Ironstone is a sedimentary rock, either deposited directly as a ferruginous sediment or created by chemical replacement, that contains a substantial proportion of an iron compound from which iron can be smelted commercially. This term is customarily restricted to hard coarsely banded, nonbanded, and noncherty sedimentary rocks of post-Precambrian age. The Precambrian deposits, which have a different origin, are generally known as banded iron formations. The iron minerals comprising ironstones can consist either of oxides, i.e. limonite, hematite, and magnetite; carbonates, i.e. siderite; silicates, i.e. chamosite; or some combination of these minerals.
The Pilbara is a large, dry, thinly populated region in the north of Western Australia. It is known for its Aboriginal peoples; its ancient landscapes; the red earth; and its vast mineral deposits, in particular iron ore. It is also a global biodiversity hotspot for subterranean fauna.
Morawa is a town in the Mid West region of Western Australia. It is located within the Shire of Morawa, approximately 370 kilometres (230 mi) north of the state capital Perth, on the railway line between Wongan Hills and Mullewa.
The Shire of Yilgarn is a local government area in the eastern Wheatbelt region of Western Australia about 400 kilometres (250 mi) east of Perth, the state capital. The Shire covers an area of 30,720 square kilometres (11,860 sq mi) and its seat of government is the town of Southern Cross. The main industries within the Shire are mining and farming.
The Hamersley Range is a mountainous region of the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The range was named on 12 June 1861 by explorer Francis Thomas Gregory after Edward Hamersley, a prominent promoter of his exploration expedition to the northwest. Juukan Gorge lies within the ranges, about 60 kilometres (37 mi) from the mining town of Tom Price, as does Karijini National Park.
Marvel Loch is a small townsite of fewer than 100 people, 401 kilometres (249 mi) east of Perth, Western Australia. It is located 32 kilometres (20 mi) south west of Southern Cross, along the Perth to Kalgoorlie Great Eastern Highway. The town is located in the Shire of Yilgarn.
Koolyanobbing is located 54 km (34 mi) north-northeast of the town of Southern Cross, Western Australia. A subsidiary of Cliffs Natural Resources of Cleveland, Ohio mines Iron ore here. The ore is railed to the port at Esperance for export. Current operations commenced in 1993. The current owner and operator of the lease is Mineral Resources Limited (MRL) who took over from Cliffs Natural Resources in July 2018. MRL currently mine the ore and transport it to the port of Esperance
Cockatoo Island is an island in the Buccaneer Archipelago off the coast of Western Australia near the town of Derby. It was mined for iron ore by the Broken Hill Proprietary Company from 1951 until 1984. Koolan Island is a neighbouring island that was also mined by BHP for high grade iron ore. It was most recently mined by Perth-based mining company, Pluton Resources until the company was placed under administration in September 2015.
Mining in Western Australia, together with the petroleum industry in the state, accounted for 94% of the State's and 41% of Australia's income from total merchandise exports in 2018–19. The state of Western Australia hosted 127 principal mining projects and hundreds of smaller quarries and mines. The principal projects produced more than 99 per cent of the industry's total sales value.
Cleveland-Cliffs, Inc., formerly Cliffs Natural Resources, is a Cleveland, Ohio-based company that specializes in the mining, beneficiation, and pelletizing of iron ore and steelmaking. The company is a public company. Cleveland-Cliffs' primary operations are organized and managed according to product category: Mining & Pelletizing, Metallics, and Steelmaking.
Iron Blow was the site of the earliest major mining venture at Mount Lyell on the west coast of Tasmania, Australia in 1883.
The Yilgarn Iron Producers Association was formed in 2010 as a consortium of iron ore mining and exploration companies, including Golden West Resources, Radar Iron, Mindax, Legacy Iron Ore, Mineral Resources, Cazaly Resources, and Cliffs Natural Resources, that sought to cooperatively develop rail and port infrastructure to enable their Western Australian iron deposits to be exploited.
Mount Morgan Mine was a copper, gold and silver mine in Queensland, Australia. Mining began at Mount Morgan in 1882 and continued until 1981. Over its lifespan, the mine yielded approximately 262 metric tons of gold, 37 metric tons of silver and 387,000 metric tons of copper. The mine was once the largest gold mine in the world.
The Mount Whaleback mine is an iron ore mine located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, 6 kilometres west of Newman.
Iron ore mining in Western Australia, in the 2018–19 financial year, accounted for 54 percent of the total value of the state's resource production, with a value of A$78.2 billion. The overall value of the minerals and petroleum industry in Western Australia was A$145 billion in 2018-19, a 26 percent increase on the previous financial year.
Roy Hill is an iron ore mining project in the Chichester Range in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, located 115 kilometres (71 mi) north of Newman and 277 kilometres (172 mi) south of Port Hedland. With indicated and inferred reserves of more than 2.4 billion tonnes, it is set to become one of the largest mining projects in Australia. Mining operations will produce 55 million tonnes of iron ore per annum with an operating life of more than 20 years.
Centrex Metals Limited is an Australian based resources exploration and mining company. It has interests in Western Australia and South Australia. The company's chairman is notable South Australian engineer and businessman, David Klingberg.
Iron Road Limited is an Australian iron ore exploration and mining company, listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in Perth, Western Australia in 2008. Its objective is to develop a world class magnetite mine and infrastructure in South Australia. It has two projects, both in South Australia: the Central Eyre Iron Project, and the Gawler Iron Project, currently in abeyance. The company's corporate office is in Adelaide.
Western Labrador Rail Services, Inc. is a rail operation of Genesee & Wyoming Canada, Inc. created in 2010 by the combination of three short line railways: Arnaud Railway, Bloom Lake Railway, and Wabush Lake Railway. The operation provides rail transportation services to mining companies operating in the provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador and Québec, Canada.
