Perpetua seeks $2 billion loan for Stibnite project in Idaho

Perpetua Resources (Nasdaq: PPTA) (TSX: PPTA) has submitted a formal application to the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Exim) for up to $2 billion in debt financing to fund construction of its Stibnite project, in Idaho.The request is an increase from the $1.8 billion outlined in Exim’s 2024 nonbinding letter of interest. Perpetua attributed the higher figure to a revised estimate of job-years stemming from recent financial and engineering updates.Earlier this week, the miner announced it had obtained final approval for the Stibnite gold-antimony project, which is being fast-tracked by the Trump administration.The Stibnite project, with its recently secured record of decision from the US Forest Service, is uniquely positioned to supply the critical mineral antimony, which is essential to national security and energy technology, the company said.Antimony, classified as a critical mineral essential for technology, defense, and energy applications, is imported into the US as there is currently no domestic production. China accounted for 60% of globally mined antimony in 2024, according to data from the US Geological Survey.Last September, China banned exports of the metal to the US.The Stibnite project holds an estimated 148-million-pound antimony reserve — the only identified antimony reserve in the US and one of the largest reserves outside of Chinese control. Once in production, it could meet about 35% of US antimony demand during its initial six years of production, according to the 2023 USGS commodity summary.Perpetua said Stibnite is also expected to host one of the highest-grade open-pit gold mines in the country, with reserves of approximately 4.8 million ounces. Over the first four years of production, it is expected to produce 450,000 ounces of gold annually.Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com