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FERROWEST LIMITED - ASX: FWL
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Description
Ferrowest Limited is developing the 'Yalgoo Iron Project', a project aimed at producing seaborne traded merchant pig iron from the 100% company owned Yogi iron ore deposit, 14km east of Yalgoo in the mid west region of Western Australia.
The Scoping Study and Preliminary Feasibility Study for the Project have been successfully completed and a Definitive Engineering Study is currently underway. Subject to the successful completion of the feasibility studies, production is scheduled to commence in early 2014.
Initial production output is expected to be 1.0 million tonnes per annum of high quality (96%Fe) merchant pig iron in a physical form of iron nuggets, primarily for export to quality electric arc steel manufacturers that require pure iron feedstock to average down contaminants introduced by scrap iron feed materials.
The project location in Western Australia with its low sovereign risk, low cost energy, significant iron ore resources and existing infrastructure facilities for natural gas, water, transport and port facilities will ensure that Ferrowest will be a reliable exporter of high quality iron units for steel manufacturers in the Asian region and beyond.
Yalgoo Iron Project
The Yalgoo Iron Project concept envisages the mining of magnetite iron ore from the Yogi deposit, which is 100% owned by Ferrowest and located 14km east of Yalgoo in the mid west region of Western Australia. The magnetite ore would be crushed and fed into a beneficiation plant, to be located at the mine site to produce around 1,500,000 tonnes per annum of magnetite (iron ore) concentrate grading 67% Fe.
The magnetite concentrate would then be transported 185Km by road tains (90 tonne trucks) via the existing Geraldton to Mount Magnet Highway to a site called Eradu, 60Km east of the Port of Geraldton.
The plan is to construct and operate a 1 million tonne per annum merchant pig iron plant ("MPI") using ITmk3(R) technology at Eradu. MPI is a value added 96%Fe iron product (in the physical form of iron nuggets) that is used as feedstock for high quality steel making, primarily by electric arc furnace (“EAF”) production methods.
The high value MPI product (worth 4 to 5 times the value of direct shipping iron ore) can be stored in the open, is easy to handle, does not generate dust and does not present a combustion risk during shipping.
It is currently planned that the MPI product would be transported 60km on the existing railway from Eradu to the Port of Geraldton where it can be stockpiled. Ship loading will occur over Berth's 4 or 5 because unlike iron ore, MPI will not contaminate the ship loaders.
The project also envisages utilising natural gas for power generation, reduction of the ore and smelting with gas sourced from an existing gas pipelines at Eradu and the Yogi mine site.
The MPI market is growing rapidly with strong demand from EAF steel makers (35% of world steel production) who produce quality steel products (particular flat products). These steel makers require a source of low contaminant iron units (such as Ferrowest MPI) to supplement the scrap iron that is the predominant feedstock used by the EAF steel mills. The expanding world steel production has caused a shortfall in low contaminant scrap iron that in turn must be met by ‘scrap alternates’ such as MPI, direct reduced iron (“DRI”) and hot briquetted iron (“HBI”). Of these three products MPI is the premium product because of its higher metallised iron content and ease of shipping and storage.
At 1 million tonnes per annum of MPI, the project is expected to generate over A$400,000,000 revenue annually from this value added product.
Mine For
iron ore
Location of operation(s)
Western Australia
Address
Unit 18 , 28 Belmont Avenue
BELMONT, WA, AUSTRALIA
Phone
(08) 9277 2600
Website
Last Updated
8/4/2011
The data on Australian Shares.com is intended as a guide only and is provided purely as an indication of what information can be found through official announcements. Data on this website should not be used to make an investment or trading decision. All information should be carefully cross-checked against official sources for accuracy. The publisher (Intaanetto Pty Ltd) will not be held liable for any loss arising from the use of this website.
