pilbara mining jobs WA Fortescue Metals

The Pilbara ion ore miner Fortescue Metals Group officially opened its third mine in Western Australia. The Firetail operation, which is part of the company’s $3.2 billion Solomon project (first discovered in 2005), commenced operations late 2012. This is Fortescue’s the third mine opening in five years.

The Fortescue Firetail mine will fire up and it’s estimated to produce around 20 million tonnes of iron ore a year and could possibly create more Pilbara mine jobs. WA iron ore mining at Firetail is reported to be a low cost mine which is critical to the making the company more profitable in the long term. With the further development of the Pilbara Kings deposit, the total iron ore output is expected to jump to 60 million tonnes a year. This is a serious level of output for the Pilbara miner.

Fortescue have invested heavily in new automation systems to increase productivity and reduce operational down times. These key projects are a key part of Andrew Forrest’s plan to meet an export target of 155Mta by the end of 2013. Forrest was quoted as saying he is confident Asia’s hunger for iron ore is still strong.

Ore from the Firetail mine will be mixed and blended with other ores from the nearby Chichester hub to create an enhanced product called the Fortescue blend.

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