nCa Report
Kyrgyzstan holds approximately 13% of global antimony reserves, ranking 4th worldwide after China, Russia, and Bolivia. This positions the country as a potentially critical player in a market increasingly shaped by geopolitical tensions.
Diverse Uses of Antimony
Traditional Applications
Fire retardants account for 60% of annual antimony demand, making it the primary use globally. Approximately 48% of antimony is consumed in flame retardants, 33% in lead-acid batteries, and 8% in plastics. These flame-retardant applications are crucial for children’s clothing, toys, aircraft and automobile seat covers.
Military and Defense Applications
The Department of Defense relies on antimony for ammunition manufacturing (lead-antimony alloys containing 3-6% antimony for bullets and projectiles), aircraft safety systems (antimony trioxide as flame retardant in military aircraft panels and wiring), and electronic warfare equipment (antimony-based semiconductors for night vision and infrared detection).
Emerging Technologies
Energy Storage: The report mentions liquid metal batteries as next-generation energy storage technology. Antimony is critical to many clean energy technologies like solar panels, wind turbines, energy storage and liquid metal batteries.
Semiconductors: Highly purified antimony metal (99.999% pure) is used in the computer industry to make semiconductors. Indium antimonide is used as a material for mid-infrared detectors.
Industrial Alloys: Antimony forms highly useful alloys with lead, increasing hardness and mechanical strength, particularly improving plate strength and charging characteristics in lead-acid batteries.
Why Kyrgyzstan’s Importance Will Rise
Global Supply Crisis
Antimony prices skyrocketed more than 250% in 2024, ending the year at almost $40,000 per tonne, with current 2025 prices at $55,000 per tonne. China placed a complete ban on exports of antimony in December 2024, following partial restrictions from August, creating severe supply chain disruptions.
China accounts for 48% of global antimony production and 63% of U.S. antimony imports. 90% of global mined antimony in 2024 was concentrated in China, Russia and Tajikistan, with the US having no commercial levels of mined production.
Growing Defense Demand
Global defense spending hit $2.46 trillion in 2024 with a 7.4% real-terms increase, and is expected to increase further in 2025 as geopolitical tensions continue to rise. This massive rearmament cycle creates severe demand for antimony as a critical defense mineral.
Main Potential Buyers and Their Purposes
United States
Primary Interest: The U.S. is Kyrgyzstan’s most likely strategic partner. The U.S. has not produced antimony domestically since the closure of its last mine in Idaho in 2001, creating 100% import dependency.
Purposes:
- Defense applications (ammunition, night vision, infrared sensors)
- Semiconductors and electronics manufacturing
- Energy storage systems development
- Flame retardants for safety compliance
The C5+1 Critical Minerals Dialogue convened in February 2024 to underscore U.S. commitment to integrating Central Asia into global supply chains.
European Union
The UK and EU have signed memoranda of understanding on strategic partnerships for critical minerals and concluded corresponding road maps with Kazakhstan, signaling interest in the region.
Purposes:
- Reducing dependence on Chinese supply
- Meeting stringent fire safety regulations
- Supporting defense industrial base
- Clean energy technology development
Japan and South Korea
Japan’s high-tech industries, including electronics and automotive, rely heavily on antimony for applications like semiconductors and flame retardants.
Purposes:
- Semiconductor manufacturing
- Electronics production
- Automotive industry (battery applications)
India
India is emerging as a significant consumer of antimony, driven by its expanding automotive and electronics sectors, with the government’s “Make in India” initiative encouraging domestic manufacturing.
Purposes:
- Automotive industry expansion
- Electronics manufacturing
- Flame retardants for growing manufacturing sector
Australia
As a processing hub and allied partner with both reserves and processing capabilities, Australia could be both a partner and buyer for intermediate products.
Strategic Implications for Kyrgyzstan
The partnership potential is particularly strong because:
- Geopolitical diversification: Russia holds 17.5% of global reserves, meaning two foreign adversaries (China and Russia) hold 50% of the world’s antimony reserves. This makes Kyrgyzstan’s 13% critically valuable to Western nations.
- Supply chain security: With China implementing export bans and Russia facing sanctions, Kyrgyzstan represents one of the few remaining accessible sources for Western economies.
- Market timing: The antimony market was valued at $299.28 million in 2023 and is expected to grow by 5.9% annually from 2024 to 2030, reaching nearly $447.04 million.
- Processing opportunities: Processing remains a key bottleneck, and expanding processing capacities locally and fostering intra-regional value chains could unlock higher economic returns for Central Asia.
If Kyrgyzstan successfully develops its antimony reserves with strategic partners, it could transform from a relatively overlooked Central Asian nation into a critical node in global supply chains for defense, technology, and clean energy sectors—potentially following a similar trajectory to how lithium-rich countries gained strategic importance in recent years. /// nCa, 12 November 2025