PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Mines has formally approved the works programme for the South Johnstone bauxite project.
The approval comes after ASX-listed project developer Queensland Bauxite received approval from the Department of Environment and Heritage Protection for its amended environmental authority.
The South Johnstone project covers an area of about 400 km2 and has an exploration target of between 193-million tonnes and 405-million tonnes.
Queensland Bauxite said on Wednesday that the bauxite mineralisation at the project area was close to surface and right off the main highway, adjacent to port and close to the Asian markets, meaning that capital and operating costs would be of the lowest costs for bauxite projects.
A scoping study has previously revealed that the project would require a capital investment of only A$5-million, with operating expenditure estimated at around A$20.87/t.
The company is envisaging a staged production ramp-up starting at 800 000 t/y.