Overview
- The Export-Import Bank board unanimously approved a $2.9 billion senior secured loan for Perpetua’s Stibnite project on May 21, and the 13-year facility will be released after definitive documents expected in the second half of 2026.
- Perpetua has started on-site construction and says the open-pit mine will produce gold and antimony and reach commercial operations in 2029 while it negotiates Department of Defense and commercial offtake agreements.
- Antimony is a U.S. Geological Survey–listed critical mineral with no active U.S. mines today and heavy global reliance on Chinese producers for more than half of U.S. demand.
- Perpetua’s shares jumped about 12–14% after the announcement and EXIM says this is the largest loan under its 'Make More in America' initiative and the agency’s fourth-largest loan on record.
- Key uncertainties remain: the loan depends on finalized legal documentation, Perpetua’s claims about supplying a large share of U.S. antimony lack independent verification, and the project faces environmental and permitting issues in Payette National Forest that could affect its timeline and local jobs.