Macmahon Holdings Limited has been selected to provide surface mining services for Anglo American’s Dawson Mine in Queensland at the Dawson South operations, from July 2021. The Dawson Mine commenced operations in 1961 and is one of the oldest coal mining operations in Central Queensland. It was the first mine in Australia to export coal to Japan in 1961 and was the first mine to introduce draglines into its operation in 1963. The Dawson Mine, a joint venture between Anglo American (51 per cent) and Mitsui Holdings (49 per cent), comprises three operating pits – North, Central and South. Macmahon…
Mincor Resources NL has announced the official opening of the Cassini Nickel Mine, the cornerstone of its Kambalda Nickel Operations in Western Australia. Mincor embarked on a strategy to restart nickel production in 2019 and has achieved numerous milestones in the past 18 months including securing a processing and sales solution via a landmark agreement with BHP Nickel West, raising $95.6 million in equity capital and securing a $55 million project finance facility. First nickel concentrate is on track to be delivered in the first quarter of 2022, ushering in an exciting new era of nickel mining in Kambalda and,…
Kalium Lakes Limited (KLL) has announced that a ‘debottlenecking’ style review of the processing plant design for the Beyondie Sulphate of Potash (SOP) Project confirms that an annual steady-state production rate of at least 100 kilotonnes per annum (ktpa) is achievable. On Wednesday, Chief Executive Officer of KLL, Rudolph van Niekerk, said that the current evaporation ponds’ performance indicates that the production rate can be achieved by mid-2022. “The company is also confident that a production increase to 120 ktpa can be achieved without the need for substantial plant modifications and is currently examining pathways to deliver this outcome,” Mr…
Prodigy Gold NL has provided an update on diamond drilling underway on the Lake Mackay Project. The Lake Mackay Project is held in Joint Venture (JV) with IGO Limited, with IGO holding a 70 per cent JV interest in the tenements and Prodigy Gold holding a 30 per cent JV interest. The project is positioned approximately 400 kilometres northwest of Alice Springs, adjacent to the Western Australian border, and comprises approximately 15,630 square kilometres of exploration licences and applications. The project has consolidated tenure over the favourable Proterozoic margin between the Aileron and Warumpi Provinces and is characterised by a…
Mineral Resources Limited has announced first iron ore production from the company’s Wonmunna Iron Ore Mine, located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. Mineral Resources purchased the Wonmunna operation from the Australian Aboriginal Mining Corporation (AAMC) in September 2020. The new milestone, achieved less than five months after breaking ground, is in line with the company’s guidance to bring Wonmunna into production this quarter. Mineral Resources expects Wonmunna to ramp up to the approved 5 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) run rate in the June quarter of 2021. The company notes that there is potential to expand Wonmunna’s output…
Mitsubishi Development has reached an agreement with Glencore to acquire a 30 per cent interest in the proposed Aurukun Bauxite Project that, if approved, would require a workforce of up to 250 people over a two-year construction phase, and create around 400 jobs when the mine enters production. The Aurukun Bauxite Project, located 23 kilometres to the north-east of the township Aurukun, would produce 8 million dry tonnes of bauxite over an expected mine life of more than 20 years. The resource contains approximately 357 million tonnes. Mined tonnes would be extracted from shallow pits, using a conventional truck and…
Later this year, the Bunyip North community will be asked to contribute to the environmental assessment of the proposed Bunyip North Granite Quarry project (previously known as Garfield North) in Victoria, proposed by Hanson Construction Materials Pty Ltd (Hanson). The proposed 280-hectare site is located approximately 70 kilometres south-east of Melbourne and three kilometres north of the Princes Freeway. Hanson is proposing to extract an estimated 130 million tonnes of granite from the site over a period of about 70 years. The project would also include a crushing plant, product handling and stockpiles, internal roads and ancillary facilities. Access is…
Mineral Resources Limited (MRL) has been successful in the recent Western Australian Government Petroleum Acreage Release, with the award of two highly prospective gas exploration permits in the Perth and Northern Carnarvon Basins. The award of these permits aligns with the MRL's strategy to secure its own natural gas supply to provide energy security for current and future mining operations at lower cost and with lower emissions to replace diesel use across the business. MRL has committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050 and is presently developing the roadmap to enable this target to be achieved. A critical aspect…
Woodside Burrup Pty Ltd and its Pluto LNG joint venture participants (Kansai Electric Power Australia Pty Ltd and Tokyo Gas Pluto Pty Ltd) have delivered their first cargo of carbon offset condensate to commodity trading company Trafigura Pte Ltd. On Monday, Woodside outlined that the carbon dioxide equivalent emissions associated with extraction, storage and shipping of the 650,000- barrel cargo will be offset through a combination of efficiency measures, which reduce emissions, and surrender of high-quality carbon offsets. Trafigura is also working with the vessel owner to minimise actual emissions associated with transporting the cargo. High-quality carbon offsets have been…
