A brand new copper and gold mining development situated north of Cloncurry in the mining belt of Queensland could create more mining jobs in the region with the Altona-Chinalco copper-gold project getting off the drawing board.
About the Cloncurry Copper Project
The Cloncurry Copper Project (Cloncurry) is located 95 kilometres north-east of Mt Isa in north-west Queensland, Australia.� Roseby is 100% owned by Altona.
The Mt Isa area is one of the world`s foremost base metal mining provinces. It is estimated that approximately 11% of the world`s zinc is found here, 5% of its silver and 1% of its copper.
Although large copper and gold resources that have already been found, most drilling at Roseby is limited to the known deposits and is very shallow. Roseby remains highly prospective and underexplored. In addition to excellent copper and gold exploration potential, the discovery of uranium, molybdenum, rare earth elements (REE) and zinc deposits remain high.
Queensland Treasurer and Minister for Trade and Investment, Curtis Pitt, said if the intended development of the mine went ahead, the gold and copper mining project could deliver 300 local construction jobs and 280 direct ongoing mining production jobs. This is great news for Queensland mining jobs in the region.
“This is a big mining project that could fire up new opportunities for mining employment in the region, where already exists a collection of additional copper mines such as Rocklands, Mary Cathleen and the Great Australian. The news comes as a reminder than mining in Queensland should never be underestimated, despite the performance of mining over the last 3 years.
It’s hoped the mine will stimulate new economic activity into the north-west at a time when unemployment rates are well above the state average,”� Mr Pitt said.
Chinese joint venture
Altona Mining Limited today announced that all Chinese Government approvals had been received for the involvement of the the Sichuan Railway Investment Group (SRIG) in a joint venture to develop the project 95 kilometres north-east of Mount Isa.
Although the Chinese investment was welcomed, the Foreign Investment Review Board has yet to approve the venture. However, the proposed copper and gold mining project had native title agreements and mining leases in place.
Cloncurry Shire Council mayor, Greg Campbell, welcomed Altona project moving to the next stage.
“As it gets closer to becoming real, we welcome the economic activity that it will bring the the Cloncurry region,”� Mr Campbell said.
“This will surely cement Cloncurry`s reputation as the central area for mining in the north west region.”�
Entry-level Mining Jobs
7 million-tonne-a-year open pit copper-gold mine
The planned mine would be owned by a JV company with Alton holding 34 per cent and SRIG 66 per cent. The joint venturers plan a 7 million-tonne-a-year open pit copper-gold mine and concentrator with an initial mine life of 13 years.
Mr Pitt said it was very positive news for the Queensland mining sector and the communities of north-west in particular.
“The Altona-Chinalco project offers a good opportunity to create more Queensland mining jobs as well as spin-offs for our local community businesses,”� he said.
“It shows the ongoing strength of the resources sector and the important role it plays in our diverse state economy,”� he said.
“It also underlines the strength of investor confidence in Queensland.”�
