Perpetua Resources (Nasdaq: PPTA) (TSX: PPTA) said on Thursday it has identified gold and antimony exploration targets with the potential for extensions of the permitted pits within its Stibnite project in Idaho, and that it identified potential sources of tungsten. 

Tungsten is a critical mineral that has the highest melting point of any metal, and extreme density, making it essential for heavy industry, aerospace engineering, advanced electronics, and military defense systems like armor-piercing ammunition.  

Tungsten production in the US ceased in 2015. The US had been mining tungsten, but it was no longer commercially viable due to low prices and competition from China. 

China dominates global tungsten production, accounting for over 80% of last year’s total output of 81,000 tons, according to the USGS. 

“Our focus is on drilling areas that align with our currently planned mining sequence with potential to directly add value,” Perpetua CEO Jon Cherry said in a news release.  

“Our priority is testing higher-grade gold and antimony targets within our three permitted pits that could supplement our existing Stibnite Gold project mine plan with the aim of sustaining or exceeding our estimated annual average production level of 463,000 gold ounces beyond our first four years of production.”  

The company said recent drilling between the currently permitted Yellow Pine and West End reserve pits continues to reveal compelling new mineralization, including multiple high-grade gold intervals and a new gold-tungsten discovery.  

Significant high-grade gold intercepts, including a gold-tungsten intercept, have been identified in the Clark Tunnel Fault Zone (CTFZ) located along the southeastern edge of the proposed Yellow Pine pit. Additional occurrences of scheelite, a tungsten-bearing mineral, have been observed in ongoing drilling in the CTFZ, Perpetua said.  

Huckleberry fault zone 

Widely spaced drilling and surface sampling at the Huckleberry Fault Zone (HFZ) returned broad intervals of gold mineralization. Lying immediately adjacent to the Yellow Pine reserve pit limits, the HFZ spans over 100 meters in width and has been traced across 0.5km of strike length, with historic data indicating higher-grade lenses can occur.  

At the Hangar Flats deposit, drilling at the NDMEA zone encountered additional high-grade gold, while critical mineral-focused drilling at Hangar Flats returned significant antimony-tungsten intercepts. 

These results collectively demonstrate further opportunities to grow and unlock the 3.1 million ounces of indicated and inferred gold resources and 99.8 million pounds of antimony resources that are located outside current reserves, Perpetua said.  

These targets are based on previous drilling, historic mining activities and recently defined prospects across the broader, prospective land package, the company said, adding that any activity outside the scope of the currently permitted project may require additional regulatory review.