PERTH (miningweekly.com) – ASX-listed Mineral Resources (MinRes) was expecting a State Agreement for its planned Pilbara infrastructure project before the end of the year.
The company on Friday said that it was currently in negotiations with the Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation on the terms of the State Agreement, which will likely be legislated before the end of 2018.
MinRes has also started formal negotiations with the Pilbara Port Authority in respect of the tenure to construct the stockyard and cape-sized carrier berth at South West Creek.
The Pilbara infrastructure project consists of a lightweight, rail-based system that runs some 330 km from the Iron Valley region to Port Hedland, and will transport bulk ores.
MinRes told shareholders on Friday that the company had sufficient existing ore reserves to underpin the business case to deliver the Pilbara infrastructure project, which will also be a multi-user infrastructure corridor, providing transport and export solution to third parties.
The company has denied reports that the proposed infrastructure project would be used to service mines owned by takeover target Atlas Iron, saying that the corridor for the rail system did not pass in close proximity to the Atlas mines, and that the ore bodies were too small to warrant the expense of installing a spur line to them.
Atlas is currently the subject of a takeover bid from MinRes, which was offering Atlas shareholders one new MinRes share for every 571 Atlas shares held.
Meanwhile, MinRes told shareholders that the design and third-party verification of the Pilbara infrastructure project would also be completed by August, with the demonstration track and rolling stock operational before the end of the year.