PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Iron-ore major Fortescue Metals has reported a 3% increase in iron-ore shipments for the first quarter ended September, compared with the previous corresponding period, marking record first quarter shipments.

Shipments for the three months to September reached 45.6-million tonnes, with revenues averaging $118/t, while C1 cash costs were reported at $15.25/t, in line with the previous quarter.

During the quarter under review, Fortescue’s Solomon Hub reported one fatality.

“The health and safety of the Fortescue family is our highest priority and we were devastated by the death of our team member, David Armstrong. A fatality is a reminder of why safety is our most important focus and we appreciated the support shown across the mining industry. We are supporting David’s family and his team at Solomon at this very difficult time, and we are working with authorities to investigate the incident,” CEO Elizabeth Gaines said on Thursday.

“Across our operations, we achieved record first quarter shipments of 45.6-million tonnes and maintained our industry leading C1 cost of $15.25/t. Our C1 cost was in line with the previous quarter, reflecting our strong focus on cost management to mitigate inflationary pressures. Strong performance across the supply chain, together with the contribution of Eliwana continues to drive record operational performance.”

Ore processed and railed also achieved record first quarter volumes, reflecting strong operational performance across the supply chain and expanded system capacity following the ramp-up of Eliwana.

For the full 2022 financial year, Fortescue has maintained its guidance of between 180-million and 185-million tonnes of iron-ore shipped, at C1 costs of bertween $15/t and $15.50/t.

Meanwhile, Gaines on Thursday said that Fortescue’s strategy to diversify continues to gain momentum with Fortescue Future Industries’ (FFI's) recent announcement to develop a renewable energy and green hydrogen manufacturing centre at Gladstone, Queensland as well as agreements with Incitec Pivot and Plug Power.

“We are committed to working with our customers, suppliers and other industry participants to facilitate the reduction of emissions, including technology development and the supply of green hydrogen and ammonia through FFI, with these initiatives enabling our commitment to achieve net-zero Scope 3 emissions by 2040.

“During the quarter, we announced the establishment of a co-management framework with members of Wintawari Guruma Aboriginal Corporation. We remain committed to working with our Native Title partners to deliver training, employment and business development opportunities, with Fortescue having now awarded over A$3.5-billion of contracts to Aboriginal businesses and joint ventures through our Billion Opportunities program.”