The proposal is to expand Hamersley Iron's iron ore operations at Dampier Port from 95 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) to 120 Mtpa.
The Hamersley Iron Dampier Port operations include rail and port facilities, rail maintenance workshops, a 120MW power station, laboratories and other service and administrative functions.
The port operations are located at two terminals – Parker Point (PP) and East Intercourse Island (EII). The proposal is to increase the capacity of the Parker Point terminal from 50 Mtpa to 75 Mtpa. The capacity of the EII will remain at 45 Mtpa. No new construction works, dredging, marine works or equipment is proposed as part of this upgrade.
As part of the 95 Mtpa upgrade, which is still in its construction phase, a new car dumper and circuit was designed to deliver approximately 50 Mtpa through PP. Utilisation of the new circuit and the reduced usage of the existing circuit was predicted to decrease noise emissions in Dampier while dust impacts were expected to remain at about the same levels.
The increase in throughput to 120 Mtpa will be achieved by the simultaneous operation of both the new and existing circuits. Dust and noise emissions will increase as a result of increased utilisation of the existing circuit. The number of trains per day and the number of shipments will also increase as a result of the proposal.
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