Sun Silver aims to seize ‘strategic opportunity’ presented by antimony at Maverick Springs

• Sun Silver moves to unlock antimony potential of its Maverick Springs silver-gold project
• It will continue to re-log and test historical core and drill chips for the critical mineral
• Analysis will also be carried out to assess antimony’s distribution to evaluate its economic significance

Special Report: Sun Silver is advancing its antimony strategy after identifying the potential for its Maverick Springs silver-gold project in Nevada to host significant quantities of the much sought-after critical mineral.

Back in September, antimony – valued for use in ammunition and other weapons, solar panels to increase their efficiency and in making batteries less flammable – was found in all five of the historical holes the company tested with readings topping up at 13,199 parts per million (1.32%).

What’s even more important for Sun Silver (ASX:SS1) is that these holes were located up to 1.3km apart, indicating that mineralisation is distributed widely.

This is supported by the company’s 2024 drilling, which returned antimony assays that exceeded the 10,001ppm (1%) detection limit.

Confirming that antimony is present in mineable quantities will be hugely significant as the US imports over 90% of its requirements.

Global supply is currently dominated by China, Russia and Tajikistan as geopolitical and trade tensions have led China, which produces 70% of the world’s supply, to ban exports to the US while sanctions have restricted Russian supplies – even if the Trump presidency appears to be warming up to its old Cold War rival.

Adding to that uncertainty, supplies from Tajikistan, the remaining major producer, are questionable due to its operating under significant Chinese influence.

But defining a local source of antimony will allow the US to, at the very least, mitigate this supply risk, a point recognised by the US Department of Defense, which has allocated funding under the Defense Production Act (DPA).

‘Strategic opportunity’

“The identification of antimony within the Maverick Springs resource represents a fantastic strategic opportunity for Sun Silver,” managing director Andrew Dornan said. 

“With the US being heavily reliant on foreign antimony supply and against the backdrop of recent export restrictions from China, our project is emerging as a potential domestic source for this critical mineral. 

“Given the widespread distribution of the mineralisation and consistent orebody characteristics, we are optimistic about the potential to define additional antimony – and to unlock the value of that antimony alongside our large silver-gold resource. 

“In parallel with advancing the silver-gold development, we are actively engaging with US government agencies and industry stakeholders to position Maverick Springs as a key contributor to the establishment of secure, domestic supply chains for critical minerals.”

This includes progressing discussions with multinational law firm Holland and Knight, which it had engaged in May 2024 to lead a two-stage process aimed at securing funding for the development of a silver paste facility in the US, aligning with the nation’s ambitious solar energy targets.

Advancing Maverick Springs

SS1 is rapidly advancing Maverick Springs, which sits 85km from the fully serviced mining town of Elko and is surrounded by several world-class gold and silver mining operations including Barrick’s Carlin Mine, while integrating antimony into its strategic plans.

It will continue to re-log and use portable XRF to test historical drill core and reverse circulation chips that were only previously tested for silver and gold.

A comprehensive analysis will also be carried out to expand the assessment of antimony distribution to evaluate its economic significance and processing potential.

Once this work is completed, it plans to incorporate antimony into future resource estimate updates where appropriate to quantify its contribution to the project’s overall value.

The company also intends to enhance geological models to optimise development plans and better define the project’s multi-commodity potential.

This article was developed in collaboration with Sun Silver, 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.