- Magnetite Mines has submitted a Mining Lease Proposal (MLP) to the South Australian Department for Energy & Mining for a mining operation at its flagship Razorback Project.
- Embodying many years work, the MLP submission is a crucial milestone in the path to production from Razorback, which is configured to produce 5 million tonnes per year of premium-grade magnetite concentrates suitable for green iron production.
- Coinciding with the recently announced Federal Green Iron Fund, Razorback's development positions Magnetite Mines as a first-mover in the state by establishing a long-term magnetite supply foundation for an economy-changing new green iron industry.
- The Mining Lease will provide secure tenure for construction, mining and ore processing operations and highlights the Company's commitment to developing Razorback as well as confirming the technical and regulatory maturity of the Project.
Magnetite Mines Managing Director, Tim Dobson said:
"We are delighted to have reached this critical milestone for Razorback, setting in motion the development pathway for our flagship project. Our team and consulting partners have completed a comprehensive and high-quality MLP submission commensurate with the large-scale, long-life aspects of our future Razorback mine.
"Razorback's development timing is well positioned to coincide with both the emerging international demand for premium-grade iron ore concentrates and the green iron industry ambitions of State and Federal Governments, recently underlined by a Federal billion-dollar Green Iron Fund announcement.
"The MLP submission represents not only the starting line for iron ore mining at Razorback, but the opening of an entire new Australian mining province with the potential to support green iron production and export for generations into the future, and the profound economic prosperity that comes with that."
Magnetite Mines Limited (ASX:MGT) is pleased to announce it has today lodged a Mining Lease Proposal (MLP) with the South Australian Department for Energy & Mining (DEM), compiled in accordance with the State's Mining Act 1971 (Mining Act).
The MLP represents a formal application by the Company for the granting of a Mining Lease (ML) that will provide secure tenure for the establishment of mining and processing operations at the Company's 100%-owned Razorback Iron Ore Project, located 240km northeast of Adelaide in South Australia's Braemar Iron Formation.
Comprising almost 900 pages, the MLP is a substantial body of work that represents years of technical, economic and environmental studies, stakeholder engagement and impact assessments. This work has resulted in a proposal that will ensure sustainable construction, operations and eventual closure of the Project in alignment with best practice mining principles.
DEM will now commence a validity assessment for the MLP that is expected to be completed in the second quarter of this year and will be followed by a public consultation period. The period of time required to complete the approval of the MLP is not prescribed, however DEM has advised that a minimum six-month period is reasonably expected, subject to the complexity of the submission and the nature of stakeholder feedback arising from the public consultation period.
STRATEGY & TIMING
In 2022, the Company identified Razorback's potential to produce premium-grade concentrates suitable for green iron production, in response to forecast increasing global demand arising from the steelmaking industry's transition to Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) technology to meet decarbonisation commitments.
At that time, Magnetite Mines reset its strategy to take full advantage of these market shifts.1 The Project scope was reconfigured to deliver 5 million tonnes per year (Mtpa) of Direct Reduced (DR)-grade product, with the option to expand to 10Mtpa, and the Company set about completing all the technical and regulatory works required to finalise a MLP. In parallel, a search for strategic and future joint venture partners was commenced.
Since mid-2024, five major developments in support of Razorback's development have been achieved:
- Magnetite Mines signed a Heads of Agreement with JFE Shoji Australia Pty Ltd (JFE) as the Project's first potential strategic and joint venture partner. JFE Shoji Australia is a wholly owned subsidiary of JFE Shoji Corporation, which in turn is a wholly owned subsidiary of JFE Holdings.2
- The Australian Federal Department of Industry, Science & Resources completed an industry consultation process into new Green Metals industries (Green Alumina and Green Iron & Steel), to which Magnetite Mines made a comprehensive submission.3
- Led by SA Premier Peter Malinauskas, the SA Government released its Green Iron & Steel Strategy and commenced a 'Green Iron Opportunity' Expression of Interest (EOI) process.4
- Magnetite Mines formed Green Iron SA, a consortium comprising Magnetite Mines, Flinders Ports, Aurizon and GHD, which made a comprehensive submission to the EOI process based on the development of Razorback as foundational and necessary magnetite supply for a new green iron industry in the state.5
- In February 2025, the Australian Federal Government announced a $1 billion Green Iron Fund to incentivise the establishment of a new green iron production industry in Australia that will take advantage of the country's abundant renewable energy and magnetite resources.6
Accordingly, the Company views the submission of the Razorback MLP as well-timed to take advantage of both industry and government commitments towards developing an Australian green iron supply chain.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
The MLP submitted by Magnetite Mines is seeking approval for a ML to accommodate mining and ore processing operations at the Company's Razorback Iron Ore Project, with additional applications for four Miscellaneous Purposes Licences (MPLs) covering adjoining infrastructure and access corridors. The Project site is located approximately 75km east of Peterborough in South Australia's Mid North region in a geological province known as the Braemar Iron Formation.
Figure 1 provides a regional map that shows the proposed ML and MPLs in relation to the town of Peterborough (the Project's principal service hub) and existing major road and rail infrastructure.
Figure 1 –Razorback Project location showing proposed ML and MPLs in relation to regional infrastructure.
Figure 2 provides an overview of the proposed Razorback Project site 38 years into mining operations, as well as the location of the proposed ML boundary. At this future point in the Project life, operations will have been completed at the Iron Peak deposit (lower right), with the pit and adjoining waste rock dump closed and rehabilitated.
Mining operations at the Razorback deposit are also scheduled to conclude at this time, based on the utilisation of the Tailings Storage Facility (TSF) capacity under the initial design included in the MLP, with the TSF undergoing progressive closure and rehabilitation. The Project's current mine plan enables a 56-year life of mine, and the Company's existing Mineral Resources can support a further 35 years of mining to a total of 91 years of potential production.7 Supplementary approvals to increase tailings storage capacity, enabling mine life extension, are envisaged during the operations phase.
The ML area has also been configured to include the highly-prospective Iron Peak North and Interzone areas – simplifying the future development of these potential additional resources.
Figure 2 – Artist's impression of Razorback site operations at the end of mining covered by the MLP based on tailings storage facility capacity.
The Project, as described in the MLP submission and additional MPL applications, comprises the following elements:
Mining Operations
- Conventional open cut mining of the Iron Peak and Razorback deposits
- Low strip ratio (waste tonnes: ore tonnes) of 0.42: 1.00
- 35 Mtpa average annual ore production
Processing Operations
- 5.2 Mtpa (dry equivalent) average annual magnetite concentrate production rate
- Conventional magnetite beneficiation processing: crushing, grinding, magnetic separation, flotation, filtration
- Tailings storage facility using central thickened discharge deposition method with water recovery
Figure 4 – Conventional magnetite beneficiation technologies will be used for ore processing including wet magnetic separation (stock image).
Non-process infrastructure
- 100-man pioneer camp at Hillgrange Siding to support the commencement of construction
- 400-man camp at Razorback to support construction and operations
- Offices, workshops and bulk stores at Razorback to support operations
Product Logistics
- Construction of ~50km private concentrate truck haulage and site access road
- Intermodal facility at Hillgrange Siding for ore concentrate transfer to rail
- Rail transport (by others) to Port of Whyalla1
- Concentrate storage and transfer to bulk-carrier ships (by others) from Port of Whyalla
Figure 5 – Magnetite concentrates will be loaded on to dedicated ore trains at proposed Hillgrange intermodal facility for transport to port (stock image).
Utilities
- Electricity grid connection: 125km, 275kV electrical transmission line from Bundey Substation to site with substation at Razorback, connecting the Project to the National Energy Market
