FMG's Iron Bridge project to produce iron ore at the end of 2022

SHANGHAI, Jun 24 (SMM) – The technical and commercial evaluation of the FMG Iron Bridge magnetite project was completed in early June. The project is scheduled to begin mining in December 2022, with an annual output of 22 million mt of high-grade magnetite concentrate with an iron content of 67%.

The project has a long service life, with iron ore reserves of 716 million mt. The main investment of the project include: the construction of an ore processing facility with an annual output of 22 million mt, the construction of a 195-km Canning Basin water pipeline, and the construction of a 135-km concentrate slurry transportation pipeline and backwater pipeline to Port Hedland, construction of Port Hedland concentrate loading and unloading facilities, the first batch of mining fleets and other infrastructure construction.

As an independent product, Iron Bridge concentrate has excellent pelletising and sintering characteristics, and its exothermic oxidation characteristics can also save fuel and reduce energy consumption. More importantly, the magnetite concentrate can be mixed with FMG's existing hematite, and the product strategy can be adjusted the product mix can be optimised according to market conditions so as to create more value.