Nova Minerals Corp (ASX:NVA, NYSE-A:NVA) has shipped almost 500 tons (454 tons) of antimony processing and refining equipment to Alaska, marking a major step towards construction of its Port MacKenzie facility and targeted first production in 2027.
The shipment includes crushing, ore sorting, milling, flotation, and refining equipment packed into more than 40 containers, along with several oversized loads.
A barge carrying the equipment departed Seattle on August 26 and is expected to reach Port MacKenzie in early September, allowing construction of the processing facilities to begin.
The development forms part of Nova’s strategy to establish a vertically integrated US antimony supply chain linking its Estelle Gold and Critical Minerals Project with downstream processing and refining infrastructure in Alaska.
Existing equipment cuts cost and timeline
Nova acquired a recently decommissioned modern processing facility in North America, together with additional equipment sourced elsewhere across the continent, before consolidating the plant in Seattle for shipment north.
The company is repurposing existing equipment rather than designing and fabricating a new plant from scratch - expected to deliver meaningful cost savings and accelerate the pathway to production.
The Port MacKenzie plant is designed initially to process stibnite-bearing material into antimony trisulfide under a US government-backed development program.
Its modular configuration also provides scope for future expansion into other refined antimony products, including antimony metal and antimony trioxide.
Port MacKenzie provides access to deepwater port infrastructure as well as the proposed West Susitna Access Road and an existing rail spur.
US$43.4 million government funding
Nova’s antimony development is fully funded through a US$43.4 million US government award supporting the establishment of a domestic antimony supply chain.
Once the initial project is completed, Nova expects the Port MacKenzie refinery to operate as a strategic US processing and toll-treatment facility supplying refined antimony products for defence, industrial and critical technology applications.
Nova Minerals chief executive Christopher Gerteisen said the shipment represented an important transition as the company moves from exploration and development towards antimony production at Estelle.
“A key part of our strategy has been to acquire existing, modern processing equipment and mobilise it to Alaska, rather than build new equipment from scratch,” he said.
“That decision allowed us to move faster and more cost-effectively as we construct our processing plant at Port MacKenzie and work toward first antimony production in 2027.”
Estelle underpins broader critical minerals strategy
Nova is developing the Estelle Gold and Critical Minerals Project in Alaska, which hosts two defined multi-million-ounce gold resources and more than 20 prospects along a 35-kilometre mineralised trend.
Alongside its gold strategy, the company is advancing antimony development as part of plans to establish a secure domestic US supply of the critical mineral.
