(Kitco News) - Trilogy Metals expects permits, a feasibility study, and a road financing decision for its copper-rich Arctic project in Alaska to converge in 2028. The U.S. Department of War has now closed its US$35.6 million investment in the company, and the project has formally entered federal environmental review.
For CEO Tony Giardini, the government’s backing counts for more than the cash. “I think for us it’s really about not so much the quantum that we’ve received, but the validation that we have from the US government in terms of making the investment and participating,” he told Kitco Mining on Sept. 25 at the 2026 Precious Metals Summit in Beaver Creek. He said Washington’s interest stems from the district’s critical metals, including copper, zinc and silver, as well as cobalt and germanium.
The deal closed on Sept. 11, roughly six months behind the original plan. The Pentagon paid US$17.8 million directly to Trilogy for 8.2 million units at US$2.17 each and bought the rest of its position from South32. Both companies put the full proceeds into Ambler Metals, their 50/50 joint venture in the Ambler Mining District. The Department of War now holds about 9.1% of Trilogy’s shares, along with warrants that become exercisable once the first phase of the Ambler Road is complete and certain usage milestones are met, or if Trilogy changes control.
Trilogy and South32 covered this year’s work themselves while the deal was pending, Giardini said, so the joint venture “is already cashed up for the next year.” Trilogy reported US$31.2 million in cash as of Aug. 31, with its share of the joint venture’s 2026 budget substantially funded.
The Department of War can nominate an independent director to Trilogy’s board and appoint a board observer. “I think those are the belts and suspenders that you would expect from this type of investment,” Giardini said. He sees no conflict in the relationship. “We are very clearly aligned in what we want. We want to see this project move forward and the district get developed.”
Arctic’s permitting now runs on a published FAST-41 schedule. On Sept. 21, Trilogy announced that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had issued a notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement, with a draft due in October 2027 and a record of decision in September 2028. Giardini said it marks the first time federal and state permits have been integrated this way in Alaska. “You can go online, you can look at the progress, you can look and see what the deadlines are, and we all have an expectation that we’ll adhere to those deadlines, including the federal government,” he said.
The 211-mile Ambler Road, which would link the district to the Dalton Highway, is expected to be financed by the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority. The state used the same model for the Red Dog mine’s road and port in the 1980s, and the Department of War has committed to help facilitate financing. Federal involvement in the road has narrowed, Giardini said. With federal land at the start of the route being conveyed to the state, a wetlands permit under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act is the main federal approval left.
“The expectation is that we’ll pay for it through tolls,” Giardini said. He suggested payments could move with commodity prices, though terms have yet to be negotiated.
Road and mine are meant to advance together. “As far as a realistic timeline, what we’re looking at is probably a funding/building decision being made sometime in 2028,” Giardini said. That lines up with the expected permits and a definitive feasibility study. A pioneer ice road would bring in supplies while the permanent road and the mine are built side by side.
Giardini expects legal challenges to the road. “There’s going to be litigation here. It’s just going to happen, and we don’t know how it’s going to progress,” he said. Trilogy feels “in a very strong position to defend it,” he added, with the U.S. Department of Justice expected to lead the defense.
This year’s field season put 80 to 90 people on site, mostly drilling for geotechnical and hydrology data for the feasibility study. Exploration could pick up in 2027. “We’re considering possibly doing more exploration at the Bornite area, which we haven’t done for a while,” Giardini said.
He sees Arctic as a starting point rather than the whole story. “We don’t see it as the Arctic Mine or the Bornite Mine. We see an Ambler Mining District extending for a long period of time.”
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This article/video was produced with support from a Kitco sponsor. The views expressed in this content do not necessarily reflect the views of Kitco Metals Inc. Kitco does not endorse or recommend any company, security, investment product, or investment strategy. This content is for informational purposes only and should not be considered investment advice.
Learn more about Trilogy Metals here.
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