PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Mineral sands miner Iluka Resources is hunting for an alternative port after heavy mineral concentrate (HMC) shipments from the Port of Thevenard, in South Australia, were suspended.
The company on Monday said that the owner of the Port had informed Iluka of safety concerns surrounding the structural integrity of sections of the jetty that support a conveyor system used for loading. At this stage, it is unclear when loading activities at the port will resume.
Iluka, which ships HMC from its Jacinth-Ambrosia operation to its mineral separation plants in Western Australia and Victoria, is now looking for alternative avenues to transport the ore through one of the other ports in the region.
The company said that the disruption in shipping was unlikely to have an impact on the production guidance for 2017, and given the company’s sufficient inventory of zircon, no impact on sales volumes for 2017 was anticipated.