PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Chinese iron-ore producer Sinosteel Midwest has shipped its first iron-ore product from its Mid West operations, in Western Australia, to China.

The miner said on Tuesday that 60 000 t of ore mined from the Koolanooka Blue Hills project was shipped through the Geraldton port to Chinese steel mills.

“Going forward, the Koolanooka and Blue Hills mines will produce 1,5-million tons of ore a year, for five to seven years, which is expected to equate to around A$25-million worth of royalties for Western Australia,” said Sinosteel COO Giulio Casello.

“Progressing the Koolanooka project through planning, approvals and development to its first shipment will lay the foundation for advancing our major project at Weld Range,” he added.

The Weld Range project would be the largest direct shipping ore (DSO) project in the Mid West and is expected to produce 15-million tons a year for at least 15 years and create 1 000 jobs during peak construction.

The Weld Range project was also expected to be the cornerstone project to export out of the proposed Oakajee port, when it starts production in 2013.

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