Cockatoo Island iron ore miner Pluton Resources has achieved a production record by shipping more than 308,000 tonnes of hematite from its north-west island mine during the June quarter.
The company also released some spectacular drill results including a 48.27m intercept grading, a whopping 69.27 per cent iron hematite adding to the view that Pluton Resources could potentially have the highest grade direct ship iron ore globally on Cockatoo Island.
The unique Cockatoo Island iron ore mine, about 140km from Derby, operates courtesy of a seawall that allows mining to take place on the very perimeter of the island.
Recent advances in seawall technology have allowed the company to recover high grade ore from old pits left behind by previous operators on the island, some of which only reached 20m below sea level at the time.
The company’s Stage 4 Seawall is now complete and with its own port just metres away and no railway required, the company is predicting production costs as low as $50 per tonne in its latest prospectus.
Pluton Resources is currently undertaking a rights issue for existing share holders to raise between $47m and $80m at 1c per share.
Funds raised will clean up the company’s balance sheet, making it largely debt free, and allow it to potentially take out Pluton’s 50 per cent partner on the Island, Wise Energy.
