News
25.10.11
IHS Fairplay reports that Australia's US$30 billion Olympic Dam
mine project has received environmental approval, increasing
prospects for two port expansions.
BHP Billiton has announced that Federal Government and the State
Government of South Australia, where the mine is situated, have
formally approved the environmental impact statement on its huge
expansion.
Planned are a new open-pit copper, uranium and gold mine, with a
pit exceeding 1km in depth and potential to increase copper
production from today's 180,000 tonnes per year to 750,000t/y, BHP
said in a statement.
The scheme calls for "additional port facilities in South
Australia at Outer Harbour and in the Northern Territory at the
port of Darwin to import supplies and export product", according to
the environmental statement.
IHS Fairplay said a range of associated infrastructure -
including an airport, railway line and desalination plant - would
also be built.
Outer Harbour would require "new bulk offloading storage
facilities", while Darwin's East Arm Wharf would add "new storage,
handling and loading facilities", the impact statement added.
Jan Thompson, Industrial Officer, jan@amou.com.au