A good read from the NAG thread


https://www.csis.org/analysis/chinas-antimony-export-restrictions-impact-us-national-security#:~:text=The%20United%20States%20stockpiles%20limited,percent%20of%20U.S.%20antimon

A3: The United States has mined no antimony since the closure of the Sunshine Mine in Idaho in 2001. Today, the United States meets 18 percent of demand through the recycling of lead-acid batteries, but is otherwise import reliant on China (63 percent), Belgium (8 percent), India (6 percent), and Bolivia (4 percent). The United States stockpiles limited antimony of just 1,100 tons compared to the 23,000 tons consumed in 2023.

The United States was not always reliant on foreign sources for antimony. In the mid-twentieth century, domestic mining accounted for over 90 percent of U.S. antimony consumption. However, antimony mining is especially environmentally risky and challenging, as the metal is toxic and carcinogenic. As environmental regulations tightened in the 1970s, domestic antimony production declined. The Stibnite Gold Mine, the largest producer of antimony in the country, ceased operations in 1990s, marking the end of U.S. self-reliance for antimony.

Perpetua Resources has proposed plans to reopen the Stibnite Gold Mine to once again domestically produce antimony-trisulfide for missile and munitions applications. The project has attracted U.S. government attention, with the Department of Defense awarding $24.8 million through its Defense Production Act Investments Program to complete an environmental study and the U.S. Export-Import Bank sending the company a letter of interest for a $1.8 billion loan. However, the project is not scheduled to begin production until 2028 and is still awaiting final permitting. After China announced restrictions on antimony exports, share prices of Perpetua jumped 19 percent—exceeding a three-year high.

The United States will need to look to alternative antimony sources to mitigate antimony export restrictions and potential disruptions as soon as possible.