Nova Minerals Ltd (ASX:NVA, NASDAQ:NVA, FRA:QM3) earlier this week updated investors on the successful completion of its 2026 winter freight mobilisation campaign at the Estelle Project in Alaska, marking a significant milestone in the company’s push toward domestic US antimony production.
The company said all essential mining, extraction and processing equipment required for phase one antimony operations had now been successfully transported to site under its US Department of War (DoW) award program.
CEO Christopher Gerteisen told Proactive that Nova Minerals was progressing rapidly toward production of military-grade antimony trisulfide, supported by a US$43 million Department of War grant awarded in 2025.
Gerteisen said the project sat at the centre of growing US efforts to secure strategic supplies of critical minerals, particularly antimony, which is used across defense, semiconductors, batteries, solar panels and flame-retardant products.
He noted that munitions applications remained the current priority, describing military-grade antimony trisulfide as a highly specialised product within the broader antimony market.
The company completed what Gerteisen described as its “biggest ice road season ever,” transporting more than 1.5 million pounds of freight, including heavy mining equipment weighing up to 100,000 pounds.
According to Gerteisen, favourable winter conditions enabled Nova Minerals to construct ice bridges up to six feet thick, allowing uninterrupted delivery operations throughout the season.
Importantly for investors, the company indicated it could achieve antimony trisulfide production by late 2026 or early 2027, potentially six to nine months ahead of schedule.
“We think we’re going to be ahead of schedule and potentially producing our antimony trisulfide by the end of this year, early next year,” Gerteisen said.
Nova Minerals said the Department of War funding fully covers phase one activities through to production, reducing near-term financing risk while positioning the company to become a revenue-generating antimony producer.
Looking ahead, management outlined the potential for a larger-scale second phase involving expanded mining operations and construction of a broader antimony refinery capable of producing additional refined products including antimony metal and antimony trioxide.
Beyond antimony, the Estelle Project also contains substantial gold resources. Gerteisen said Nova Minerals planned one of its largest drilling campaigns to date at the RPM gold deposit as the company advances both critical minerals and precious metals development activities in Alaska.
Key highlights
- Nova Minerals completed its 2026 winter freight mobilisation campaign at the Estelle Project in Alaska.
- More than 1.5 million pounds of freight and heavy equipment were delivered to site.
- The company received a US$43 million Department of War grant focused on domestic antimony production.
- Nova Minerals is targeting production of military-grade antimony trisulfide.
- Management believes production could begin six to nine months ahead of schedule.
- Winter conditions allowed the construction of six-foot-thick ice bridges to support heavy transport operations.
- Heavy machinery weighing up to 100,000 pounds was successfully delivered.
- The current phase is fully funded through to production.
- Phase two could involve larger-scale refining operations producing antimony metal and antimony trioxide.
- Nova Minerals also plans significant drilling activity at the RPM gold deposit during 2026.
- The company expects phase one antimony production to transition Nova Minerals into revenue generation.
Proactive: Welcome back to Proactive Investors. Ladies and gentlemen, I'm your host Kerry Stephenson. Today we’re joined by Christopher Gerteisen, CEO and executive director of Nova Minerals. The company’s Estelle Project in Alaska contains both gold and antimony, which is recognised as a critical mineral. Chris joins us to discuss the company’s winter mobilisation campaign. Chris, great to see you again.
Christopher Gerteisen: Good to see you again, Kerry. Great to be with you.
Proactive: I understand around 1.5 million pounds of freight was delivered between March and early April. From a shareholder perspective, what is the significance of this mobilisation?
Christopher Gerteisen: The race for critical minerals is on and antimony is one of the key strategic materials globally. It has many applications including green energy, batteries, solar panels, semiconductors and flame retardants, but currently the major focus is munitions.
Nova Minerals recently received a US$43 million Department of War grant to help restore domestic antimony production in the United States. Specifically, the company is tasked with producing military-grade antimony trisulfide.
The grant was awarded in September last year and the company has a 24-month timeline to achieve production. As part of the execution plan, Nova Minerals has purchased mining and processing equipment needed to extract ore and produce military-grade antimony trisulfide.
The recent winter road freight operations were designed to transport all required equipment to site. Conditions this year were ideal, allowing the company to build ice bridges up to six feet thick to support the transport of heavy machinery.
This was the company’s largest ice road season ever, with equipment weighing between 80,000 and 100,000 pounds successfully delivered. All required equipment has now arrived on site and preparations are underway for mining activities and processing plant construction.
The company believes it could begin producing antimony trisulfide by the end of this year or early next year, potentially six to nine months ahead of schedule.
Proactive: That is a significant amount of work completed. Does the Department of War funding cover the company through to production?
Christopher Gerteisen: Yes, the funding covers phase one through to production. The focus of phase one is specifically military-grade antimony trisulfide for munitions applications, which has become increasingly important in the current geopolitical environment.
Military-grade antimony trisulfide is a specialised product within the wider antimony market. Success in this phase could lead into phase two, which would involve scaling up mining operations and building a larger refinery capable of producing additional refined antimony products including antimony metal and antimony trioxide.
Those products would support not only defense requirements but also the broader US industrial market.
Proactive: Are you pleased with the pace of progress and will this move Nova Minerals into revenue generation?
Christopher Gerteisen: Yes. Successful completion of phase one will make Nova Minerals a producer of antimony and generate revenue.
In addition to antimony, the Estelle Project also contains significant gold resources. The company is planning one of its largest exploration seasons yet, including additional drilling at the RPM deposit to continue expanding resources as Nova Minerals advances toward potential gold production.
At the moment, however, the focus remains on antimony and delivering the Department of War project ahead of schedule and on or below budget.
Proactive: Congratulations on the progress. Investors should visit the Nova Minerals website for more details on the Estelle Project and the company’s antimony strategy. We’ll have you back to discuss the gold side in future. Thanks again for joining us.
Christopher Gerteisen: Thanks for having us.