The bulk carrier HL Green received a special greeting when it arrived on its maiden voyage to Port Hedland, Western Australia on 6 January. HL Green was the first liquified natural gas (LNG) fuelled vessel to berth at the Port of Port Hedland, as the maritime industry moves to reduce emissions from shipping operations. HL Green is one of two 180,000 tonne bulk carriers that was built in Korea by Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries (HSHI) and launched on 11 December 2020. The vessel is expected to make about 10 round trips a year between Korea and Australia. The HL Green…
BHP has awarded its first liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply agreement for five LNG-fuelled Newcastlemax bulk carriers, which will transport iron ore between Western Australia and China from 2022. Shell has secured the contract to fuel the vessels, which BHP will charter from Eastern Pacific Shipping (EPS) for five-year terms. BHP Chief Commercial Officer, Vandita Pant, said the LNG bunkering contract marks a significant step in how BHP is working with its suppliers to reduce emissions across the maritime supply chain. “LNG fuelled vessels are forecast to help BHP reduce carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2-e) emissions by 30 per cent on…
Norwegian-based international energy company, Equinor, is leading a project to develop one of the UK’s – and the world’s – first at-scale facilities to produce hydrogen from natural gas in combination with carbon capture and storage (CCS). The project, called Hydrogen to Humber Saltend (H2H Saltend), provides the beginnings of a decarbonised industrial cluster in the Humber region, the UK’s largest by emissions. H2H Saltend supports the UK government’s aim to establish at least one low carbon industrial cluster by 2030 and the world’s first net-zero cluster by 2040. It also paves the way for the vision set out by…
BP and Chevron have committed to investing a total of $116.5 million in oil and gas exploration activities, with at least half directed to projects in South Australia with a view to increasing energy supplies in the state and south-eastern Australia. BP and Chevron ceased their programs of exploration in the Great Australian Bight in 2017 and 2018 respectively. The commitments were announced following the conclusion of Good Standing Agreement negotiations with both parties after their decisions to cease petroleum exploration in the Great Australian Bight. Minister for Resources and Northern Australia Matt Canavan said Australia’s offshore oil and gas…
Commercial operations have commenced on the $140 million Atlas Gas Pipeline, which will transport gas from Senex Energy’s Atlas gas acreage - located near Wandoan in south-west Queensland - to the east-coast gas market via the Wallumbilla Gas Hub. In June 2018, energy infrastructure company, Jemena, signed an agreement with Senex Energy to build, own, and operate a 15 petajoule per annum (40 TJ/day) gas processing facility and 60km buried pipeline (Atlas Gas Pipeline) in order to fast-track new gas supply to the domestic market. Jemena’s Managing Director, Frank Tudor, said the Senex-Jemena partnership demonstrated how the gas industry is…
AGL and Idemitsu Australia Resources (IAR) have today announced the preliminary phase of the feasibility study for the proposed 250 megawatt Bells Mountain pumped hydro project at Muswellbrook is nearing completion. The preliminary engineering study began in 2019 to determine whether the project is technically feasible, provide cost estimates for both construction and operation, and assess the required planning and approval processes. AGL Chief Operating Officer, Markus Brokhof, said AGL views the project as potentially beneficial to the community and Australia’s energy transition. “As we transition to more renewable energy sources, pumped hydro provides a reliable on-demand generation source,” Mr…
The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) has formally commenced market sounding for the Big Canberra Battery ecosystem. Battery storage technology varies in size, location and core use. The market sounding process will allow industry and key stakeholder input on the range of possible services and infrastructure ahead of the procurement phase of the project. Interested parties can register to be involved in the market sounding process and receive updates as they become available. They will also be invited to provide written input through a confidential submissions process which will ask industry for suggestions on how a Big Canberra Battery ecosystem would…
Global resources company, BHP, German shipping company, Oldendorff Carriers, and advanced biofuels pioneer, GoodFuels, with the support of the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), conducted the first marine biofuel trial involving an ocean-going vessel bunkered in Singapore on 4 April 2021. As part of the trial, the 2020-built 81,290 deadweight tonne dry bulk carrier Kira Oldendorff was refuelled with “drop-in” advanced biofuel blended with conventional fossil fuels. The key objectives of the biofuel bunkering trial include understanding the behaviour of the fuel (such as emissions), assessing engine and vessel operational performance during the trial as well as exploring the technical…
The Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) has reached contractual close on $610 million in investment, its largest financing commitment to date. NAIF’s loan to Genex Power’s Kidston 250 MW Pumped Storage Hydro Project (K2-Hydro) will help to create more than 500 construction jobs and deliver affordable, reliable electricity for north Queensland. Genex will be delivering the first pumped storage hydro project in Australia since 1984 and the first to be used solely for energy storage and generation rather than water management. NAIF were early supporters of K2-Hydro – which utilises the disused Kidston Gold Mine – and have worked closely…
