Guardian Metal Resources (NYSE:GMTL), a strategic exploration company focused on tungsten in Nevada, has signed a partnership with the Montana Mining Association to run a domestic tungsten mining and recovery pilot programme supporting US defence applications, with Montana Technological University and the Army Research Laboratory also participating.
Under the agreement, Guardian Metal will supply 250 to 400 tonnes of stockpiled legacy ore from its Tempiute Tungsten project, located approximately 150 miles northeast of Las Vegas, for trial processing at a milling facility in Philipsburg, Montana.
First shipments are targeted for late summer, subject to completion of metallurgical test work currently underway at laboratories in both the US and UK, followed by pilot-scale testing on-site in Montana.
The programme aims to evaluate commercial pathways for producing tungsten metal powder for defence-relevant uses entirely within the US, with further ore shipments from Tempiute possible if the initial phase succeeds.
"At a time when tungsten supply security has never been more critical to US defence and industrial capability, this initiative represents a tangible step toward building an entirely domestic supply chain, free from reliance on foreign sources," said CEO Oliver Friesen.
Tempiute, formerly the Emerson Tungsten Mine, was originally discovered in 1916 and last operated in the 1980s; it is one of two co-flagship assets alongside Pilot Mountain that Guardian Metal is advancing toward a mine-to-market tungsten supply chain.
