Dolphin
http://www.kingislandscheelite.com.au
tungsten, Town, DiDo
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TAS,
State: TAS,
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The Dolphin Scheelite mine, on the south east coast of King Island, near the town of Grassy, off the north west coast of Tasmania, is in the process of being reopened by King Island Scheelite.
The Dolphin Scheelite Mine has a Long History at Grassy
King Island Scheelite has previously mined for tungsten trioxide in the form of scheelite at the Dolphin Mine, first as an open pit and more recently as an underground operation. It is the underground mine that is currently being proposed for reopening. The town of Grassy was originally created to service the original mining of scheelite in the area.New Dolphin Workings to Produce 3,500 Tonnes of Concentrate a Year
The Dolphin and Bold Head mines and associated tailings at Grassy host scheelite deposits totalling 9,109,000 tonnes that contain 81,720 tonnes of tungsten trioxide (WO3). Besides the re-opening of the Dolphin underground mine the project is planned to build a processing plant capable of producing 3,500 tonnes of tungsten trioxide concentrate annually.Original Dolphin Mine Closed in 1990
The Dolphin mine was worked as an open pit mine until 1975 when it was decided to continue operations underground until it closed in 1990 because of the low world tungsten price. Another underground scheelite mine at Bold Head was closed at the same time. All equipment was removed from the two mines following the closures with the old unused Dolphin pit left to flood. The sites were then rehabilitated.New Dolphin Mine to be an Underground Operation
It is planned to mine the Dolphin scheelite deposit using the existing underground workings with the ore being processed in a new processing plant that is yet to be constructed. The Bold Hill mine and further deposits below the current Dolphin workings are to be accessed at a later date.The Dolphin project requires the dewatering of the former workings and the rehabilitation of the existing decline from the bottom of the old open pit. It is proposed to employ a contractor to manage and operate the underground operation at the new Dolphin workings. The mine will be expected to produce 350,000 tonnes of ore a year utilising post-pillar stoping and using classified tailings for hydraulic filling purposes.
Successful metallurgical testing has been carried out in China from which a mill design and flow sheet has been developed that is based on whole ore flotation with high mill performance and low cost operation. The mill is expected to produce at least 3,500 tonnes of 65 percent tungsten concentrate a year. This concentrate will be shipped to customers inside shipping containers. The Dolphin project will be able to produce up to five percent of world tungsten needs and 25 percent of the world supply when discounting that used by China. The Dolphin mine processing plant is to be established near the pit below the Grassy dam. The previous dam site will be utilised as a tailings dam for the new operation.
King Island is serviced by air and sea transport, mainly from the Tasmanian mainland. Its deep water port is located only one kilometre from the Dolphin mine site. An airport is located a half hour away via a sealed road. King Island's main town of Currie is located 25 kilometres by road from the mining town of Grassy.
