Fortescue Metals Group Ltd.'s maiden shipment of its new 60.1% iron content product, West Pilbara Fines, left Port Hedland in Western Australia for Hunan Valin Steel Co. Ltd. in China.

The company will produce 5 million to 10 million tonnes of West Pilbara Fines in the 2019 fiscal year by blending ore from the Cloudbreak and Firetail mines in Western Australia.

Fortescue said Dec. 16 that when Eliwana begins production in December 2020, production of West Pilbara Fines will ramp up to 40 million tonnes per annum.