US mining companies will increase production of antimony for the defense industry due to depleted reserves of this mineral in the country after China banned the export of some strategic dual-use goods, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Antimony prices have quadrupled compared to 2 years ago after China imposed restrictions on exports of this mineral to the US. It is widely used in the defense industry to improve the quality of bullets and armor-piercing shells.
It is noted that the US has not carried out large-scale antimony mining for many years, so American companies are currently developing sites for this purpose in the states of Alaska and Idaho. In September, the U.S. Department of Defense allocated $43 million to accelerate production of the mineral in Alaska. The U.S. government also signed a $245 million contract to supply blocks to United States Antimony, which operates an antimony smelter.
The White House has said that antimony supplies will resume amid a truce in the U.S.-China trade war.