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Australia

Coburn Mine

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Australia

Coburn Mine

Location: 240 km NW from Geraldton, Western Australia, Australia

Address:

Level 38, 2 The Esplanade
GPO Box 9986, WA 6848
Perth
Western Australia, Australia
6000

Contacts:

Additional Resources for Suppliers & Investors

Categories

Summary

Mine TypeOpen Pit
StatusCare and Maintenance
Commodities
  • Ilmenite
  • Zircon
  • Rutile
  • Heavy Minerals
Mining Method
  • Dry mining
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SnapshotCoburn is one of the largest and most capital-efficient mineral sands (zircon and titanium rich deposit) projects in the world, with an exceptional zircon-titanium product suite, low costs and ability to generate strong financial returns.

Coburn Project Expansion
During the 2023 year, Strandline Resources progressed a scoping study on the potential to increase Coburn’s production rate by up to 50%.

The Strandline Resources entered voluntary administration in February 2025 after being unable to secure sufficient funding to complete a debt-restructure and working capital bridge for its flagship Coburn Mineral Sands Project.

Since 6 June 2025 the Coburn mine is placed into care and maintenance.

As of August 2025, Japanese industrial group Iwatani is closing in on Strandline Resources’ mothballed mineral sands mine in a potential acquisition deal.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Strandline Resources Ltd. 100 % Indirect
Before entering administration, Strandline Resources, through its wholly owned subsidiary Coburn Resources Pty Ltd, operated the 100%-owned Coburn Mineral Sands Mine.

Strandline Resources entered voluntary administration on 21 February 2025, with McGrathNicol appointed as receivers and Cor Cordis as administrators for both Strandline and its subsidiary Coburn Resources Pty Ltd. The receivers assumed control to maintain operations while pursuing a sale or recapitalization.

Iwatani Corporation has offered about A$15 million to acquire the Coburn mine, which remains under receivership and care-and-maintenance. No binding completion of the transfer to Iwatani has been publicly confirmed.

Contractors

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SourceSource

Deposit type

  • Mineral sands

Summary:

Coburn is a world-scale mineral sands deposit, containing a rich zircon-titanium HM assemblage, with 20Mt of in-situ HM, low slimes, low oversize and strong geological continuity across and along strike.

Coburn’s Amy deposit was discovered in 2000 after prospectors identified that the ancient coastline at Coburn was an ideal trap-site for heavy mineral sands with its characteristic hook shape.

Mineralisation consists of an accumulation of mainly aeolian sands deposited over a Cretaceous basement of clays, clayey sands and limestone.

A total of 3 dune sequences containing heavy mineral are recognised across the project area.

The Amy South mineralisation has a strike length of approximately 27 km, a width up to 3 km and a maximum thickness of approximately 50 metres. Amy North adds a further 6km in strike length.

IHC Robbins issued (November 2018) JORC compliant Global Mineral Resource estimate of 1.6Bt HM at 1.2% THM (cut-off grade of 0.8%).

Measured-Indicated resources of 726Mt at 1.3% THM contained in the Amy South deposit (doesn’t include Amy North) have been evaluated as part of the DFS and updated Ore Reserve.

Amy South deposit comprises an exceptionally rich heavy mineral assemblage of 22% zircon, 12% rutile-leucoxene and 48% lmenite.

Indicated-Inferred resources extending north and along strike of the Ore Reserve, totals 709Mt at 1.2% THM which have been evaluated in the Mine Life “Extension Case” Scoping Study.

Reserves

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Mining Methods

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Required Heavy Mobile Equipment

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Comminution

Crushers and Mills

Milling equipment has not been reported.

Processing

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Commodity Production

The FY2025 production figures are estimated based on Q1 and Q2 data, annualized to reflect a full year, excluding June, as the mine was placed on care and maintenance on June 6, 2025.

In 2023, data for Coburn Mine is presented since commencing production on Nov 18, 2022, to June 30, 2023. The assemblage of HMC produced averaging 25% zircon, 44-47% ilmenite, 12% rutile-leucoxene & 16% other – in line with DFS assumptions.
CommodityProductUnits202520242023
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Operational metrics

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Production Costs

Commodity production costs have not been reported.

Mine Financials

Units20242023
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Aerial view:

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