A long-dormant nickel mine on the West Coast is expected to make its first shipments in January.
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The restart of Avebury mine was announced on Monday one year after Dundas Mining purchased the Zeehan operation from MMG for $25 million.
Dundas Mining chief executive Geoff Summers said the mine would generate 200 jobs and produce 50,000 tonnes of concentrate per year.
Mr Summers said the growth in nickel prices spurred by the uptake in battery technology was one reason to restart the mine now.
“When we signed up to buy this place it (the nickel price) was $7000 US a tonne. It’s now $15,000 US a tonne…,” he said.
“So this feeds into the EV battery market. So this is essentially a mine for the future. It’s not like some mine that’s going extinct … and it’s going to help our planet because it’s part of rewiring the planet for the future.”
Mr Summers said nickel prices would remain strong in the medium term because there’d been a “fundamental change in the market”.
GOVERNMENT BACKS AVEBURY
Dundas Mining will be able to utilise a payroll tax relief initiative featured in the state budget.
Premier Will Hodgman said the initiative demonstrated that the Liberals backed Tasmanian businesses.
“We will keep taxes down and input costs down to make Tasmania a more competitive place to do business and that’s reflected in the confidence that we’re seeing with this exciting announcement today,” he said.
Mr Hodgman said the Tasmanian government had worked closely with his federal Liberal colleagues to support business and make Tasmania a “greater investment destination”.
“We’ve seen some of the highest rates of growth in our state economically over the last 12 months,” he said.
“It’s not something that happens by chance, it happens because governments work together to support business...”
PRIME MINISTER VISITS
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull visited Avebury on Monday with Mr Hodgman and Liberal candidate for Braddon Brett Whiteley.
Mr Turnbull said growth in exports in the past 12 months had delivered “more jobs, more opportunity, more investment”.
“It requires Liberal leadership to do that and that’s why we want to have Brett back in the Liberal party room, back as part of my government delivering his plan, our plan for Braddon.”
Mr Whiteley said Tasmania was “leading the confidence levels” across Australia.
“That’s because we have two strong, majority Liberal governments here in Hobart in Tasmania and in Canberra,” he said.
“We’ve got a strong plan for the future. It’s a plan that’s based on supporting business, making sure they’ve got the confidence to invest,” he said.
LABOR WELCOMES NEWS
Labor Braddon candidate Justine Keay welcomed the Avebury restart and said Labor was a stronger supporter of mining.
“What we don’t support though is Malcolm Turnbull dudding the West Coast with his record on a lack of funding for our hospital system and health,” she said.
Ms Keay criticised Mr Turnbull for not funding health service Tazrech and giving the West Coast “a second-rate NBN service”.
“… And let’s not forget that Brett Whiteley was very committed for the West Coast, including the mines, to be on a satellite service,” she said.
“It took a lot of fight from the local community there to get him to back down to build a second-rate fibre-to-the-node service. Which is not great for the mines and it’s certainly not great for business and the residents there of the West Coast.”
Braddon MHA Shane Broad welcomed the Avebury restart and said it’d “drive the revitalisation of Zeehan”.
But Dr Board said it should be noted that the mine closed due to a 70 per cent drop in global Nickel prices in 2008 and the decision to restart “largely reflects stronger global minerals prices and economic conditions”.
“The state continues to be at the mercy of global economic conditions and we should not forget that today’s low Australian dollar is driving the State’s economic resurgence,” he said.
EARLIER:
The Avebury nickel mine near Zeehan should be back in production by 2019.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Premier Will Hodgman were at the site today to join with owner Dundas Mining Pty Ltd to announce the planned restart.
The mine had been in care and maintenance since 2009 when falling nickel prices caused its former owners to cease operations.
Premier Hodgman said the government was supporting the reopening of the Avebury mine by providing a support package which would deliver up to $3.5 million of payroll tax relief.
“In a massive boost for jobs on the West Coast, Dundas advises that recruitment will begin immediately for more than 200 jobs in mining, processing and administration,” Mr Hodgman said.
“This builds upon our previous support for mining on the West Coast, including $9.5 million for essential works at the Mt Lyell copper mine, and $2 million in the 2018-19 Budget for a new Exploration Drilling Grant Initiative to develop new opportunities.”
MORE TO COME...
