A Pilbara iron ore mine which is set to inject up to 14 million tonnes of the commodity into the market per year has just been approved by the Western Australian Government.
The WA Department of Water and Environmental Regulation confirmed the approval of the McPhee iron ore project on Tuesday, with first ore set to be produced in the 2025–26 financial year.
McPhee, located 30km north of Nullagine, will see mining conducted from five open cut pits, along with the construction of a dry ore processing facility. Ore is set to be trucked to the Roy Hill operation to “improve product mix and sustain Roy Hill’s production volumes”, the company told The Australian.
Atlas Iron, a subsidiary of Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting, is managing the project. The company submitted an application for a works approval to the WA Government in December 2022.
Atlas Iron initially submitted an application in early 2021, with the goal to produce first ore in 2023, but has had to remain patient with various regulatory changes, including heritage legislation, prolonging the process.
Atlas also operates the Mt Webber, Sanjiv Ridge and Miralga iron ore mines in the Pilbara region of WA, with the company also progressing its Ridley magnetite project within 60km of Port Hedland.
Atlas has also been appointed as manager of the Mt Bevan magnetite project, a joint venture between Legacy Iron Ore, Hawthorn Resources and Hancock, which sits in a newly identified lithium province 100km west of Leonora in WA.
A Mt Bevan pre-feasibility study was released in July, with the project boasting a mineral resource estimate of 1.29 billion tonnes of magnetite resource at 33 per cent iron.
According to metallurgical testing, the project can deliver a product grade of greater than 70 per cent iron.
“The project is truly world-class with a grade of 70 per cent iron, making it attractive to end users,” Legacy chief executive officer Rakesh Gupta said.
Iron ore prices clawed back some ground on Thursday, with 62 per cent Australian iron ore fines rising $US2.35 per tonne on the day to be trading at $US92.3 ($135.6) per tonne.
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