The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) has given the go-ahead for Grange Resources to expand its Savage River Mine on the West Coast in a project worth between $400 to $500 million.
The development will see the company move from open-cut mining to underground operations, about 200 metres below the existing mine.
The new underground mine is expected to produce 64.4 million tonnes of iron ore over its lifetime, pending approval from the Waratah-Wynyard Council.
EPA Chair Andrew Paul stressed the importance of environmental sustainability, noting that the approval was conditional.
“Various environmental issues were considered in the assessment, particularly the management of mine water and waste rock,” he said.
“Conditions have been imposed to ensure that regular water quality monitoring is undertaken, with investigations required should monitoring results show levels elevated above certain thresholds.”
“Waste rock will be required to be managed under revised plans, with limits placed on the amount of potentially acid forming material that can be placed in a new waste rock dump.”
Grange Resources have welcomed the decision as ‘reasonable and well-considered’.
The expansion is projected to secure the 57-year-old mine’s future for the next 15 years.
