Rio Tinto, Hancock Prospecting to invest $1.6B to develop Hope Downs 2 project

The company states: “Rio Tinto (RIO) and Hancock Prospecting will invest $1.61B to develop the Hope Downs 2 iron ore project in Western Australia’s Pilbara region. The Hope Downs 2 project, to mine Rio Tinto and Hancock Prospecting’s Hope Downs 2 and Bedded Hilltop deposits, has now received all necessary State and Federal Government approvals. The two new above-water-table iron ore pits will have a combined total annual production capacity of 31 million tonnes and will sustain production from the Hope Downs Joint Venture into the future. Rio Tinto has engaged with the Nyiyaparli, Banjima and the Ngarlawangga Peoples, along with relevant government stakeholders, to ensure the responsible management of heritage and the environment in development of the project. The project includes new non-process infrastructure precincts, railway crossings and haul roads, as well as realigning a 6-kilometre section of the Great Northern Highway. Ore mined at the two sites will be transported to Hope Downs 1 for processing, with first ore from the deposits and associated infrastructure scheduled for 2027.”