Published: May 20, 2026 |

Company officials expect mining and contractor plant operations to begin in late 2027.

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A southern Utah mining and refining operation aims to boost national security and revive the area’s rural economy by securing America’s strategic supply chain of a key mineral.

Utah Sen. John Curtis, Gov. Spencer Cox, and other dignitaries convened in Cedar City to announce the construction of a smelting plant to refine antimony, a mineral the federal government has designated as being critical for use in defense systems, battery storage, flame-retardant materials and advanced electronics.

The facility planned for Cedar City complements the Antimony Canyon Project taking shape in nearby Garfield County, an initiative that aims to establish the nation’s first domestic source of antimony and reduce America’s total reliance on other countries for the mineral.

Gov. Cox touted the project as a new chapter in Utah’s ongoing history in helping power America.

“By developing our own critical mineral resources and reducing reliance on foreign adversaries like China, we are strengthening our national security while creating real economic opportunity here at home. Utah is well positioned to lead in this new era of American energy and mineral independence,” Governor Cox said in a news release.

HUNDREDS OF JOBS

Andre Booyzen, managing director of American Tungsten & Antimony, the company developing the project, said China and Russia’s decision to restrict antimony and tungsten supplies has left the U.S. in dire need of accelerating domestic sourcing and production of the strategic minerals.

Beyond strengthening national security, Booyzen told The Salt Lake Tribune that the nearly $250 million Utah investment will inject vital economic growth into Iron and Garfield counties. The project will create an estimated 400 jobs, he added, divided evenly between both counties.

“The average salary we are looking at will probably be about $77,000 per employee,” Booyzen told The Tribune, adding that the company plans to hire locally as much as it can rather than import talent.

According to Booyzen, approximately $130 million of the company’s investment is dedicated to the Antimony Canyon Project. The undertaking encompasses 20 substantial mining claims on company-owned private land and roughly 311 claims on U.S. Forest Service property, in a large area that begins about 7 miles east of the town of Antimony and stretches from from Coyote Canyon to Dry Canyon.

AMONG THE WORLD’S LARGEST ANTIMONY STOCKPILES

Booyzen indicated that preliminary drilling data suggests the antimony deposit could be among the world’s largest, with internal estimates projecting a 20- to 30-year mine life and an annual output of roughly 5,000 tons, which is about 17% of what the nation requires each year.

Before starting the mining operation, Booyzen said the company is drilling to find where antimony ore bodies are located, conducting environmental studies and acquiring the necessary environmental permits. None of the mining areas is located inside the canyons, he added.

In addition, the company is looking for land in the area to build a contractor plant, which Booyzen said will be erected to upgrade raw ore into a high-grade antimony concentrate before it is trucked to the planned smelter facility in Cedar City for further refinement into the end product.

Company officials expect mining and contractor plant operations to begin in late 2027. The smelter plant, which will likely be located in Cedar City’s inland port, is projected to come on line in late 2028 or early 2029. The company has narrowed the search for the smelter, which it says will be a zero-emission facility, to two sites, and expects to decide between the two within the next month, according to Booyzen.

AN ECONOMIC REVIVAL?

For Garfield County Commissioner Leland Pollock, full-scale mine and smelting operations can’t come soon enough. He said Panguitch and the surrounding area have been in the economic dumps since Kaibab Industries, a major sawmill, shuttered in 1996.

“When the sawmill was open, we had 400 jobs, 10 gas stations, three grocery stores, a Sears and Western Auto and two car dealerships. You come through Panguitch now and you see three or four gas stations total, one small grocery store, and there isn’t anything close to an auto dealership. So this antimony project is a big win for the entire county,” Pollock said.

Kaden Figgins, Garfield County’s planning and economic director, said the project is a big deal for Antimony, which is named after the mineral.

During World War II, he and others said, the community’s early history was shaped by this resource, and mining operations provided antimony until it eventually became cheaper to import it and other critical materials than to mine them locally.

Antimony’s post-war fortunes mirrored the decline of its mines, resulting in the loss of its post office and school, Figgins and others said. However, with new mining operations on the horizon, the town is rebounding, looking to find creative ways to build RV parks or small housing developments to accommodate the incoming workers.

“So having 200 new jobs in Garfield County with an average yearly wage of $77,000, nearly double the median county salary of $40,000, is huge,” Figgins said.

Figgins said it also will diversify the county’s economy, which is largely centered on tourism because the area is home to Bryce Canyon National Park. Currently, the county’s 1,500 tourism-related jobs account for about 50% of the local economy, he added.

To acquire skilled workers, American Tungsten & Antimony is planning to form educational partnerships with Southern Utah University and Southwest Utah Technical College, according to Booyzen. Thus far, he said, there has been little opposition to the project, which he pledges will be conducted in a transparent and environmentally responsible manner.

American Tungsten and Antimony (formerly Trigg Minerals) controls six U.S. critical mineral projects, primarily located in the mining-friendly regions of Utah, Nevada and Idaho.

Source: The Salt Lake Tribune

American Tungsten & Antimony is a critical minerals company focused on the exploration and development of antimony and tungsten projects in the United States. The company’s portfolio includes the flagship Antimony Canyon Project in Utah, together with a portfolio of tungsten projects across Utah and Nevada including Tennessee Mountain, Fraction Lode, Nightingale, Sage Hen and Dutch Mountain. AT4 is pursuing a U.S.-based hub-and-spoke processing and refining strategy aligned with U.S. Government priorities for the security of domestic critical minerals supply chains.

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