BEIJING - Larvotto Resources said on Monday it had signed a binding offtake agreement with trading house Wogen Resources for sales of its first seven years of antimony output at the Hillgrove project in New South Wales.

The Australian company aims to produce 5 400 metric tons of antimony annually at Hillgrove, representing 7% of global production, it said on its website.

After China's exports limits on antimony, the Hillgrove project "has become a strategic asset being one of the world's top 10 antimony deposits with material near-term production potential in a Western jurisdiction", analysts at Blue Ocean equities said in a note in September.

China announced in August it was restricting exports of some antimony products from the middle of September, resulting in a plunge in shipments in October and an acceleration of efforts to seek alternatives outside China.

China last year accounted for 48% of global mined output of antimony, a metal used in military applications such as ammunition, infrared missiles, nuclear weapons and night vision goggles, as well as in batteries and photovoltaic equipment.

The price of antimony reached a record high of over $35 000 per ton in November, a significant increase from $12 000 per ton when Larvotto acquired the Hillgrove project last December, the company said.

"With the signing of the offtake agreement, the $4 million prepayment is now payable. The funding will support completing metallurgical testwork, finalising the DFS (definitive feasibility study) due in Q1 2025 and expand ongoing exploration efforts as we look to increase Hillgrove's resource inventory," Ron Heeks, MD at Larvotto, said in a statement.

The offtake agreement is supported by a $4 million prepayment facility with investment company Xcelsior Capital Limited, the statement said.

"Larvotto will now focus on securing a gold concentrate offtake agreement, leveraging the current strong gold concentrate market. A thorough evaluation of all options is under way with numerous counterparties," Heeks added.