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WA battery minerals economy: MinRes having a blast at Mt Marion lithium mine
Mineral Resources fires first blasts for underground work at its Mt Marion lithium mine in Western Australia
Key points
- The $490 million Mt Marion expansion is moving underground, and the first blasts have been fired.
- Mt Marion is expected to be the second operating underground lithium mine in the country.
- Exploration spending for lithium has sunk and prices have halved since May, per the source text.
Why it matters. Underground development at Mt Marion is expected to make it the second operating underground lithium mine in the country, and the project is set to feed global battery demand.
Mineral Resources has fired the first blasts for its $490 million Mt Marion lithium mine expansion in Western Australia, the company announced on Monday. The blasts opened an underground access portal, with Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium helping bankroll the plan and MacMahon the project contractor. The International Energy Agency estimates lithium demand grew 25 per cent annually over the past two years, but prices have halved since May.
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WA battery minerals economy: MinRes having a blast at Mt Marion lithium mine
Mineral Resources’ $490 million expansion of the Mt Marion lithium mine is picking up steam with digging to take the project underground under way. Mineral Resources’ $490 million expansion of the Mt Marion lithium mine is picking up steam with digging to take the project underground getting under way. The company will on Monday announced it has fired the first blasts for the development, which will feed global demand for the critical mineral used in the energy transition as a key ingredient for batteries. Mt Marion is expected to be the second operating underground lithium mine in the country. Joint venture partner Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium is helping bankroll the plan while MacMahon is project contractor. “Exploration has confirmed we’ve barely scratched the surface of what the orebody can deliver, and the shift to underground is the next step in realising Mt Marion’s full potential,” MinRes underground mining manager Shannon McMahon said. The first blasts opened an access portal for underground work. MinRes chief financial officer Mark Wilson recently told investors that investment into lithium capacity would drive costs down. The International Energy Agency reckons worldwide lithium demand grew by 25 per cent annually for the past two years. But exploration spending for the metal has sunk and prices have halved since May.