The Mt Webber mine is an iron ore mine operated by Atlas Iron and located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, 230 kilometres (140 mi) from Port Hedland, to where the ore is transported. Mt Webber, opened in 2014, is the company's primary operation.
| Location | |
|---|---|
  Mt Webber mine Location in Western Australia | |
| Location | Shire of East Pilbara |
| State | Western Australia |
| Country | Australia |
| Coordinates | 21°32′13″S 119°17′20″E / 21.5369°S 119.2888°E |
| Production | |
| Products | Iron ore |
| Production | 9 million tonnes (20 billion pounds) per annum |
| History | |
| Opened | 2014 |
| Owner | |
| Company | Atlas Iron |
| Website | https://www.atlasiron.com.au/ |
 | |
Overview
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The mine officially opened in July 2014 and was, at the time, the company’s fifth operation, initially contributing 1 million tonnes (2.2 billion pounds) of iron ore per annum to the company's production. At the time of opening, the iron ore price was at a two year low but, at the same time, labour costs had also been lower, allowing for reduced construction costs.[1] A joint venture of Atlas Iron Limited and Altura Mining Limited at the time, construction cost of Mt Webber was A$210 million.[2]
Less than a year after opening Mt Webber, Atlas Iron suspended all operations because of declining iron ore prices.[3] The mine reopened two month later, in July 2015, after Atlas had reached a A$12 million mining royalties relief deal with the Government of Western Australia and reduced its production cost to below A$50, at an iron ore market price of A$61.50 at the time. Expected production figures at the time were 6 million tonnes (13 billion pounds) per annum for the next eight years.[4]
Atlas Iron was acquired by Redstone Resources, a fully owned subsidiary of Hancock Prospecting in October 2018.[5]
Having exhausted the Pardoo, Wodgina, Abydos and Mt Dove mines by 2021, Atlas was operating just two mines at this point, Mt Webber and Sanjiv Ridge (formerly Corunna Downs). A third mine, Miralga Creek, commenced operations in late February 2022.[6][7]
References
edit- ^ Bell, Lucie (15 July 2014). "Atlas Iron opens Mt Webber mine in the Pilbara". ABC Rural. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
- ^ "Mount Webber Mine". www.mindat.org. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
- ^ Spriggs, Ebonnie (13 April 2015). "Atlas Iron: Pilbara town Port Hedland bracing for impact of mine shutdowns". ABC News. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
- ^ Ceranic, Irena (2 June 2015). "Junior miner Atlas Iron to restart production at Mt Webber". ABC News. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
- ^ Hosie, Ewen (18 October 2018). "Hancock secures compulsory takeover of Atlas Iron in Rinehart win". Australian Mining. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
- ^ "Our Operations". atlasiron.com.au. Atlas Iron. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
- ^ Murphy, Emily (1 March 2022). "Atlas Iron gets first ore at Miralga Creek". Australian Mining. Retrieved 3 March 2022.