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China-Japan-Koreas

China now controls the world's access to Antimony

2024-11-19

[OilPrice] With JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon warning Washington that China and Russia are seeking to dismantle the Western world, and “World War III has already begun”, access to critical metals that serve as the fuel of America’s military has become the most urgent issue of our time.

Critical metals will determine superpower status and global domination.

China is winning because it controls the bulk of the world’s critical metals, from mining to refining. Washington has been slow to discover domestic or friendly resources, at a time when the U.S. Army desperately needs them.

I was under the impression that the EPA regulations made mining in the US much more expensive because it’s dangerous, dirty work. I wonder how the recent Supreme Court ruling severely restricting bureaucratic regulation creation will play out here…

So, when a North American junior miner emerges as the owner of key critical metals properties in Europe and North America that could provide a new supply of one of these critical metals, the Western world sees hope.

The critical metal that is now poised to make or break a global superpower is antimony, and the miner is Military Metals (CSE:MILI; OTC:MILIF)--a little-known company that just put itself on the critical metals map through some smart strategic acquisitions.

Antimony (Sb), a critical metalloid, is a key element of the American war machine, essential for communication equipment, night vision goggles, explosives, ammunition, nuclear weapons, submarines, warships, optics, laser sighting and more, according to U.S. Army Major General (retired) James Marks.

Not only does China control nearly half of the world’s antimony production, but it also cut off antimony exports to the U.S. beginning in September this year.

THE U.S. ARMY IS NOW DESPERATE FOR ANTIMONY
China produces an astonishing ~70% of the world’s rare earth minerals and controls nearly 50% of the global antimony supply.

While China was pushing ahead at full speed, America was napping instead of discovering and developing new critical metals reserves.

Then, at the height of the trade war, China threatened to restrict the export of some rare earth minerals. It made good on that threat this year, and last: First, with Germanium and Gallium in 2023, and then with antimony in September this year.

Now, the U.S. Army has found itself short on an essential element of its military production line, just as war beckons from Europe to the Middle East. And it will need large amounts of antimony to succeed with a new push to ramp up production of artillery shells at newly launched manufacturing facilities after years of destocking.

Meanwhile, American manufacturers use more than 50 million pounds of antimony each year for fireproofing compounds, batteries, ammunition, electronics, specialty glass, and other products, according to MetalTech.

Now, it’s past time for America to stake its claims on critical metals reserves, and Military Metals (CSE:MILI; OTC:MILIF) is helping to do just that.

NEW ANTIMONY RESOURCES FOR THE COMING CRITICAL DEMAND SURGE
Military Metals is on an antimony acquisition binge that’s taken it as far away as EU-member Slovakia and Nova Scotia in Canada.

It’s planning to help retell the American antimony story by exploring new and re-developing historical venues that could chip away at China’s control over what is essentially a “military metal”.

Military Metals recently announced that it has purchased one of Europe’s largest antimony deposits in Slovakia. In the heart of Central Europe, it’s a promising Soviet-era resource with an initial discovery from the 1950s and prior development in the ‘80s and ‘90s. It’s already seen two phases of exploration, including drilling and Adit excavation.

At the Trojarova Antimony Project, which could turn Slovakia into a European critical minerals hub, Military Metals says that underground development of this historical resource, funded by the Slovakian government, was shuttered in the 90s “prior to reaching the richest part of the deposit”.

Back then, with the Cold War winding down, and antimony already having served its purpose as the hero of World War II, the motivation just wasn’t there.

Today, the situation is very different, and EU’S Trojarova project--with a historical resource of over 61,000 tons of antimony worth around $ 2 billion in situ value at today’s spot prices—could now become a military kingmaker.

But Military Metals isn’t concentrating all of its effects on a single continent: it’s also making huge moves back in North America, in Canada’s famous WWI antimony mine in Nova Scotia.

Military Metals is sitting on a recently acquired historical antimony/gold play, the West Gore Antimony Project—Canada’s biggest past producing antimony mine and a key supplier to the Allied Forces in WWI.

It's an impressive historical resource, with historical drilling results demonstrating over 7 meters of 10.6 gpt gold and 3.4% antimony.

Posted by:3dc

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