Australian Mines has been granted a mining lease for its estimated $1.4 billion critical minerals mine at Greenvale northwest of Townsville, which is expected to deliver 780 jobs to the region.
The Sconi Project has a planned life of 30 years and is set to process two million tonnes of ore per year, with the project planned for commissioning in 2028.
Once operational, the open-cut mine and the adjoining processing plant is expected to produce about 47,000t of nickel sulphate, 7,000t of cobalt sulphate and 89t of scandium oxide.
These are critical minerals which are needed to make batteries for the electric car industry.
Minister for Resources, Scott Stewart, said communities around the world are demanding and making the shift towards a cleaner, greener low-emission economy.
“Queensland has an abundance of the critical minerals the world needs to decarbonise,” Mr Stewart said.
“The Sconi Project is a vote of confidence in Queensland’s resources sector and means more good jobs for the state’s north.
“The Queensland Government is backing the development of the state’s critical minerals sector through the recently released Queensland Critical Minerals Strategy as well as our $5 billion Copperstring 2032 electricity transmission line.”