Origin Energy’s export-scale liquid hydrogen project has reached an important milestone today, with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Port of Townsville to collaborate on the potential expansion of the port, as well as the development of a liquefaction facility, new berth and associated infrastructure. Origin is collaborating with Japan’s Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd (KHI) on a 300 megawatt (MW) early export project that would produce 36,500 tonnes per annum of green liquid hydrogen using renewable energy and sustainable water. The three parties will now focus on work required to accommodate KHI’s semi-commercial scale liquid hydrogen…
Independent expert for renewable energy projects, Suntrace GmbH, renewable energy company, BayWa r.e., and mining company B2Gold Corp. have completed commissioning of the world’s largest off-grid solar-battery hybrid system for the mining industry, at the Fekola gold mine in Mali, West Africa. The solar-battery hybrid plant was integrated and commissioned successfully with the existing power plant operation, and the solar plant is on course to be 100 per cent complete by the end of June. Hybrid projects such as this, which combine solar energy with conventional energy generation and battery storage, are an effective way to provide reliable power supply day…
AGL has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Finnish manufacturing and services company, Wärtsilä, to collaborate on the delivery of large-scale hybrid energy systems to commercial and industrial customers. The agreement will allow the development of systems that integrate renewable behind-the-meter and off-grid technologies to improve energy efficiencies and supply. AGL’s Chief Operating Officer, Markus Brokhof, said that AGL is excited to be developing these innovative systems with Wärtsilä, which will provide customers with a broader range of options on their energy. “This agreement is another way in which AGL is responding to the evolving needs of our customers…
Strike Energy Limited (Strike) has provided an update on Project Haber, which involves a proposed 1.4 million tonne per annum (Mtpa) urea fertiliser production facility to be built near Geraldton in Western Australia’s Mid West Region. Technip Energies, who completed the feasibility studies on Project Haber, have commenced the Pre-FEED (Front End Engineering Design) scope of work to further refine the capital cost estimate for the plant, which currently sits at US$1.74 billion. Technip Energies has included in their scope chemical process engineering works in order to maximise the amount of inherent carbon consumed from the natural gas via the…
AGL has lodged a planning application with the Victorian Minister for Planning and the Department of Environment, Water, Land and Planning for a 200 megawatt (MW), four-hour duration grid-scale battery at its Loy Yang Power Station in the Latrobe Valley. Loy Yang is Victoria’s largest power station and includes four 500+ MW turbo generators which were brought into service between 1984 and 1988. Upgrades through major maintenance programs and plant enhancements have taken generation capability from 2000 MW in the year 2000, to over 2200 MW today. AGL’s Chief Operating Officer, Markus Brokhof, said batteries will be an important part…
Alcoa Corporation has announced new agreements with multiple power generators for the Portland Aluminium Smelter in Victoria, meaning Alcoa will keep the smelter operating until 2026. The five-year agreements with AGL, Alinta Energy and Origin will commence on 1 August 2021. The Australian Government has committed, subject to approval, to provide up to A$19.2 million per year for four years to underwrite the smelter’s participation in the Reliability and Emergency Reserve Trader (RERT) scheme. The arrangement will recognise the smelter’s ability to rapidly shed load when required to help protect the power grid from unexpected interruptions when it is under…
Fibre Expressway Pty Ltd (FEPL) has unveiled the details of Project Koete, a first-of-its-kind US$1.5 billion technology ecosystem in Western Australia and the Northern Territory. Project Koete will provide vital data and internet connectivity domestically between Perth and Darwin, while directly connecting the cities and territories to international business hubs in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Japan and beyond in Asia Pacific and worldwide. It will be a major drawcard for attracting multinational businesses to the region and will boost digital investment, particularly from the natural resources, finance, and cloud computing industries. The project includes a 10,000-kilometre, carrier-neutral, high-speed low-latency subsea cable…
Deakin University will double the size of its ManuFutures advanced manufacturing hub and open-up the Geelong-based success story to key regional centres, thanks to a $20 million partnership with the Victorian Government. Deakin and the Victorian Government, through its Higher Education State Investment Fund (VHESIF), will each invest $10 million in the major project that will see ManuFutures double in size to give new start-ups and existing small and medium enterprises (SMEs) the opportunity to scale up quickly to advanced manufacturing and link-in with Geelong's knowledge economy. Vice-Chancellor Professor Iain Martin said the Geelong Future Economy Precinct at the Waurn…
