Mining

Overview Behind the scenes Coking coal Latest mining stories

Overview

The Whyalla Steelworks and its blast furnace is supplied by our mining business with operations in the nearby Middleback Ranges and Ardrossan, in South Australia, as well as the Tahmoor Coking Coal mine in the NSW Southern Highlands.

The Middleback Ranges operations incorporate the Iron Baron, Iron Knob and South Middleback Ranges mine sites. They mine both hematite and magnetite iron ore which is respectively railed and piped to Whyalla. The majority of the magnetite is pelletised (c.1.3mtpa) and used within the steel works. The hematite ore (c.10mtpa) and excess magnetite is loaded onto ships for transport to a primarily Asian customer base. Total reserves and resources are just under half a billion tonnes.

The Alliance also owns a portfolio of non-ferrous mining assets located in South Australia. This includes the Ardrossan Dolomite Mine – which supplies dolomite flux to the steelworks – as well as a collection of copper-gold exploration projects.

Our coking coal mine in Tahmoor NSW, which has a production capacity of 2m tonnes per annum, supplies coking coal required for blast-furnace steelmaking.

Learn more about Iron Knob – the birthplace of Australia’s steel industry

Take a look at this video of our mining operations in South Australia

 

SIMEC Mining’s Iron Ore operations have supported the Australian Steel industry for more than century, and our Whyalla and Ardrossan operations will continue to deliver the essential ingredients to support domestic steel production for generations to come. Our highly skilled and innovative people are very proud of the opportunities they have been able to unlock over the years to deliver ongoing value from the footprints on which we operate.

Jacqui Higgins, Executive General Manager Iron Ore Operations, SIMEC Mining

Only Australian iron ore miner to produce lump, fines, concentrate and pellet
From pit to port
fully integrated, private supply chain
Middleback Ranges
mining in South Australia since 1890s
2 mtpa
of coking coal for internal and external customers

Coking coal

Coking coal is a key ingredient in the current steelmaking process, and is used in Australian domestic, European and Asian markets.

Coking coal is a grade of coal that can be used to produce good-quality coke. Coke is an essential fuel and reactant in the blast furnace process for primary steelmaking. The current Whyalla Steelworks uses a blast furnace.

SIMEC Mining operates the Tahmoor Coking Coal colliery, situated in the Southern Highlands Region of New South Wales.

Tahmoor Coking Coal operates in the Bulli coal seam, with the majority of its product being hard coking coal while also producing small amounts of a speciality blend coal.

Coking coal is transported from Tahmoor to Port Kembla via rail for distribution via sea.

Through the Tahmoor Colliery operations, GFG Alliance is the only fully‐integrated Australian primary steel producer, from iron ore and coking coal to primary steel.

Peter Vale, Executive General Manager Coal Operations, Tahmoor Mining Operations, SIMEC Mining

 

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