Kimberley Minerals Sands (KMS) has completed a maiden product shipment of 300 metric tonnes of non-magnetic zircon concentrate from its Thunderbird mine.
Thunderbird, located on the Dampier Peninsula between Derby and Broome, is one of the largest and highest grade mineral sands discoveries in recent decades. Sheffield Resources and Yansteel own KMS through a joint venture.
The KMS team commenced production ahead of schedule in the last quarter of 2023, allowing the company to ship its bagged product through Port Hedland to offtake customers in China.
Preparations are underway for additional shipments and the commencement of bulk shipping from Broome during the current quarter.
“We wish to congratulate the KMS team and thank our offtake customers for this milestone achievement of first revenue for the Thunderbird mineral sands mine, and with KMS production ramp up progressing very well, we look forward to delivering further increased volumes of product to our customers in the coming weeks and months ahead,” Sheffield Resources executive chair Bruce Griffin said.
It was a fast turnaround for the relatively low risk operation, which began commissioning activities at Thunderbird as recently as August last year. August also saw the tailings storage facility, the wet concentrate plant and the concentrate upgrade plant completed.
Thunderbird is expected to generate an estimated 280 jobs once it hits full production, and will spend up to $750 million with local businesses during its first 20 years of operation.
Most of the world’s zircon comes from Australian and Africa, with the majority of global production consumed by China.
Zircon is extremely hard with a high melting point, so it is often used in foundries to line furnaces. Other uses include pipes for harsh chemicals, nuclear reactor cladding, heat exchangers, speciality alloys, and a range of domestic products.
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