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Australia
South Middleback Ranges (SMR) Mine

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 Location:
46 km SW from Whyalla, South Australia, Australia

  Regional Office:
Level 28, 88 Phillip Street
Sydney
New South Wales, Australia
2000
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  • Overview
  • Owners
  • Geology
  • Mining
  • Processing
  • Production
  • Reserves
  • Fleet
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  • Filings & News

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Overview

StageProduction
Mine TypeOpen Pit
Commodities
  • Iron (magnetite)
  • Iron (hematite)
Mining Method
  • Truck & Shovel / Loader
Production Start...
Mine Life2032
South Middleback Range (SMR) includes Iron Chieftain, Iron Knight, Iron Duchess, Iron Magnet and Iron Duke mines. During 2021, mining continued in the Iron Magnet and Iron Duchess Pits.

Operations within the SMR in the reporting period included hematite and magnetite mining and the associated activities of crushing, screening, and production of magnetite concentrate.


Owners

Source: p. 13
CompanyInterestOwnership
Gupta Family Group ("GFG") Alliance 100 % Indirect
SIMEC Mining (operator) 100 % Direct
Tenement holder and operator - OneSteel Manufacturing Pty Ltd (operating as SIMEC Mining). SIMEC Mining is a business of OneSteel Manufacturing Pty Ltd which is a company in the GFG Alliance.

Contractors

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Deposit Type

  • Banded iron formation
  • Stratabound
  • Metamorphic


Summary:

The South Middleback Ranges (SMR) lies at the southern end of the Middleback Ranges (MBR). Hematite in the MBR occurs as stratabound Palaeoproterozoic deposits of the Lower Middleback Iron Formation (LMIF), which is part of the Hutchison Group. The Hutchison Group forms part of the Cleve Subdomain of the Gawler Craton, and lies on its western edge. The Cleve Subdomain comprises tightly folded, high-grade metamorphic rocks that are mainly derived from marine shelf sediments and mafic and acidic volcanics (Parker 2012).

The Hutchison Group in the MBR is composed of the Warrow Quartzite and the Middleback Subgroup. The Warrow Quartzite is not identified at all locations. The Middleback Subgroup comprises the Katunga Dolomite, the LMIF, the Cook Gap Schist and the Upper Middleback Iron Formation (UMIF). The LMIF hosts the Middleback Ranges’ hematite deposits.

MBR iron ores formed through supergene enrichment; the process selectively dissolved waste minerals and replaced them with iron ore mineralisation. Preferential enrichment occurred in carbonate facies iron formation, dolomitic marble and, to a lesser degree, silicate facies iron formation. The silicates were much less soluble than the carbonates and resulted in patchy mineralisation in the silicate iron facies (Yeates 1990).

Magnetite was recrystallised and remobilised during a period of metamorphism and deformation. Multiple periods of uplift, erosion and weathering resulted in the oxidat ........


Mining Methods

  • Truck & Shovel / Loader


Summary:

South Middleback Range (SMR) includes Iron Chieftain, Iron Knight, Iron Duchess, Iron Magnet and Iron Duke.

During 2021, mining continued in the Iron Magnet and Iron Duchess Pits.

Iron Duchess region
The Iron Duchess region includes the Duchess North and Duchess South pits.

The Duchess South pit was mined via an open pit cut-back mining process using traditional drill, blast, load and haul methods. The mine sequencing showed a continuous supply of ore from this pit leading to depletion. Ore was stockpiled and then crushed and screened using mobile processing plants. Low-grade ore and waste materials are stockpiled.

The Duchess North area was mined in earlier decades and is known to contain a significant resource. Current mine development commenced in July 2018.

The Duchess North pit has been and can be used to store reclaimed water from the magnetite concentrator and OBP tailings operations. As described in SIMEC Mining’s June 2020 Program notification (WPC-198), reclaimed water from the Duchess North pit has recently (2021) either been used or relocated to the Duchess South pit, as to allow mining of the Duchess North resource to continue, under Stage B Part 2 of the mine plan.

It is proposed that the Duchess North mining be extended to the North, with a new pit, Duchess North D, to be developed within the bounds of ML6431, ML2705, ML2707 and ML2708. New supporting infrastructure, including WRDs an ........


Crushing and Grinding
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Processing

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Summary:

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Production:

CommodityProductUnits202220212020
Iron (magnetite) Concentrate kt  ......  Subscription required ^  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required
Iron (hematite) Lump & Fines t  ......  Subscription required
^ Guidance / Forecast.
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Operational Metrics:

Metrics202220212020
Ore tonnes mined  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required
Waste  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required
Tonnes processed  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required
Annual production capacity  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required  ......  Subscription required
^ Guidance / Forecast.
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Reserves at December 31, 2021:

CategoryTonnage Commodity
Proven 34.2 Mt Iron
Probable 32.98 Mt Iron
Proven & Probable 67.18 Mt Iron
Measured 25 Mt Iron
Indicated 198.14 Mt Iron
Inferred 258.1 Mt Iron
Total Resource 481.24 Mt Iron


Pipelines and Water Supply
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Heavy Mobile Equipment as of May 7, 2021:
HME TypeModelSizeQuantity
Dozer (crawler) ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Drill ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Excavator ....................... Subscription required 260 t ....................... Subscription required
Excavator ....................... Subscription required 392 t ....................... Subscription required
Grader ....................... Subscription required 26 t ....................... Subscription required
Grader ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Loader ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Loader ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Rockbreaker ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Truck (haul) ....................... Subscription required 250 t ....................... Subscription required
Truck (haul) ....................... Subscription required 250 t ....................... Subscription required
Truck (haul) ....................... Subscription required
Truck (water) ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
Truck (water) ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required
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Mine Management:

Job TitleNamePhoneProfileRef. Date
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 24, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 24, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 24, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 24, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 24, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 24, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 24, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 24, 2023
....................... Subscription required ....................... Subscription required Subscription required Feb 24, 2023
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Staff:

EmployeesContractorsTotal WorkforceYear
Subscription required Subscription required Subscription required 2020

Corporate Filings & Presentations:

DocumentYear
................................... Subscription required 2021
................................... Subscription required 2021
................................... Subscription required 2020
................................... Subscription required 2020
................................... Subscription required 2020
Corporate Presentation 2018
Year-end Mineral Reserves 2015
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