Extension Hill Direct Ship Iron Ore Project – Seven Years in the Making

摘要

Direct ship iron ore (DSO) operations at Extension Hill in Western Australia's Midwest regionrnhave commenced, with fi rst product railed to the port of Geraldton in July 2011. Reserves arern14.8 million tonnes (Mt) of haematite-goethite ore overlying an Archaean BIF-hosted largerrnmagnetite deposit which Mount Gibson Iron Limited (MGI) sold to other parties in 2006.rnSome unique geological aspects of the deposit shape DSO mining and processing operations.rnOwner-operator selective mining, blending, crushing and screening on site will produce threernmillion tonnes per year (Mt/a) of Lump and Fines product to be trucked 86 km to Perenjori, railedrn232 km to Geraldton, and loaded aboard Panamax-sized ships through the dedicated iron orernshiploader at the Geraldton Port Authority's Berth 5 facility.rnThe statutory approvals process for this project formally began in 2004, dominating delays in arnpredevelopment phase which extended over a longer period than the likely life of DSO operations.rnThe lack of transparency, uncertainties and costs inherent in state government processes haverninfl uenced decisions made by MGI while assessing other development opportunities in WesternrnAustralia. Potential for additional Reserves exists at Extension Hill, however MGI's ability to extendrnthe mine life will hinge on statutory approval to explore for and evaluate other DSO resources onrnsurrounding granted mining leases.rnThe nature of the resource and use of existing infrastructure for product transport have enabledrnMGI to keep operating costs and capital intensity of this project relatively low. A tenaciousrndevelopment approach by MGI and robust project economics have fi nally enabled this site to takernits place as a revenue earner beside the company's other DSO operations at Tallering Peak andrnKoolan Island.