Nova Minerals Receives $65.5m US Grant to Accelerate Estelle Project Antimony Production

Nova Minerals (ASX: NVA) subsidiary Alaska Range Resources (ARR) has received $65.5 million in US government funding to produce military-grade antimony trisulfide from the Estelle gold and critical minerals project in Alaska.

The funding falls under the Defence Production Act Title III program targeting projects which create, maintain, protect, expand or restore domestic industrial base capabilities critical to the US Department of War.

ARR will complete environmental studies to finalise permitting, geological surveys and testing to optimise and target drilling activities at Estelle, initiate stibnite extraction, conclude metallurgical studies, and construct and commission the project’s processing plant and refinery.

State-of-the-Art Antimony Hub

Nova chief executive officer Christopher Gerteisen said the award would fund the initial establishment of a full spectrum state-of-the-art antimony mining hub in Alaska.

“We are proud to have ARR partner with the US Department of War to help secure a fully domestic supply chain for munitions and other defence products our troops need to keep our nation and allies safe,” he said.

“It will also enable our future supply of critical metals to the US industrial base for a wide range of traditional and high-tech applications, including semiconductors and energy systems.”

Mr Gerteisen said the award provided further confidence in the quality of Estelle’s antimony mineralisation and highlighted the potential scale and scope of future production.

Significant Stibnite Deposits

Nova has previously confirmed the presence of significant deposits of stibnite – the most abundant naturally-occurring ore of antimony – at the Stibium prospect within Estelle, where surface samples showed very high-grade antimony of up to 60.5%, along with as much as 141 grams per tonne gold.

China and Russia currently control the global market for antimony and its derivatives, putting the US at risk of supply interruptions that could jeopardise national security.

Establishing domestic sources for critical metals such as antimony and its compounds should help enhance the long-term resilience of the nation’s supply chains.

“We look forward to working closely with our local partners from the University of Alaska Fairbanks CORE-CM group, the Department of Natural Resources, the Industrial Development and Export Authority, the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, and Alaska Tribes and Native Corporations to bring Estelle into production,” Mr Gerteisen added.