Photo by: Bloombeg
PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Iron-ore major Fortescue Metals has reported an increase in its iron-ore reserves, which includes a maiden magnetite ore reserve.
Hematite reserves increased from the 2.37-billion tonnes reported in June 2014, to 2.4-billion tonnes as at June 30, this year, while hematite resources decreased slightly from 5.44-billion tonnes to 5.42-billion tonnes.
CEO Nev Power said on Friday that the increase in hematite ore reserves indicated the sustainability of the company’s cost performance.
“With our C1 costs of producing ore onto the ship guided to A$18/t for 2016, we are clearly at the lower end of the global cost curve and today’s report demonstrates that we have maintained our mine lives, while sustainably lowering costs.”
A maiden magnetite ore reserve of 700-million tonnes, grading 67.2% iron, and a resource of 5.5-billion tonnes, grading 31.4% iron, was also reported for the Iron Bridge project, which Power said demonstrated Fortescue’s attractive, low-cost growth options within its portfolio, should the market incentivise additional tonnage.
“At 5.5-billion tonnes, Fortescue’s magnetite resource is now Australia’s largest Joint Ore Reserves Committee-compliant resource and forms an important future growth option for the company should the market incentivise such a low-cost, high-quality project.”
The construction of the Iron Bridge Stage 1 processing plant has been completed, as well as the Stage 2 feasibility study.
The project is being developed in an unincorporated joint venture between FMG Iron Bridge and Formosa Steel.
No further work has been sanctioned at the project.