Southdown magnetite

The Southdown Magnetite Project is located on the south coast of Western Australia, about 90 kilometres north east of the port at Albany. The project site covers an area of 1,700 hectares that is currently used for freehold farming. The magnetite deposit proposed to be mined extends over a distance of 12 kilometres.

Southdown Magnetite Project to be Developed by Grange Resources and SRT of Japan

The Southdown Magnetite Project is to be developed as a joint venture involving Australian ASX listed mining company, Grange Resources Limited, with a 70 percent interest and Sojitz Resources and Technology Pty Ltd (SRT Australia Pty Ltd) of Japan with a 30 percent holding. Sojitz Resources is in turn jointly owned by Japanese global trading company, Sojitz Corporation and Kobe Steel, one of the largest steelmakers in Japan.

Southdown Magnetite to Have in Excess of 14 Years of Production

The Southdown joint venture project is to mine and export up to 10 million tonnes of premium grade magnetite concentrate a year through the port facilities at Albany, from where it will be exported to processed into pellets for the global market. It is believed the Southdown open cut mining operation will have a mine life of 14 years within the current licence area, although the total resource contained in the deposit has the potential to give the operation a life of more than 30 years.

Southdown Magnetite Concentrate to be Pumped to Port Site by Underground Pipeline

The Southdown magnetite mining operation will include crushing of the ore prior to it being magnetically separated and concentrated. The concentrate will then be pumped , as a slurry, to the Albany port in an underground pipe. This unorthodox transportation method has been used successfully in Tasmania for almost 50 years at the company's Savage River mine. The Tasmanian experience has proven to be both economical and safe, as it removes the need to engage haulage trucks traveling the 104 kilometres between the mine site and the port, which would require them passing through the Albany metropolitan area. Once the slurry arrives at the port it will be de-watered with the water returned to the mine processing plant for reuse. The pipeline will be laid along 0.42 hectares of reclaimed land along Princess Royal Harbour's northern shore.

Southdown Project Consists of two Major Developments

The Southdown Project at Albury will consist of two developments; (1) the Southdown mine development and the other (2) the expansion of the Albany port facilities by the APA (Albany Port Authority). The two projects are interconnected despite each having its own distinct role and responsibility, as neither would be going ahead if it wasn't for the other.

The open pit Southdown magnetite mine will be operated using modern large scale mining techniques such as a conventional 650 tonnes hydraulic face shovel and diesel powered dump trucks, each with a payload capacity of 220 tonnes.

The Albany port facilities, that are needed to support the project, are to be constructed and operated by Grange Resources. They will include a ship loader capable of loading magnetite concentrate onto Cape sized vessels, a storage shed, filter plant and a concentrate thickener tank. Expansion of the port by nine hectares is to be undertaken by the Albany Port Authority in order to have sufficient land available to accommodate the industrial growth that will occur as a result of the project progressing and construction of the the new berthing facilities. The expansion will require dredging part of the harbour as well as King George Sound with dredged material to be dumped in deep water within the Sound area. The Albany Port Authority is to lease the new berth and reclaimed land to Grange Resources Limited