Guardian Metal Resources (LSE:GMET) has signed a strategic partnership with the Montana Mining Association to collaborate on a tungsten mining and recovery pilot program, supporting domestic defence applications.
Under the partnership, Guardian Metal will supply stockpiled legacy ore from the Tempiute Tungsten Project in Nevada, US. Tempiute will deliver an initial 250–400 tonnes of ore, which will be transported to Philipsburg, Montana, for trial processing at the partner milling and processing facility.
The first shipments of legacy ore are expected by late summer 2026, subject to completion of metallurgical test work currently underway at partner laboratories in the US and UK. Pilot scale test work will also be completed on site in Montana.
Guardian Metal notes the partnership is also being advanced in conjunction with Montana Technological University and the Army Research Laboratory.
CEO Oliver Friesen says the selection of Tempiute as a feedstock source is an “endorsement of the strategic significance” of the company’s Nevada-based portfolio.
“At a time when tungsten supply security has never been more critical to US defence and industrial capability, this initiative represents a tangible step toward building an entirely domestic supply chain, free from reliance on foreign sources,” Friesen says.
Montana Mining Association Executive Director Matt Vincent says this partnership is ‘important’ to the industry and the nation’s security.
“Guardian Metal’s Tempiute material represents what we believe will prove to be an important domestic source of tungsten for this partnership, as well as a demonstration of our association’s ability to effectively establish a broader network of critical mineral projects across the Mountain West,” Vincent adds.
There is more to come …
As this news service reported, Guardian Metal is planning to update Tempiute’s resource estimate, as well as get the project back into production in 2028.
Although the company’s valuation is heavily skewed towards its flagship Pilot Mountain Project, Friesen explains to Mining.com.au that the quality of the Tempiute Project is unique and there are opportunities to deliver material to the market soon.
“This will come to the forefront as we start to talk about these deals and ways that we’re actually going to monetise and push forward the opportunities that exist at Tempiute,” Friesen adds.
Guardian Metal is also ramping up commercial discussions for the Pilot Mountain Project, including potential offtakes.
In June 2026, Guardian Metal delivered a Prefeasibility Study highlighting Pilot Mountain’s potential to generate a post-tax free cash flow of US$1.058 billion ($1.53 billion), with a net present value of US$660.3 million at an internal rate of return of 59.6%.
The US has no active tungsten mines and no production has taken place in the nation for over a decade. China currently controls more than 80% of the total global production.
Tungsten stands at the intersection of national security and industrial necessity. It is nearly irreplaceable in modern defence applications, aerospace manufacturing, and advanced industrial tooling.
Guardian Metal Resources is a Nevada-focused tungsten explorer and developer.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: Guardian Metal Resources
