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THE JOURNAL - AN OFFICIAL PUBLICATION BY THE ALASKA MINERS ASSOCIATION
NOVEMBER 2025 | WWW.ALASKAMINERS.ORG
to become the leading U.S. miner and producer of refined antimony products — strategic, secure, and proudly made in the USA," said Gerteisen. This vision began to take shape about two years ago, when Nova geologists discovered veins of extreme- ly high-grade antimony while exploring the wider potential of the 5-million-ounce Estelle gold property in the West Susitna Mineral District. Upon collecting samples containing up to 60.5% anti- mony from thick veins of stibnite (an antimony min- eral) coming to the surface in an area called Stibium, Nova realized Estelle's potential as a strategic source of a highly critical metalloid. Over the ensuing two years, Nova geologists con- firmed the potential of the Stibium discovery — and the criticality of the antimony found there has intensified. That urgency escalated when Beijing banned exports of antimony to the U.S. in 2024, a move that raised serious concerns within the Pentagon. American manufacturers consume roughly 50 million pounds of antimony each year for ammunition, bat- teries, flame-retardant compounds, semiconductors, specialty glass, and other products essential to both defense and domestic industries.
Nova Minerals Secures Antimony Site BY SHANE LASLEY
BUILDING ALASKA ONE OUNCE AT A TIME Our firm understanding of Alaska’s unique challenges and commitment to HSSE and planning have translated into
W ith Pentagon backing and a goal to begin delivering Alaska-sourced antimo- ny into U.S. supply chains by 2027, Nova Minerals Ltd. has secured a 42.8-acre site at Port MacKenzie west of Anchorage for a refinery that would process antimony concen- trates from its Estelle project and other sources. "This is a defining moment for Nova Minerals and for U.S. critical mineral independence," Nova Minerals CEO Christopher Gerteisen said upon securing land use permits for the industrial site about four miles from a deepwater port in Southcentral Alaska. The refinery, to be developed by Nova subsidiary Alaska Range Resources (ARR), is part of a strategy to lever- age the very high-grade antimony
mineralization found on the compa- ny's Estelle project about 100 miles west of Port MacKenzie to establish a domestic supply of this metalloid critical to a wide range of military and commercial applications. With antimony landing high on the list of minerals of strategic concern, the U.S. Department of War (formerly the Department of Defense) recent- ly awarded ARR a $43.4 million grant to help support the development of an antimony mine at Estelle and a refinery at Port MacKenzie. Upon receiving the award, ARR signed a land use agreement with the Matanuska-Susitna Borough for the site that is less than two miles away from a deepwater port to build its Alaska antimony refinery. Borough leaders say the devel- opment of a key link in a critical
minerals hub at Port MacKenzie aligns with local economic and job creation goals. "This initiative positions our region for critical mineral development and strengthens our role in supporting national security," said Matanus- ka-Susitna Borough Manager Mike Brown. "We look forward to working collaboratively with Alaska Range Resources as they evaluate the potential for a long-term antimony processing facility that could bring lasting economic and strategic ben- efits to Alaska and our nation." For Nova, securing the refinery site is another tangible step toward establishing a complete antimony supply chain in Alaska. "With the land use permit secured and the Department of War award, we are rapidly advancing our vision
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