Two iron ore miners in Western Australia's Mid West are to share mine services and infrastructure at their neighbouring projects. Gindalbie Metals and Sinosteel Midwest will share on-site accommodation, air strips and rail and water infrastructure for projects east of Morawa.
Gindalbie began the A$1.8 billion construction of its Karara project, east of Geraldton, last December, while Sinosteel expects to commence operations at its Koolanooka/Blue Hills mine by April.
"What we're doing is taking advantage of some of the natural synergies," said Sinosteel's chief operating officer, Guilio Casell. "There's an opportunity for both of us to have a win-win situation here where we can help each other and make sure how projects happen, also help the environment and I think also help the local community."
West Australia’s Premier, Colin Barnett, has welcomed the arrangement, saying shared infrastructure is critical to the long-term viability of the emerging Mid West iron ore industry.
1 comment:
State governments of various persuasions have handled the opportunities presented by projects like Gindalbie/Midwest Corp poorly. These projects are several years late due mainly to the slowness of government and environmental (government) approvals. This time lag has stolen the prize of benefit to the local community by allowing time for cashed up big outsiders to move in and elbow the locals out of the game.
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