Antimony is used as a flame retardant in electronics including iPhones, lithium batteries in electric vehicles and circuit boards. Photo: Monique Berger / Biosphoto / Biosphoto via AFP
Australian Mining company Siren Gold Limited has been granted an exploration permit for gold and antimony in a remote part of the Marlborough Sounds.
The five-year exploration permit covers almost 12,000 hectares of land around Endeavour Inlet, Te Anamāhanga / Port Gore and Titirangi Bay.
In a statement to the ASX, Siren Gold said it had been granted the exploration permit that contains the historic Endeavour mine, which was first established in the 1870s and was historically New Zealand's largest antimony producer.
Siren Gold chair and interim managing director Brian Rodan said in the statement that the exploration of the high-grade Queen Charlotte antimony and gold asset would allow Siren to build "substantial scale" along with its existing Langdons prospecting permit for antimony and gold near Reefton.
Former Siren Gold managing director Victor Rajasooriar said the Reefton area could have up to 5 percent of the world's supply of antimony.
It is one of the few elements classified as a 'critical and strategic' mineral by countries including the United States, China, Australia, Russia, the European Union and, more recently, New Zealand.
In January, Resources Minister Shane Jones announced the government's plan to double mineral sector exports to $3 billion by 2035 - up from the previous target of $2 billion.
Jones said New Zealand was a prospective destination for sought-after minerals, like antimony, which is on the country's first Critical Minerals List.
The price of antimony has surged in recent years due to constrained supply and the decision by China last September to restrict antimony exports.
It is used as a flame retardant in electronics including iPhones, lithium batteries in electric vehicles and circuit boards. It's also used in the military for lead bullets and armour.
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