would be economic.
The company now describes active, generative natural hydrogen systems in three areas separated by as much as 365 kilometers, stretching from Lawson 5 through the Lawson Complex to Bracken. Its release frames the upcoming testing as an attempt to confirm the world’s first large-scale commercial discovery of a new primary energy source. That is the company’s goal, in its own words. It is not a result.
On Lawson 4, Halabura said the company appears to have hit what he called the natural hydrogen ‘kitchen,’ one potentially larger than first believed. MAX Power said an update on Lawson 4 and the broader complex would come shortly, without giving a date.
MAX Power Signs Non-Binding MOU With Douglas Capital
At 8:00 a.m. ET, MAX Power announced a strategic memorandum of understanding with Douglas Capital Inc., a Toronto-based private investment and infrastructure development firm that manages the investments of John Douglas’s family. A memorandum of understanding, or MOU, records what two parties intend to explore. This one is non-binding apart from certain customary provisions.
Douglas founded Transmission Developers Inc. in 2008 and was its CEO through 2010. That company originated the C$8 billion, 1,250 MW Champlain Hudson Power Express, which was built under Blackstone ownership after Blackstone acquired the developer. The line entered commercial operation in June 2026, delivering Quebec hydroelectricity to New York City.
The MOU covers two ideas. One is a network of Canadian-built data centers in Saskatchewan running on electricity generated from MAX Power’s hydrogen, subject to technical and commercial validation. The other is selling power into CANVergence Energy Way, a proposed Alberta-to-Ontario corridor intended to be First Nations-controlled and to carry a 2,000 MW high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission system. HVDC is a way of moving large amounts of electricity over long distances.
Both are proposals. The 2,000 MW figure is the corridor’s planned transmission capacity, not generation MAX Power owns or has measured.
Under the MOU, Douglas Capital would lead project development, financial modeling, customer outreach and efforts to raise development capital for data center projects, while MAX Power supplies the subsurface and hydrogen data needed to size them. The document creates no partnership or joint venture and commits neither side to financing. It grants MAX Power no rights in the corridor or data center sites, and grants Douglas Capital no rights to MAX Power’s hydrogen. The parties intend to agree on a joint feasibility work plan, including a budget and timetable, within 30 days of the MOU’s effective date, which the release does not state.
MAX Power Adds US$700,000 in Paid Investor Marketing
Further down the Lawson 5 release, MAX Power disclosed two amendments to its investor marketing agreement with RazorPitch, Inc., effective October 5 and October 13. Each adds US$250,000 in cash fees, bringing RazorPitch’s total under the contract to US$850,000 for digital, social, influencer and broker marketing plus news amplification. The term runs to November 14, 2026.
The company also hired Emerging Markets Consulting, LLC for a two-week influencer and ‘AI discoverability’ campaign starting the week of October 26, paid US$200,000 in cash. Both firms are at arm’s length and hold no MAX Power shares, according to the company.
A third agreement, with Hampton Securities Limited, pays a one-time advisory fee of $400,000 plus taxes for a non-exclusive engagement running from October 13 to December 31, 2026. The release does not describe the scope of Hampton’s advisory work.
Paid promotion now overlaps directly with the start of flow testing.
On the cash side, MAX Power said it raised $1,662,000 between September 1 and October 15 from the exercise of 1,187,500 warrants and 891,667 stock options. Exercises issue new shares, which dilutes existing holders. The release does not state a cash balance or runway.
For US readers, MAXXF quotes on OTC Markets outside its OTCQX and OTCQB tiers, according to third-party quote data, which can mean thinner disclosure and uneven broker access. DTC eligibility, which determines whether a broker can settle shares electronically through the Depository Trust Company, is worth confirming with a broker.
MAX Power Lawson Testing and Douglas Work Plan Timeline
President Chad Levesque presents at the Planet MicroCap Showcase in Toronto at 12:00 p.m. ET on October 28, and CEO Rob Norris presents at the Red Cloud Fall Mining Showcase at 1:40 p.m. ET the same day. Norris and members of the team attend the H-NAT natural hydrogen conference in Paris next week, where MAX Power is a sponsor.
Lawson Complex testing crews are scheduled to move north from Bracken next week. The Douglas Capital work plan is due within 30 days of the MOU’s effective date, which has not been disclosed. RazorPitch’s contract term ends November 14, 2026.
Sources
- GlobeNewswire: Max Power Expands Scale of Saskatchewan Natural Hydrogen System With Lawson 5, Commences Follow-Up Well, October 27, 2026
- GlobeNewswire: MAX Power Partners With Douglas Capital to Advance Natural Hydrogen-Powered AI Data Centers and Canadian Energy Infrastructure, October 27, 2026
- Yahoo Finance: Max Power Mining Corp. (MAXXF) quote page, OTC Markets listing, retrieved October 28, 2026
Editorial Disclosure
This article is based on MAX Power Mining Corp.’s two GlobeNewswire releases dated October 27, 2026, along with third-party quote data for the company’s OTC listing. The security discussed is MAX Power Mining Corp. (CSE: MAXX; OTC: MAXXF; FSE: 89N). aktiego.com has not received any compensation from MAX Power, its management, investor relations representatives, marketing firms, or any third party. No staff member or principal of aktiego.com holds a position in this security at the time of publication.
MAX Power’s natural hydrogen projects are at the exploration and evaluation stage. The Lawson 5 release reports geological observations only; it contains no hydrogen concentration, flow rate, or pressure data, and no resource or reserve estimate has been published in the sources reviewed. The company’s own cautionary statement says identifying natural hydrogen does not establish commercially recoverable resources or reserves or demonstrate economic production. References to confirming the world’s first large-scale commercial discovery of a new primary energy source are the company’s stated objective, not an established outcome.
The Douglas Capital MOU is non-binding other than certain customary provisions. No definitive agreement exists, and the company states there is no assurance either initiative will proceed. Any development remains subject to technical, commercial and environmental feasibility, financing, permitting, required approvals, and definitive agreements. The proposed data centers and the CANVergence Energy Way corridor are proposals; the corridor’s 2,000 MW figure is planned transmission capacity. Per the company, the past project experience of Douglas Capital and its principals does not establish the feasibility of these initiatives.
MAX Power is paying for active investor promotion. Disclosed commitments include US$850,000 in total cash fees to RazorPitch, Inc. under an agreement running to November 14, 2026, US$200,000 to Emerging Markets Consulting, LLC for a two-week influencer and AI discoverability campaign beginning the week of October 26, 2026, and a one-time $400,000 advisory fee to Hampton Securities Limited. Readers encountering social media or influencer content about MAX Power during these periods should weigh it with that in mind. Some dollar figures in the company’s release, including the Hampton fee and the $1,662,000 raised through warrant and option exercises, are stated without a currency designation and are reported here as written.
Warrant and option exercises issue new shares and are dilutive to existing shareholders. The company lists financing availability and potential dilution among its risk factors. No specific cash balance or cash runway was identified in the sources reviewed.
MAXXF is quoted on OTC Markets outside the OTCQX and OTCQB tiers, according to third-party quote data; aktiego.com could not confirm the tier from a primary OTC Markets source. US investors should check broker availability and DTC eligibility directly. Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of MAX Power’s releases, per the company’s own standard disclosure.
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