• Nova Minerals’ ore-sorting work demonstrates suitability for scalable, low-cost processing
• Estelle project identified as one of few projects with near-term antimony production potential
• Company believes dual gold and antimony production could be a rare and valuable combination

 

Special Report: Nova Minerals’ ore sorting testwork has put the Australian junior on track to potentially become the first fully integrated antimony producer in the US.

Based on the highly encouraging results, Nova (ASX:NVA) has developed a conceptual flowsheet for the onsite recovery and upgrading of the Estelle gold and critical minerals project’s antimony ore.

Significantly, the results from the Styx prospect at Estelle demonstrate the high-grade nature of the project’s ore and its suitability for scalable, low-cost onsite processing of ore into concentrates.

An independent report by RFC Ambrian in February 2025 identified Estelle as one of only nine global projects with near-term antimony production potential.

Now, on the back of these latest met test results, Nova is continuing with renewed confidence to explore options to establish a US domestic supply chain for antimony in Alaska.

An added bonus is that the testwork results also demonstrate a gold recovery of 52.5 per cent, lifting the grade from 1.90 grams per tonne (g/t) 2.99 g/t. This increase of 57.4 per cent demonstrates a strong potential for synergy between antimony and gold processing circuits at Estelle.

Beneficiation and purification testwork are underway to develop and refine the rest of the downstream flowsheet.

 

Bulk potential

The testwork on a 500kg bulk sample from the Styx prospect at Nova’s flagship 9.9Moz Estelle project delivered a 132 per cent upgrade in antimony content. The test produced a 49.1 per cent antimony trisulfide concentrate from a single sorting pass, with 60.3 per cent of contained antimony recovered in just 26.1 per cent of the mass.

CEO Christopher Gerteisen said: “These ore sorting results from our Styx prospect represent a significant breakthrough in the advancement of Estelle’s critical minerals strategy.

“Achieving a 132 per cent upgrade to produce a 49.1 per cent antimony trisulfide concentrate from a single pass demonstrates Estelle’s high-grade antimony is amenable to low-cost, scalable, on-site processing.

“Importantly, we’ve shown that 60.3 per cent of the contained antimony can be recovered in just 26.1 per cent of the mass, with gold beneficiating to the tailings – opening up synergies between the antimony and gold circuits at Estelle.

“With this success, we believe Nova is rapidly positioning itself to become the first fully integrated US domestic antimony producer at scale.

“Additionally, the results unlock an exciting dual-stream potential for Estelle. We can now look at extracting high-grade antimony from ore while also recovering upgraded gold from the tailings – a rare and valuable combination.”

 

 

Strategic asset

Antimony is listed as a critical mineral by the US government due to its vital use in military applications, semiconductors, and energy storage – and with current supply dominated by China which has banned exports into the US, Western supply chains are under severe strain.

Nova believes its Estelle project – already home to a 9.9Moz gold resource – could now help fill this strategic gap, with antimony-rich prospects such as Styx and Stibium emerging as near-term development candidates.

The company is currently engaged with the US Department of Defense through its membership in the Defense Industrial Base Consortium (DIBC) and grant application processes.

Gerteisen added: “In the current geopolitical environment, where Western defence supply chains are under immense pressure, we believe our Estelle Project stands out as a truly strategic asset.

“With Styx and Stibium now confirmed as high-grade, near-term development prospects, and US government engagement well underway through our DIBC membership and DoD grant applications, Nova is fast-tracking a solution to the critical antimony supply gap.

“We are proud to lead the charge in re-establishing domestic production of this defence-essential mineral, and today’s results mark another key step toward potentially delivering a secure, U.S.-based supply chain – right here in Alaska.”

 

 

This article was developed in collaboration with Nova Minerals, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

 

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.