Lightsource bp today announced that through a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Snowy Hydro, its West Wyalong solar farm will supply renewable energy to 88 of bp’s service stations across New South Wales. Snowy Hydro owns, operates and maintains the Snowy Scheme as well as Red Energy and Lumo Energy, making it the fourth-largest energy retailer in Australia with almost one million electricity and gas customers across Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia and Queensland. The PPA will enable the construction of a 107MWdc solar farm in West Wyalong. Snowy Hydro will purchase two-thirds of the 238,000MWh generated annually from…
Rio Tinto will soon commence construction on a plant that will recover tellurium, a critical mineral used in solar panels, from copper refining at its Kennecott mine near Salt Lake City, Utah. Rio Tinto is investing $2.9 million to set up the plant, which will recover tellurium as a by-product of copper smelting, extracting a valuable mineral from waste streams. The plant will have the capacity to produce approximately 20 tonnes of tellurium per year. Rio Tinto expects to begin production of tellurium in the fourth quarter of 2021, creating a new North American supply chain for this critical mineral.…
Resolute Mining Limited (Resolute or the Company) has advised that the Ghanaian Honourable Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Samuel A Jinapor, MP (the Minister), has notified the Company that the Mining Lease for the Bibiani Gold Mine has been restored. The Minister has advised the Company that having regard to Ghana’s standing as the largest gold producer in Africa and among the top seven producers in the world, and the need to maintain investor confidence globally and in particular maintain Ghana’s reputation as the preferred destination for mining investment in Africa, the Mining Lease has been restored subject…
Challenger Exploration Limited (Challenger) has announced results from a series of drillholes from the company’s flagship Hualilan Gold project in San Juan, Argentina. The results are from the first seven holes from a series of 26 completed holes designed to test for extensions to the: High-grade mineralisation in the Magnata Fault at depth and in both directions along strike; The high-grade Magnata Manto both up and down-dip and along strike; and The broad zones of intrusive hosted mineralisation north and south of the Magnata Fault. Given the results, and the visual mineralisation (skarn alteration with sulphides) logged in many of…
South African focused gold developer, Theta Gold Mines Limited (Theta Gold), has announced its Maiden Underground Prefeasibility Study (PFS) for the Beta, Frankfort, and CDM mines, all of which form part of the Central Northern area and now collectively referred to as TGME Underground (UG) Project. Below are some key highlights from the PFS for the TGME Phase 1 Underground Project, which excludes the open pits. All numbers in USD and financials based on forecast gold price of average USD$1,570/oz and ZAR/USD exchange rate of 15.9. Pay-back period from first gold 13 months Pay-back period from start of mining 22…
Independent expert for renewable energy projects, Suntrace GmbH, renewable energy company, BayWa r.e., and mining company B2Gold Corp. have completed commissioning of the world’s largest off-grid solar-battery hybrid system for the mining industry, at the Fekola gold mine in Mali, West Africa. The solar-battery hybrid plant was integrated and commissioned successfully with the existing power plant operation, and the solar plant is on course to be 100 per cent complete by the end of June. Hybrid projects such as this, which combine solar energy with conventional energy generation and battery storage, are an effective way to provide reliable power supply day…
The Cabeza de los Gatos waste rock pile, left from mining activities in the town of Tharsis (Huelva) in Spain, underwent a rehabilitation process consisting of remodelling the slope of the pile, applying liming materials and then a layer of soil. Trees and shrubs typical of the area were planted and a hydroseeding with a mixture of shrub and herbaceous seeds was applied. 12 years later, a study led by researchers from IRNAS-CSIC, in collaboration with Sabina Rossini Oliva, a researcher from the University of Seville and the Environment and Water Agency of Andalusia (AMAYA), has proven the effectiveness of…
Production of battery-grade lithium from waste rock has commenced at a lithium demonstration plant at Rio Tinto’s Boron mine in California, USA. An initial small-scale trial in 2019 successfully proved the process of roasting and leaching waste rock to recover high grades of lithium. Rio Tinto said the demonstration plant is the next step in scaling up a breakthrough lithium production process developed at Boron, to recover the critical mineral and extract additional value out of waste piles from over 90 years of mining at the operation. The demonstration plant has a design capacity of 10 tonnes per year of…
Apollo Minerals Limited has announced its maiden drilling campaign is now underway at the prospective Kroussou zinc-lead project in Gabon. The Kroussou Project comprises the Prospecting License G4-569 which covers 986.5 square kilometres in the Ngounié Province of Western Gabon located approximately 220 kilometres southeast of the capital city of Libreville. The current Phase 1 diamond drill program, which comprises approximately 30 holes for 1,000 metres of diamond drilling, is focused at the high-grade Dikaki Prospect and will also aim to test high-grade rock chips and soils at Bouambo East. This initial program is expected to be completed by May…
