Latest News

First units installed at Collie big battery The first containerised battery units are now in place at one of WA’s biggest batteries, the Collie battery energy storage system. When fully operational, the battery will provide 500MW of power with 2000MWh of storage when connected to the grid. The first 80 units are now in place, with the entire system to include 640 units when complete. The Collie battery will join Synergy’s existing battery systems in Kwinana and soak up excess solar and wind energy during the day to provide system stability and support the continued uptake of...

The Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) and BHP (ASX: BHP) have signed an MoU to promote lower carbon steelmaking technology for blast furnaces in India. An initial study will be done to assess strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) after which various workstreams will consider the role of alternate reductants such as hydrogen and biochar use. These measures have been taken with a view to building local research and development capability to support the decarbonisation transition. Technology and abatements deployment as well as partnerships are critical to decarbonising India’s and the global steel industry. SAIL chairman Shri Amarendu Prakash comments on this. “SAIL is looking forward to this collaboration with BHP in taking a step forward towards engaging...

Fortescue Zero’s major advancement in battery development for EVOA Fortescue Zero (ASX: FMG) will begin operations at its US Advanced Manufacturing Centre in Detroit, by producing a high-voltage (HV) marine battery pack using its scalable battery module (SBM) technology. The standardised subpack has been designed, engineered and will be used by advanced marine propulsion expert, EVOA, as the launch customer, to power a range of luxury marine...

NRW awarded $360m mining services contract at Mungari NRW Holdings (ASX: NWH) is pleased to announce that it has been awarded a contract by Evolution Mining (Mungari), a wholly owned subsidiary of Evolution Mining (ASX: EVN), for surface mining at Castle Hill in WA. The project is in the heart of the Goldfields, 50km northwest of Kalgoorlie and 40km north of Coolgardie, ideally situated to allow NRW to engage with local businesses and further develop the local community partnerships established by the Mungari operations. The works to be performed include load and haul, drill and blast and construction of...

Alcoa Foundation contributes $1.8m to Teach For All Alcoa Foundation will be contributing $1.8m across three years to Teach For All to expand mental health support and wellbeing initiatives in classrooms, communities and organisations. This funding will support the launch of new teacher wellbeing initiatives across three continents through support for Teach For Australia, Ensina Brasil and Teach For America. Through programming and research, Teach For All and its partners have found that teacher wellbeing is essential for attracting and retaining educators as well as enhancing their effectiveness. A 2021 study involving the...

MACA Interquip Mintrex made study managers for Hillgrove gold-antimony project MACA Interquip Mintrex (MIQM) who are part of the Theiss Group have been appointed study manager for Larvotto Resources’ (ASX: LRV) NSW Hillgrove gold and antimony project’s definitive feasibility study (DFS). MIQM will assume overall supervision of the ongoing metallurgical test work program currently underway at Independent Metallurgical Operations (IMO) and design modifications and detailed costings required to ensure optimal performance and production from the 500,000tpa Hillgrove processing plant. Larvotto managing director Ron Heeks says the company is looking forward...

Successful recovery of tin and palladium from electronic waste MTM Critical Metals (ASX: MTM) has achieved successful results extracting metals from electronic waste (e-waste) using Flash Joule Heating (FJH). This expands the list of recoverable metals to gold, silver, copper, tin and palladium, confirming the versatility of FJH in efficiently extracting multiple metals from e-waste. This was achieved without the use of toxic acids, recovering approximately 86% of the tin and 82% of palladium content from printed circuit boards (PCBs), a common...

Scania’s autonomous trucks make global debut Scania and Regroup will launch the world’s first fleet of autonomous in-pit mining trucks at the Butcherbird mine in WA’s Pilbara. The fleet of 11 autonomous rigid G 560 8x4 tippers – which will transport manganese ore and waste material – is targeting commencement of operations in 2025. Compared to a traditional mining fleet, these vehicles are expected to deliver improved productivity, reduce carbon intensity through improved fuel efficiency, enhance safety and lower costs. Scania Australia managing director Manfred Streit commented on the milestone. “Scania in Australia has been working closely with several...

Rio Tinto eyes Arcadium Lithium acquisition Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO) has approached Arcadium Lithium (ASX: LTM) for a potential acquisition of the leading global lithium chemicals producer. The approach is non-binding and there is no certainty that any transaction will be agreed to or will proceed. Arcadium Lithium’s ASX shares jumped 44% on Monday, following the announcement. The lithium producer remains focused on executing its strategic vision and pathway to significant growth, as set forth in its recent Investor Day presentation in September 2024. In the presentation, Arcadium Lithium president...

Next-gen batteries using food-based acids hit sustainability sweet spot A novel battery component that uses food-based acids found in sherbet and winemaking could make lithium-ion batteries more efficient, affordable and sustainable, according to new research out of UNSW. A prototype, developed and patented by UNSW chemists, reduces environmental impacts across its materials and processing inputs while increasing energy storage capability. UNSW Science lead researcher Professor Neeraj Sharma says the research team is optimising a single-layer pouch cell, similar to what you’d use in a mobile phone, only smaller. “We’ve...

QRC funding supports net zero future The Queensland Resources Council (QRC) has welcomed funding under the State Government’s Regional Economic Futures Fund (REFF) to examine the use of former mine sites for renewable energy products. QRC chief executive Janette Hewson says the funding will be used for a feasibility study to determine how wind and solar can be used on mined land in the Bowen Basin. “Queensland’s resources sector has an international reputation as a world leader in post-mining land use and this project will build on this to understand social and community benefits from alternative land uses,” she said. “$500,000 provided through...