May 26 2004
WMC Resources Ltd today announced it will invest a further $50 million over two years in a major study to determine whether there should be a multibillion expansion of the Olympic Dam mine in South Australia’s mid-north.
Premier Mike Rann says the SA Government is giving its full support to the study which will help WMC determine whether it should double the capacity of the mine at a cost of between $2 billion and $4 billion by the end of the decade. “The potential for the Olympic Dam mine is huge.
“An expansion of this size could lead to the creation of hundreds of jobs and further growth in the population of the Roxby Downs township, which is already 4,000.
“This would also help the State achieve many of the targets laid out in the State Strategic Plan including increasing minerals production to $3 billion and increasing minerals processing by a further $1 billion by 2020 as well as increasing SA’s population to 2 million by 2050.
“It should also help us in our target of trebling the value of SA’s export income to $25 billion by 2013.
“At present, the Olympic Dam is the world’s eighth largest copper deposit and largest known uranium deposit. Last year, it generated $670 million in export income for Australia.
“This has the potential to double if the expansion goes ahead,” Mr Rann said. WMC has already invested $4 billion in developing Olympic Dam, including $600 million in the past three years and another $80 million during this year in mine development.
Major activities for the next phase of the Study include:
- an additional 72 km of drilling to improve understanding of the undeveloped southern deposit
- the assessment of mining and processing methods for the southern deposit and development of a ‘whole-of- deposit’ mine plan;
- environmental studies, including the scoping of a new Environmental Impact Statement;
- a detailed investigation of options for future water and energy supply to the operation
- preparation of a logistics plan for the operation, including the possibility of linking Olympic Dam to the rail network; and
- identification of future land requirements, support for the Roxby Downs township and associated infrastructure
WMC Resources CEO, Andrew Michelmore says Olympic Dam is already Australia’s largest underground mine and mineral processing operation.
“Olympic Dam currently ha s an annual production capacity of 235 000 tonnes of copper, 4 500 tonnes of uranium and 100 000 ounces of gold.
“Studies so far have shown that by extending underground mining, Olympic Dam could produce up to 350 000 tonnes of copper per year.
“Open pit mining, when added to continuing underground operations, could increase copper production to in excess of 500 000 tonnes per annum.
“By 2006, WMC will be in a position to identify a single preferred life of mine development plan for the total resource. That option would become the subject of a final feasibility study,” Mr Michelmore said.
The development study work will be in addition to ongoing assessment of Olympic Dam’s future energy needs, including the option of connecting Olympic Dam to a natural gas network..
In its Study, WMC will work closely with the SA Economic Development Board and the State Government Task Force for further development of Olympic Dam, appointed by the Premier in 2002.
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