The Australian federal government has announced that it has granted environmental approval for the Port Hedland Iron Project – Stage 1, backed by South Korean steelmaker POSCO, Japan-based Marubeni and Taiwan's China Steel Corporation.
The approval was issued to project developer Port Hedland Iron Pty Ltd on October 7, 2026, under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 and remains valid until June 30, 2088. The project must commence within five years of the approval date, by October 7, 2031, unless the approval conditions are amended. The Western Australian government previously granted final state-level approval for the approximately 3 billion project in April 2026.
Port Hedland facility to produce 2 million mt of HBI annually
The project will be developed in the Boodarie Strategic Industrial Area, approximately 10 km southwest of Port Hedland in Western Australia's Pilbara region.
The planned facility will include an iron ore processing complex, a pellet plant and a hot briquetted iron (HBI) production facility, consuming approximately 3-3.5 million mt of iron ore annually. Most of the pellets produced will be used internally to manufacture approximately 2 million mt of HBI per year, while around 700,000 mt of pellets will be exported through Port Hedland.
Project to utilize MIDREX technology
The facility will utilize MIDREX direct reduction technology, using natural gas instead of coal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions compared to conventional blast furnace-based ironmaking. It will also include hydrogen production and storage facilities to support processing operations and longer-term decarbonization objectives.
Construction of the Port Hedland Iron Project is expected to take approximately 2.5 years, while the project's operational lifespan is estimated at up to 101 years.
