the general public along with large ore trucks going loaded to Port MacKenzie and returning empty to the mine. Also, if the antimony deposit is developed it will likely lead to con - struction of an ore processing facility at Port MacKenzie, the industrial port on Upper Knik Arm that is owned and operated by the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, according to sources famil - iar with the project. This would not only bring new business to the but also, along with the mine, new industrial property tax
base to the Mat-Su borough, which is now largely dependent on residential and commercial property taxpayers. NovaMinerals’ discoveries are west of Skwentna. The company’s Estelle gold project includes 514 patented state mining claims located along an approximate 25-mile trend of min - eralization that holds about 20 dis - covered prospects including two with multi-million-ounce gold resources that are being explored.
In addition to munitions and am- munition for military use, antimony is important in the making of a wide range of traditional and high-tech applications, including semiconduc- tors and energy systems, Gertelsen said. The initiative appears to be part of a broad strategy by President Donald Trump to have the government fund and sometimes invest in companies that are exploring for critical miner- als. In addition to the Nova Minerals grant, the U.S. Department of Ener- gy has taken an ownership stake in Trilogy Metals, a Canadian company exploring copper discoveries in the Ambler Mining District in Northwest Alaska. The $36.5 million purchase of Tril - ogy shares will fund a renewed explo - ration drilling at the Arctic and Borni - te copper discoveries made by Trilogy and its partner, an Australian-owned company, South 32. Previously, and under the administration of former President Joe Biden, the Defense De - partment awarded a grant to Graph- ite One, a company planning devel - opment of a graphite mine on the Seward Peninsula in western Alaska. If NovaMinerals moves into de - velopment of its gold and antimony discoveries, the mining will facilitate development of the planned 99-mile West Susitna Access Project, a road that would open undeveloped lands in the western part of Mat-Su to indus - trial and recreation uses. The Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) is de - veloping the road and has filed for the federal permits needed. AIDEA said the road will be open to the public and will not be restricted to industrial uses. While many Mat-Su residents support the road because it will open more areas for sportfishing and hunt - ing, people who own recreation- al cabins in the area have expressed concerns because of increased access and noise and dust that could result from the trucking of ore from a mine to Port MacKenzie. There are also worries about the design of the road and whether it will be wide enough and with enough pullouts to safely accommodate travel
— Tim Bradner
TEMSCO
Serving all of Alaska since 1958 HELICOPTERS, INC.
Photo Courtesy Nova Minerals
TIMBER EXPLORATION MINING SURVEY CARGO OPERATIONS
The Trump Administration has continued to help fund projects exploring for critical minerals.
Nova Minerals nets $43M for antimony exploration Federal grant
a boost for the proposed West Susit - na access road as well as the Mat-Su borough’s Port MacKenzie. “We are proud to have Alaska Range Resources partner with the U.S. Department of War to help se - cure a fully domestic, redundant sup - ply chain for the munitions and other defense products our troops need to keep our nation and allies safe,” Nova Minerals’ CEO Christopher Gertelsen said.
mony near a gold deposit the compa - ny is developing in the western Mata - nuska-Susitna Borough. Antimony is a strategic metal commonly used in the manufacture of munitions. Alaska Range Resources LLC, a U.S. subsidiary of Nova Minerals, will re - ceive the grant under the U.S. Defense Production Act, which allows the gov- ernment to help finance projects that are important to national defense. The Nova Minerals grant will also provide
shows need for critical minerals The U.S. Department of War (for - merly Department of Defense) has made a $43.4 million grant to Nova Minerals, an Australian company, to assist in exploring a deposit of anti-
TEMSCO Helicopters, Inc PO Box 5057 Ketchikan, Alaska 99901 Phone 907-225-5141 • fax 907-225-2340 • www.TemscoAir.com
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THE LINK: The Official Magazine of the Alaska Support Industry Alliance | WINTER 2026
www.AlaskaAlliance.com
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