Category: Features

Rio Tinto’s Silvergrass iron ore operation. Image: Rio Tinto.   BY CAMERON DRUMMOND   IT'S been tough – but things are looking up for the Pilbara mining region, as iron ore continues to rip higher on steady Chinese demand and exciting opportunities in lithium and gold come into play. Known as the engine room of Australia, the WA Pilbara is the largest iron ore producing region in the world, accounting for almost 37 per cent of global production and 52 per cent of seaborne exports in 2015. Iron ore mining in the Pilbara commenced in the 1960s, after the Australian Government lifted an embargo on iron ore exports in 1938 in the lead up to World War II. By the...

All images IGO.   BY ELIZABETH FABRI   LESS than a month since the official opening of the Nova project, Independence Group  -- in the hunt for the next Nova-style deposit -- has again increased its footprint in the Fraser Range region through a new Joint Venture deal. Independence Group (IGO) is on the rise again in FY18. After bringing its $443 million Nova nickel-copper-cobalt mine into commercial production on 1 July, the mine’s balance sheet is set for a turnaround year as it adds an extra 26,000 tonnes of nickel, 10,000 tonnes of copper and 800t of cobalt to its annual production. Over the last two years, the company’s focus has been developing Nova. But now  the project is...

Grange Resources’ historic Savage River magnetite mine. Image: Tasmanian Minerals and Energy Council.   BY ELIZABETH FABRI   LEFT behind during the mining boom while other State’s prospered, Tasmania is on its way back with a string of mine reopenings signalling renewed confidence for the sector.   After battling tough, the Tasmanian mining sector is making a return. Unlike its mainland counterparts, Tasmania was hurt by a resources boom side-effect; the strong Australian dollar. With an economy heavily reliant on trade exposed industries, Tasmania felt the sting when the Australian dollar surpassed the US dollar in 2010/2011, and then when commodity prices tumbled. “The high Australian dollar (we all remember when it hit $1.10 U.S) was a drag on all...

  BY CAMERON DRUMMOND   AFTER consolidating its Australian processing operations, Iluka is looking to restart zircon production in Australia and progress a major development of its newly acquired Sierra Rutile operation.   Perth-based Iluka Resources is a major international mineral sands producer and marketer with a major production base in Australia, as well as mining and processing operations in Sierra Leone. It is the world’s largest producer of zircon sand and a major producer of high-grade titanium ores, natural and synthetic rutile. Iluka has recently gone through a transformational period, consolidating its Murray Basin plant to process all its Australian material at its Perth Basin operation. The miner is also ramping up development of its $393 million Sierra Rutile...

The Dugald River tailings storage facility dam wall. All images: MMG.   BY ELIZABETH FABRI   A SURGE in zinc demand over the last 12 months has MMG well placed as its $1.4 billion Dugald River mine nears first shipment in December, several months ahead of schedule.   Sitting on one of the world’s largest undeveloped zinc-lead-silver deposits, Dugald River will come online at an opportune time for MMG as it works towards its goal of becoming a top mid-tier mining company by 2020. It will be a game changer; once Dugald River enters production MMG will add a further 170,000 tonnes of zinc (at peak) to its group production a year. This represents a sizeable increase on current group...

BY CAMERON DRUMMOND   THE Carmichael coal, rail and port project will purportedly make up just one third of Adani’s total investment into Australia by 2022, with the Indian mining giant earmarking 1500MW worth of renewables projects and a 1 million tonnes per year agribusiness export mechanism.   Construction works have started this month on Adani’s mammoth $16.5 billion Carmichael coal mine, rail and port project, two months after company chairman Gautam Adani gave the operation the green light. The massive undertaking has come under intense scrutiny by environmentalists, as well as the State and Federal politicians since it was brought to the table six years ago. However, Adani persevered through a myriad of red tape and court appeals, confirming...

All images: Gascoyne Resources. BY ELIZABETH FABRI WITH construction now underway at its flagship Dalgaranga project, Gascoyne Resources’ time in the sun has arrived as it transitions to gold producer. There is light (and gold) at the end of the tunnel for Gascoyne Resources with first gold slated at its Dalgaranga project in the second quarter of 2018. The Dalgaranga project within the Murchison region WA  –formerly operated by a JV between Equigold and Western Reefs  – produced 229,000 ounces of gold between 1996 and 2000, with little exploration undertaken at the site since. It wasn’t until 2013 that Gascoyne Resources, recognising the region’s vast potential, purchased an 80 per cent interest in the project. The company’s decision to acquire...

BY REUBEN ADAMS   PORT Kembla is the second largest coal export port in NSW, handling about 11 percent of total exports from State. To meet current needs and future expansion demands the coal terminal is undergoing extensive restoration and compliance works – which will culminate in the replacement of the existing stackers and reclaimers with brand new machines.   In 2014, thyssenkrupp was awarded the contract for the design, supply and construction of the reclaimer and in 2015, of the three replacement stackers. Over three years, the $100 million project has generated more than 400 jobs in design, supply, construction and commissioning of the equipment which is currently being shipped from WA to its new home at Port Kembla....

LIGHTNING, high-speed winds, heavy rain, droughts and even humidity are some of the adverse weather events facing mining projects.  MetraWeather meteorologist and storm chaser Rebekah LaBar spoke to Elizabeth Fabri about how meteorologists can help resources companies minimise downtime and manage weather risks through tailored real-time forecasts and commentary.   Q. What inspired you to become a meteorologist? When I was 12 years old I saw my first tornado. It passed right by my family’s farm in central Washington State in the US, which is not a common place to see tornadoes. I was absolutely terrified, which drove me to learn about severe weather; I believed that if I understood it better I would not be so scared if I...

Olympic Dam’s copper smelter is getting a $350 million upgrade. All images: BHP. BY CAMERON DRUMMOND AS it prepares to mine the “body of the guitar” at Olympic Dam – representing an incredible 70 per cent of the resource footprint – BHP is forging ahead with $600 million of expansions and upgrades. Undeterred by an 18 per cent decrease in annual copper output due to state-wide power outages during September and October last year, BHP’s Olympic Dam is undergoing its biggest expansion and maintenance program since the Big Aussie purchased the mine from Western Mining Corporation in 2005. In 2011, BHP released a supplementary Environmental Impact Statement into a gigantic open pit expansion at Olympic Dam. Operating simultaneously with the...

All images: Evolution Mining.   BY ELIZABETH FABRI   AUSTRALIA'S second largest gold miner Evolution Mining’s rise through the ranks over the last seven years has been no fluke. The mid-tier miner’s core strategy -- or ‘religion’ as it puts it -- is to incessantly improve its portfolio by strategically buying and selling assets, building a business that can prosper through all stages of the cycle.   Since its founding in 2011 through the merger of Catalpa Resources and Conquest Mining, Evolution Mining has grown a $50 million business into a $3.7 billion heavyweight. “We started the journey some seven years ago – at that time we were a six-person company with no production,” Evolution Mining executive chairman Jake Klein...