Roy Hill railway | |
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![]() Map of the Roy Hill railway | |
Overview | |
Status | Operational |
Locale | Pilbara, Western Australia |
Termini | |
Service | |
Type | Heavy rail |
System | Pilbara |
Operator(s) | Roy Hill Infrastructure Pty Ltd |
History | |
Opened | 2015 |
Technical | |
Line length | 344 km (213.75 mi) |
Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) |
The Roy Hill railway, officially the Roy Hill Infrastructure railway, owned and operated by Hancock Prospecting, is a private rail network in the Pilbara region of Western Australia built to carry iron ore.
In addition to the Hancock Prospecting network, several other independent iron ore rail lines comprise the Pilbara Iron Ore Railways:
An application to construct the Roy Hill railway was lodged with the Environmental Protection Authority of Western Australia in October 2010. In the original application, the operator of the railway line, Roy Hill Infrastructure Pty Ltd, proposed to build a 320 km (198.84 mi) long railway line from the Roy Hill mine to the Port of Port Hedland. Construction was scheduled to take 24 months and the operational lifespan expectancy was greater than 20 years. [1]
Approval for the line was granted in November 2010 but amended in May 2011, increasing the railway line's length to 351 km (218.10 mi) as it was required to take a more northerly route than originally planned on the final stretch to the Roy Hill mine. [2] The route change was necessary because Roy Hill Infrastructure was unable to obtain permission from third-party mining lease-holders to construct the railway as originally approved. [3]
Construction of the railway on Crown land required the passing of the Railway (Roy Hill Infrastructure Pty Ltd) Agreement Act 2010 as an amendment to the Railways (Access) Act 1998 by the Parliament of Western Australia. [4]
The construction of the railway commenced in 2012 and was completed after 27 months, with the first ore train traveling the line in December 2015. The new railway included eight bridges over waterways and three over roads and rails. The project jointly won the 2016 Railway Project Award of the Railway Technical Society of Australasia, alongside the Auckland Electrification Project. [5] The combined construction cost of the mine, port and rail was A$10 billion, with a daily cost of A$10 million and a work force of 3,000 reported in 2014. [6]
The company currently operates ES44ACIs diesel-electric locomotives, manufactured by US company Wabtec, to pull their trains carrying 35,000 tonnes of iron ore. [7] Two new units as well as 150 ore cars were painted pink to raise breast cancer awareness in 2018. [8]
In late 2021, Roy Hill announced plans to test fully-battery-powered heavy-haul locomotives. They envision recharging the batteries while dynamic braking on the heavily-loaded downhill runs. [9] The first FLXdrive battery-electric locomotive was unveiled at Wabtec's design and development center on 31 October 2023. [10]
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.
Port Hedland is the second largest town in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, with an urban population of 15,298 as of the 2021 census, including the satellite town of South Hedland, 18 kilometres (11 mi) away. It is also the site of the highest tonnage port in Australia.
Newman, originally named Mount Newman until 1981, is a town in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. It is located about 1,186 kilometres (737 mi) north of Perth, and 9 kilometres (5.6 mi) north of the Tropic of Capricorn. It can be reached by the Great Northern Highway. Newman is a modern mining town, with homes contrasting with the surrounding reddish desert. As of the 2021 census, Newman had a population of 6,456. The Hickman Crater, a meteorite impact crater discovered in 2007, is 35 kilometres (22 mi) north of Newman.
Railways in Western Australia were developed in the 19th century both by the Government of Western Australia and a number of private companies. Today passenger rail services are controlled by the Public Transport Authority through Transperth, which operates public transport in Perth, and Transwa, which operates country passenger services. Journey Beyond operates the Indian Pacific.
Rosslyn Hill Mining Pty Ltd operates Paroo Station Mine at Wiluna in Western Australia.
The Hamersley & Robe River railway, majority-owned by Rio Tinto, and operated by its subsidiary Pilbara Iron, is a private rail network in the Pilbara region of Western Australia for the purpose of carrying iron ore. The network is larger than any other Australian heavy freight rail network in private ownership. The total length of its track is about 1,700 km (1,056 mi).
The Goldsworthy railway, owned and operated by BHP, is a private rail network in the Pilbara region of Western Australia built to carry iron ore. It is one of two railway lines BHP operates in the Pilbara, the other being the Mount Newman railway.
The Mount Newman railway, owned and operated by BHP, is a private rail network in the Pilbara region of Western Australia built to carry iron ore. It is one of two railway lines BHP operates in the Pilbara, the other being the Goldsworthy railway.
The Fortescue railway, owned and operated by Fortescue Metals Group (FMG), is a private rail network in the Pilbara region of Western Australia built to carry iron ore. It opened in 2008. When it was completed, it was the heaviest haul railway in the world, designed for 40 tonne axle loads, 2.5 to 5 tonnes heavier than the other Pilbara iron ore rail systems. On 4 November 2014, FMG Rail commenced trialling 42-tonne axle loads.
The Cloudbreak mine is an iron ore mine located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, 89 kilometres west-south-west of Nullagine, in the Chichester Range.
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.
The Area C mine is an iron ore mine located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, 92 kilometres west-north-west of Newman.
The Jimblebar mine is an iron ore mine located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, 41 kilometres east of Newman.
The Wodgina mine is an exhausted iron ore mine located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, 90 kilometres south of Port Hedland.
The Yandi mine is an iron ore mine located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, 90 kilometres north-west of Newman. It should not be confused with Rio Tinto's nearby Yandicoogina mine, which is also sometimes shortened to Yandi.
The Roy Hill mine is an iron ore mine 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 expected 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.
The Iron Valley mine is a small iron ore mine located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, 75 kilometres (47 mi) northwest of Newman, 270 kilometres (170 mi) south of Port Hedland, and 10 kilometres (6 mi) east of the Yandicoogina mine.
The Railways in the Pilbara are a collection of railways in the Pilbara region of north-west Western Australia.
Mineral Resources Limited is a Western Australian mining services company.
The Firetail mine is an iron ore mine operated by the Fortescue Metals Group (FMG) and located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, 60 km (37 mi) north of Tom Price. The mine is part of the company's Solomon Hub, one of three of its active mining areas, together with the Chichester Hub and the Western Hub.