U.S. Department of Defense conditionally awards up to $34.6 million in additional funding to Perpetua Resources, bringing total Defense Production Act Title III funding to $59.4 million.
Perpetua secures up to $34.6 million in additional funding. (Credit: Dominik Vanyi on Unsplash)
Perpetua Resources Corp. (Nasdaq: PPTA ) (TSX: PPTA) announced today that its wholly owned subsidiary, Perpetua Resources Idaho, Inc. (collectively, “Perpetua Resources” or “Perpetua” or the “Company”), was conditionally awarded up to $34.6 million in additional funding under the existing Technology Investment Agreement (“TIA”) through Title III of the Defense Production Act (“DPA”). Full funding of the additional award is conditioned on modifying the existing TIA to expand the in-scope work for advancing permits and construction readiness. The modification is anticipated to be completed in the first quarter of 2024.
Antimony trisulfide is essential to national defense as a key component for munitions, yet no domestic mined supply currently exists. China, Russia, and Tajikistan control 90 percent of the global antimony supply chain.
Perpetua’s proposed Stibnite Gold Project (the “Project”) is designed to re-establish a U.S. source of the critical mineral antimony as a by-product of one of the highest-grade open pit gold resources in the United States. The additional funding will allow the Company to continue advancing the construction readiness of the Stibnite Gold Project and support the environmental and technical studies related to the Project’s progress through the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) review process, led by the United States Forest Service (“USFS”).
Under the modified TIA, Perpetua may request reimbursement for certain costs incurred through June 30, 2025 related to environmental baseline data monitoring, environmental and technical studies and other activities related to advancing Perpetua’s construction readiness and permitting process for the Stibnite Gold Project. The DPA funding does not interrupt the ongoing NEPA review.
“This latest award from the Department of Defense brings us a step closer to realizing our vision for the Stibnite Gold Project,” said Laurel Sayer, President and CEO of Perpetua Resources. “Establishing a domestic source of the critical mineral antimony is more important than ever, and we stand ready to responsibly produce critical resources here at home and help strengthen America’s national and economic security.”
Source: Company Press Release