Xstrata Zinc / Australia
McArthur River Mine
Xstrata Zinc: World > Australia
| Detail label | Value |
|---|---|
| Location | Southeast of Darwin, Australia |
| Products | Lead and Zinc concentrates |
| Employees | 138 |
| Annual production capacity | 300,000 dmt per year of bulk Zn/Pb concentrates. |
| website | http://www.mcarthurriver.com.au/ |
Description of Operation
McArthur River Mine (MRM) is 100% owned by Xstrata and located 900 kilometres southeast of Darwin near the Gulf of Carpentaria in Australia’s Northern Territory. The mine extracts a bulk concentrate of lead and zinc transported by road to the port of Big Bong and then shipped abroad. The mine is one of the largest known deposits of zinc and lead in the world.
Brief History of the Operation
The mine was discovered in 1955 but production only started in 1995. In August 2005, MRM announced its intention to convert the mine from an underground to an open pit operation, to enable production to continue, since underground mining was no longer viable. Approval from the Northern Territory Minister for Mines and Energy was received in October 2006 (click here to see press release). The size of the concentrator is being increased from 1.8 to 2.5 million tones per year of ore throughput which will result in an expanded production capacity of over 400,000 tonnes per year of bulk concentrates. Commissioning is scheduled for the second half of 2008.