While most of us wait patiently for the restart, it’s probably worth looking back at the companies that operated Hillgrove before Larvotto — the history tells you a lot about why timing matters so much for this asset.

What happened to previous operators at Hillgrove

⛏️ 1800s–1920s: Boom → bust

Hillgrove was once one of NSW’s richest mining towns:

• major gold producer
• huge antimony producer
• later tungsten too

At its peak:

• population near 3,000
• stock exchange, banks, hydro power etc.

Why it collapsed back then

Main reasons:

1. Antimony prices crashed

One article from 1891 literally says:

• the Eleanora mine was ready to produce heavily
• then antimony prices collapsed from ~£45/t to below £20/t

Sound familiar?

Hillgrove has always been:

heavily tied to antimony pricing cycles

2. Mining got too deep/expensive

• Old underground workings were extremely deep
• Expensive mining methods back then
• Gold grades declined in some zones

Tungsten era (1930s–1950s)

The famous:

“Damned If I Know” (DIIK) tungsten mine

Actually did very well during WWII because:

• tungsten demand exploded for steel hardening

Another example of:

Hillgrove thriving when strategic metals are in demand

Modern operators

Straits Resources

Bought/developed Hillgrove in the 2000s.

What happened:

• GFC + metal price volatility
• Processing suspended in 2009

Bracken Resources / later owners

Mine shut again in 2015.

Main issue:

• Antimony price collapse:
  • ~$8,000/t → ~$5,000/t

Over 100 jobs lost.

Red River Resources

Took over in 2019.

Strategy:

• restart using gold focus
• stockpile processing first

But:

• struggled with financing + broader market conditions

The BIG difference now (this matters)

Previous operators mostly mined during periods where:

• antimony was:
  • cheap
  • ignored
  • non-strategic

Now?

• China dominates supply
• US/EU/Australia scrambling for critical minerals
• Antimony prices massively higher
• Tungsten strategically important again

Completely different macro backdrop.

Why LRV’s timing looks different

Larvotto Resources is restarting Hillgrove during:

• record/high antimony pricing
• strategic supply shortages
• government critical minerals support

And the DFS economics are dramatically stronger now:

• even showing negative AuEq AISC in some scenarios

Bottom line

Previous operators mostly failed because of:

• commodity price crashes
• high costs
• poor timing
• lack of strategic demand

Not because:

Hillgrove was a bad orebody.

My honest take

The irony is:

Hillgrove may have been 20 years too early multiple times.

Now the world suddenly wants:

• antimony
• tungsten
• Western supply

Which is exactly what it has.