US Antimony aims to reboot Montana mine operations

United States Antimony (NYSE-A: UAMY) says it has been reacquiring mining claims next to its existing smelting operations in Montana this year and is now ready to reboot mine operations in areas that have permits in place.

These mining claims, U.S. Antimony said, have a history of antimony production dating back to the 1970s, and are all situated in or around its operating smelter — the only antimony smelting facility in the country.

The U.S. lists antimony as a mineral that is critical to its national and economic security. The grey-colored metal is used in a variety of high-tech and defence products, including flame-retardant materials, certain semiconductors and superhard materials. No antimony has been produced in the U.S. on a commercial scale since 2016.

After a review of geological and historical records, the newly acquired claims have “sufficient” quantities of antimony to restart mining, with as many as three vein systems present on the property, the Dallas-based company said Thursday.

Moreover, U.S. Antimony said it could be feasible to establish surface mining operations with minimal pre-development expenditure in addition to the prior underground operations.

The company is currently permitted to begin immediate mining operations on the five acres of the patented property, having already filed a small miners exclusion statement (SMES) with the State of Montana. It plans to file a second SMES within the next 10 days in addition to filing exploration permit applications with both Montana’s Department of Environment Quality and the U.S. Forest Service.

U.S. Antimony’s stock gained 4.2% to $2.22 Thursday on the NYSE American exchange. That gave the company a market capitalization of about US$264 million.

First in decades

Chairman and CEO Gary Evans said the decision to restart mining operations next to the company’s smelter stems from a “significant price increase” experienced for worldwide supplies of antimony ore in the wake of China’s embargos initiated last year.

China, the world’s leading producer, controls around 80% of the world’s processing capacity. The U.S., meanwhile, has no domestic production and is highly reliant on Chinese imports.

Due to the tense relationship between the two nations, securing a U.S.-based supply of antimony has become a key focus of the Trump administration. Earlier this year, it fully permitted the Stibnite project held by Perpetua Resources (TSX, Nasdaq: PPTA) in Idaho, which is said to host one of the largest reserves outside Chinese control. 

U.S. Antimony, too, aims to bolster the U.S. supply chain, leveraging its antimony oxide smelter in Thompson Falls, which it estimates could produce 5 million lb. per year of antimony metal. The new mining claims in Montana would make U.S. Antimony the first company to restart domestic production of the metal going back “decades,” Evans said.

“Governments around the world are finally beginning to understand the need to secure their own supply chains, specifically for critical minerals. There continues to exist a worldwide shortage of this critical material necessary for our Department of Defense,” Evans said.

In addition to its presence in Montana, the company also holds over 35,000 acres of mining claims in Alaska that could provide additional feed to the Thompson Falls smelter.