Perpetua Resources has partnered with Idaho National Laboratory, under Battelle Energy Alliance, to host, commission and operate a flexible, modular pilot plant to process Stibnite project ore into military‑specification antimony trisulphide concentrate for munitions and advanced defence systems. The pilot forms part of a US Army Defence Ordnance Technology Consortium agreement, with Perpetua now holding up to US$22.4 million in DOTC funding to advance domestic critical mineral processing. It runs alongside early works on the US$1.3 billion Stibnite gold‑antimony mine in central Idaho, aimed at a fully domestic “ground‑to‑round” supply chain.

Copper prices rebounded to $11,556.50/t on the LME, close to this week’s record $11,771/t, as RBC Capital Markets warned that mine disruptions and weak project pipelines mean higher prices are needed to unlock new supply. Analysts link the tight outlook to AI-driven data centre build-out, EV expansion and expectations of a US copper tariff, all adding to structural demand. The move follows a brief 1.3% pullback after Chinese data showed producer prices falling for a 38th consecutive month ahead of a key US rate decision.

Argentina’s Mendoza province has approved the PSJ Cobre Mendocino project, a $559 million joint venture between Zonda Metals and Alberdi Energy, marking its first large-scale mine in over 20 years after Senate endorsement of the environmental impact statement. The Uspallata operation is planned for 40,000 tonnes per year of copper concentrate over a 16-year mine life, using conventional flotation, with construction scheduled for 18–24 months and an estimated 3,900 construction and 2,400 operating jobs. The project now moves into detailed engineering, feasibility, cost and financing analysis before a construction decision.