Australian iron ore miner Fortescue Metals Group (Fortescue) has announced that the shipment of new 60.1 percent Fe content product West Pilbara Fines, has left Herb Elliott Port in Port Hedland bound for Hunan Valin Steel Co., Ltd (Hunan Valin) in China. Fortescue will produce 5 – 10 million mt West Pilbara Fines in fiscal year 2019 by blending higher iron, low alumina ore from the western pits at Cloudbreak with ore from the Firetail mine.
According to the company statement, when Eliwana begins production in December 2020, production of West Pilbara Fines will ramp up to 40 million mt per year. Eliwana is Fortescue’s $1.28 trillion invested dry ore processing facility.