Metro Mining is on track to achieve its production guidance at the Bauxite Hills project in far north Queensland this year.
The company shipped 463,000 wet metric tonnes and produced 452,000 wet metric tonnes of bauxite in November.
This puts Metro on track to achieve its production and shipment guidance of 3.3 million to 3.5 million wet metric tonnes at Bauxite Hills this year.
Metro Mining managing director and chief executive Simon Finnis said this was another very pleasing result for the team, both on and off site.
“We are on target to meet the upper end of guidance,” Finnis said.
“It has been a very successful operational year and I am extremely proud of the effort and performance of the Metro team and our contracting partners.”
Metro Mining is set to launch a stage two expansion project at Bauxite Hills. This will increase production to six million wet metric tonnes a year and extend mine life to 2037.
The company expects Bauxite Hills’ expansion project to complete by 2021.
Metro has also received a loan facility of up to $47.5 million from the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) for up to nine years.
It would be used to construct and mobilise a floating terminal at Skardon River on the northern Cape York peninsula.
“We are pleased this support from NAIF will assist the company in its long-term expansion plans with a project that will generate over $500 million in public benefit and create jobs in the Cape,” NAIF acting chief executive Amanda Copping said in November.
