Name and Location
Koodaideri iron-ore mine and infrastructure project, Pilbara, Australia.

Client
Rio Tinto subsidiary Mount Bruce Mining.

Project Description
The Koodaideri area is defined by a specific geographical outer boundary or ‘development envelope’ and is centred about 110 km west-north-west of Newman and 130 km north-east of Tom Price, in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The development envelope covers 65 888 ha and comprises the mine and plant area, and two infrastructure corridors that connect with the existing Rio Tinto infrastructure networks.

The project will involve the construction and operation of a large-scale mining and ore-processing operation, with product transported to ports through connection with Rio Tinto’s heavy-freight railway network.

The project will initially operate with a production throughput of about 35-million tonnes a year, but might increase to an estimated 70-million tonnes a year and is expected to have an operational mine life of more than 30 years.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Not available.

Value
The project will cost an estimated $3.5-billion to develop.

Duration
Not stated.

Latest Developments
The Western Australia Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) approved Rio Tinto subsidiary Mount Bruce Mining’s plan to develop the Koodaideri iron-ore project in November 2014.

The EPA concluded that the proposal could be implemented in an environmentally acceptable manner, but only if 14 conditions were implemented. These conditions include a management plan and the creation of buffers and an exclusion zone to ensure the proposal does not affect a colony of Pilbara leaf-nosed bats.

The management plan and exclusion zones will also protect the Koodaideri Spring and the associated creek and pools that provide a near permanent source of water, which, in turn, will safeguard vegetation and the habitat for the Pilbara leaf-nosed bat, the northern quoll and the Pilbara olive python.

Mount Bruce will also be required to rehabilitate the mine in an ecologically sustainable manner once the mine closes, as well as contribute offsets to a government conservation fund for the Pilbara.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
Rio Tinto media manager – iron-ore (Perth), Anthony Havers, tel +61 8 9425 8557 or email Anthony.Havers@riotinto.com.