Wilcherry Hill - Mining & Infrastructure

Stage 1

A production of 2Mt/a is expected to provide an initial mine life of at least, 5 years for Stage 1, operated by a contract mining firm with a limited on site IronClad management team. 

For Stage 1 the main infrastructure required on site will be a 1 megalitre / day bore field, water storage, fuel storage, site offices and vehicle and plant maintenance sheds. There is an existing airport near the site. 

A mine village will be constructed in the township of Kimba, 46km south of the mine site, to accommodate the workforce for the Wilcherry Hill Iron Ore mine. The village, to be built by Ausco Modular of South Australia, will be sized to initally accommodate 40 people. It has been planned for easy expansion to accommodate the 80 strong workforce who will be required as the Wilcherry Hill Iron Ore Project expands to full capacity. It has been designed with high quality low density aesthetic housing to blend into the farming town of Kimba.

A 10 year mining lease will be obtained for Stage 1. Contracts for mining, transport & port services will be entered into for 5 years for 2 Mt/a.  

Stage 2

Investigation has been undertaken into Stage 2 which will be beneficiation by simple processes. The strategy for Stage 2 will be to upgrade high grade material in fresh or oxidised ore (probably >45% Fe) and possibly tails from Stage 1 to produce a saleable product using the lowest possible operating and capital cost technique.

Testwork on 50-60% Fe head grade samples has shown that it readily upgrades to >60 Fe using a combination of low and high intensity magnetic separation. Given the significantly greater volume of mineralisation at a 45% Fe cut off, an expanded production rate may be possible. Further studies to find the optimum processing technique and transport solution are planned to occur as Stage 1 begins production.