Xstrata Copper / Australia
Mount Isa Mines
Xstrata Copper: World > Australia
| Detail label | Value |
|---|---|
| Location | North Queensland, Australia |
| Products | Copper |
| Employees | Approximately 4,500 people |
| Annual production capacity | 170,000 tonnes of copper in concentrate, 300,000 tonnes of copper in anode |
Description of Operation
Mount Isa Mines (Xstrata 100%) operates two separate mining and processing streams, copper and zinc-lead-silver. Mount Isa Mines’ copper operations include two underground copper mines -Enterprise and X41 from which 6.5 million tonnes of ore is mined per annum; a concentrator with 7 million tonnes per annum capacity; and a copper smelter.
The Enterprise mine is the most recently developed copper ore source at Mount Isa and is Australia’s deepest mine, with an internal shaft which reaches a depth of 1,900 metres
A new leaching project will recover 2,500 tonnes of copper per annum from the copper smelter’s electrostatic precipitator dust.
Brief History of the Operation
Prospector John Campbell Miles discovered silver-lead ore at Mount Isa in 1923. Mining began the following year and Mount Isa Mines was formed. During Mount Isa Mines’ early years the company focussed on zinc-lead-silver production with only a brief period of copper production during World War II. Parallel production of zinc-lead-silver and copper did not begin until 1953.