Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. approved development of the Eliwana iron ore mine and rail project in Western Australia's Pilbara region, which will comprise 143 kilometers of rail, a new 30-million-tonnes-per-annum dry ore processing facility and infrastructure.
The development is estimated to cost about US$1.28 billion, with US$165 million to be spent in 2019, US$760 million in 2020 and US$350 million in 2021.
Production is scheduled to start in December 2020, the company said May 28.
The company said a definitive feasibility study is complete and the approvals process is underway for two public environmental reviews and a mining proposal.
Fortescue will also release an updated reserve and resource estimate for Eliwana in August.
A same-day statement from the Western Australian government said that the project is expected to create up to 1,900 construction jobs, and 500 ongoing jobs once it starts operations.
The Australian iron ore miner chose Eliwana to replace depleting resources at the Firetail mine at its Solomon Hub operations.
