Perpetua Resources has received a Clean Water Act Section 404 permit from the US Army Corps of Engineers for the Stibnite gold project in Valley County, Idaho, US.
This permit marks the culmination of an eight-year federal permitting process and is the last federal approval needed before construction can begin.
With the issuance of the Section 404 permit, Perpetua Resources is now concentrating on finalising the remaining state permits and securing the necessary financing to initiate construction.
The formal permitting process under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) began in 2016, with the US Forest Service leading the effort and issuing various environmental statements and decisions between 2020 and 2025.
In April 2025, the project gained further recognition when the Trump Administration selected it as a Transparency Project in line with President Donald Trump’s executive order to boost US mineral production.
This inclusion on the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council’s FAST-41 dashboard aims to improve interagency accountability and transparency in project reviews.
Perpetua Resources president and CEO Jon Cherry said: “As we celebrate receiving the final federal permit for the Stibnite gold project, we applaud the National Energy Dominance Council and the Permitting Council’s efforts to streamline permitting and propel critical mining projects nationwide.
“We believe this administration’s commitment to boosting efficiency without compromising rigorous environmental standards can have a transformational impact on American mining.”
The Stibnite gold project is expected to be one of the highest-grade open-pit gold mines in the US, having gold reserves of approximately 4.8 million ounces (moz). It is expected to produce around 450,000oz of gold annually in its first four years.
Moreover, the site contains an estimated 148 million pounds of antimony reserves, the only known reserves in the US and some of the largest outside China’s influence.
These reserves could satisfy around 35% of US antimony demand in its first six years, according to the US Geological Survey’s 2023 antimony commodity summary.
Furthermore, the project is set to deliver environmental improvements and economic opportunities including the creation of an average of 550 jobs during its operational phase.
