Atlas Iron readies Miralga Creek project start
Article by Nickolas Zakharia courtesy of Australian Mining
Atlas Iron will start works to develop the Miralga Creek iron ore project in Western Australia after it received all primary approvals.
According to Atlas Iron, Miralga Creek will be an extension of the Abydos iron ore mine and employ around 300 workers.
The project will develop five open pits to extract 8 million tonnes of iron ore over four to five years.
Western Australia’s Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety approved the mining proposal while the Environment Protection Authority signed off the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act and works approvals.
“As a result, all primary approvals for the project have been secured and planned works can now commence,” Atlas Iron stated.
Other infrastructure included in the Miralga project’s application is waste rock dumps and the existing camp from the Abydos mine.
The company stated works for the nearby Abydos camp have been ongoing to take it out of care and maintenance.
“This work has been completed in joint effort with an external construction company and Mick Shannon’s Operations Support team,” Atlas Iron stated.
Atlas Iron explores, develops and ships Atlas Fines and Atlas Lump products, with the company focussing on smaller footprint mines.
In June, Minister for Resources, Water and Northern Australia Keith Pitt said Australia’s iron ore miners have led the way for exports.
“Australia’s iron ore miners are some of the most efficient in the world, delivering record volumes of high-quality Australian iron ore to major trading partners across the globe,” he said. said.
“Our major miners have made a concerted effort to bring down production costs over the last 10 years, and those efforts are paying off.”
The Resources and Energy Quarterly for the June quarter has anticipated that export earnings for the 2020-21 financial year will reach a record $310 billion and feature the highest-ever shipments of iron ore.