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Victorian rare earths mine backed by US investment

June 11, 2024

A rare earths and mineral sands project in Victoria is another step closer to production thanks to a $183 million funding boost from US uranium miner Energy Fuels Inc.


Astron Corporation’s Donald project in west Victoria is at the heart of the deal, which involves farm-in, joint venture, and offtake agreements that will see Energy Fuels become a 49 per cent owner.


Energy Fuels will immediately assume responsibility for funding 100 per cent of the Donald project expenditure in the form of an interest free loan to the joint venture company.


Construction of the project is expected to start in 2025, with rare earths concentrate to be shipped to Energy Fuels’ White Mesa Mill processing facility in Utah by 2026.


Astron managing director Tiger Brown said the joint venture with Energy Fuels will establish a Western rare earth value chain aligned with the Australian Government’s Critical Minerals Strategy.


“The execution of this agreement represents a transformational moment in our company’s history,” Brown said.


“In Energy Fuels, we have found a joint venture partner that shares our values, our goals and focus, one that strongly complements our mineral sands experience and aspirations with their own rare earth experience and strategy.”


Energy Fuels president and chief executive officer Mark Chalmers shared Brown’s sentiment, highlighting Donald as a ‘world class’ project.


“I’ll add that our joint venture plans with Astron and the timing of the Donald project development could not be better and fits very nicely with the sequencing of our US Critical Mineral Hub initiative, which includes advancing our rare earth element and heavy mineral sand production,” Chalmers said.


“We believe the Donald project will be a ‘flagship’ mining project for Australia and the State of Victoria and the USA, producing many of the rare earth element raw materials needed for the energy transition perfectly aligned with the critical mineral objectives of both countries.”





Source: https://www.australianmining.com.au/new-vic-rare-earths-mine-backed-by-us-investment/

Queensland breaks ground on CopperString

July 9, 2024
The Queensland Government has broken ground on the first construction works of the $5 billion CopperString project. Work commenced yesterday on the CopperString projects’ first and largest workforce accommodation site. The site will house those charged with building the project’s 840km high-voltage transmission line that will connect Mount Isa to the ‘SuperGrid’ for the first time. The workforce accommodation will house up to 550 construction workers at its peak. These workers will construct a nearby substation and progress early stages of the transmission line development heading west from Hughenden out to Mount Isa. Supercharging the state’s north-west aims to unlock Queensland’s $500 billion north-west minerals province. It’s expected CopperString will be complete in 2029, weather and construction conditions permitting. Queensland Premier Stephen Miles said CopperString is the biggest ever expansion to the state’s publicly owned energy system. “Queenslanders deserve cheaper, cleaner, more reliable energy – to power their homes, our schools, hospitals, shopping centres and more,” Miles said . “CopperString will be the catalyst for transforming Queensland’s north and north-west – opening up mining opportunities, creating more jobs and unlocking critical minerals which will be essential in developing renewable technologies. “This is the start of a long and exciting future for the region and our state.” Commencing later this month, project owner, Queensland Powerlink, will be offering free sessions for businesses along the CopperString corridor to build their capabilities. The program includes five workshops and one-on-one assistance to help businesses build confidence to bid on major projects and supply chain work in the region. “All of North Queensland understands the immense opportunities that CopperString presents for local jobs both directly and indirectly which is why this is such a momentous day,” Resources and Critical Minerals Minister Scott Stewart said.  “Critical minerals are the next big boom for the resources industry and the feedback I’ve had from companies is that this project is key to unlocking those opportunities.” Source: https://www.australianmining.com.au/queensland-breaks-ground-on-copperstring/

Showcasing the best in underground mining

July 8, 2024
Underground mines are busy places, and it’s vital companies are on top of their processes to enable an efficient and safe underground operation. Whether it’s having the best equipment to drive higher production, maximise return on investment, minimise waste or keep workers out of harm’s way, mining companies benefit from understanding and investing in the right underground technologies. Source: https://www.australianmining.com.au/showcasing-the-best-in-underground-mining/

BHP goes green at ‘world’s largest’ copper mine

July 8, 2024
BHP has started environmental processing to have the transport at its Escondida copper mine in Chile transitioned to an electric trolley system. The Big Australian will invest around $US250 million ($371.6 million) in the project at Escondida, which it owns in a joint venture with Rio Tinto. The funds will go towards installing key infrastructure to electrically assist the movement of extraction trucks in areas where the highest fuel consumption currently takes place. BHP has submitted an environmental impact statement to the Environmental Impact Assessment System in Chile. “The electric trolley system is one of the initiatives with which we seek to move towards a safer and more sustainable way of operating hand in hand with technology,” BHP Escondida president Alejandro Tapia said . “This project will allow us to reduce the fuel consumption of our extraction trucks and thus advance our goal of net-zero operational greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.” The project includes the construction of a new electrical substation and transmission lines both inside and around the Escondida Norte pit. These facilities will electrically assist the movement of trucks inside the mine in the areas where they go up loaded with ore and, consequently, consume more fuel. With this new technology, instead of using diesel, they will be propelled by electrical power, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and improving productivity associated with truck performance given the higher travel speed. Once construction kicks off up to 160 jobs are expected to be created. The trolley project is in addition to other technological transformation initiatives that the company maintains in different stages of study and execution, including the progressive incorporation of autonomy in its mining equipment.  To date, Escondida has six autonomous trucks in full operation and by 2025 it expects to have the largest fleet of autonomous equipment in South America. Source: https://www.australianmining.com.au/bhp-goes-green-at-worlds-largest-copper-mine/
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