Guardian Metal Resources plc (NYSE American: GMTL, LON: GMET, OTCQB: GMTLF) has entered into a partnership with the Montana Mining Association to run a tungsten mining and recovery pilot program targeting domestic defense applications, according to a company statement released July 8, 2026.

Montana Technological University and the Army Research Laboratory are also participating in the program. Under the agreement, Guardian Metal will supply stockpiled legacy ore from its Tempiute Tungsten project in Nevada, located approximately 150 miles northeast of Las Vegas.

An initial 250 to 400 tonnes of legacy ore is planned to be transported from Tempiute to Philipsburg, Montana, for trial processing at a partner milling facility. First shipments are expected by late summer 2026, subject to completion of metallurgical test work currently underway at laboratories in the U.S. and U.K., as well as pilot-scale testing in Montana.

The program aims to evaluate pathways toward commercial production of tungsten metal powder for defense applications using domestic sources, including historical mine tailings and legacy ore stockpiles.

Oliver Friesen, CEO of Guardian Metal Resources, said the selection of Tempiute as a feedstock source reflects the strategic significance of the company's Nevada-based tungsten portfolio, adding that the initiative represents "a tangible step toward building an entirely domestic supply chain, free from reliance on foreign sources."

Matt Vincent, Executive Director of the Montana Mining Association, said the Tempiute material "will prove to be an important domestic source of tungsten" for the partnership.

The Tempiute site, formerly known as the Emerson Tungsten Mine, was originally discovered in 1916 and last operated in the 1980s. If the initial phase succeeds, further ore shipments from Tempiute could follow as part of an expanded program.

Guardian Metal received a $6.2 million investment from the U.S. Department of War under Title III of the Defense Production Act in July 2025 to support a prefeasibility study at its Pilot Mountain project, also in Nevada.