30km iron ore vein discovery in W.Australia

30km iron ore vein discovery in W.Australia

Fortescue Metals Group's intensive exploratory drilling project in the Pilbara region of Western Australia turned up a 30 km vein of commercially high grade iron ore mineralization. Fortescue indicated that the mineralization lies in six separate zones stretched over a distance of 30 km. Each individual zone is between 800 meters and 2 kilometers wide and is near the surface. Furthermore, the location of the find is in close proximity to Fortescue's railway. It is also only 60 km away from the company's major iron ore deposits at Christmas Creek. Fortescue is contemplating further expansion of its railway and port facilities at Port Hedland. The company's total iron ore reserves in the main Christmas Creek area are estimated to be 850 million metric tons, 198 million metric tons of which are high grade.