Cairn Hill Mining Operation

(Termite NL. Joint Venture – IMX Resources 51%, Taifeng 49%)

Located 55 kilometres south east of Coober Pedy in South Australia, the Cairn Hill Mining Operation was commissioned in May 2010 and commenced production in December 2010.

At full capacity, Cairn Hill produces 1.7 Million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of a highly marketable premium quality magnetite-copper direct shipping ore (DSO) product.

Cairn Hill has a current in-pit resource of 7.9Mt @ 50.5% Fe, 0.39% Cu which at the current mining rate of 1.7Mtpa equates to an approximate mine life of 5 years.

From Cairn Hill, ore is trucked 58 kilometres to the Rankin Dam rail siding, where it is loaded into specially designed open-top containers on a train for the 879 kilometre journey to Port Adelaide. At Port Adelaide, the ore is stockpiled in containers and then loaded directly onto the ship through an innovative rotating containerised ore loading facility.

Cairn Hill supplies enough ore for two full shipments per month. Cairn Hill ore is sold to China where its relatively high copper value and the soft, coarse grained quality of the ore make it highly desirable to a range of customers.

Key features

• Cairn Hill ore is soft and easy to crush and grind, 
• Produces a 68.8% - 69.9% Fe magnetite product, 
• Premium quality ultra-coarse grained magnetite concentrate, 
• 5 year mine life based on current production of 1.7Mtpa 
• Contract Mining Operations