ABx Group’s 37Mt Sunrise bauxite project opens for public comment in Queensland

ABx Group’s proposed Sunrise bauxite project in Queensland, Australia, has reached a milestone in the federal environmental approval process. Its referral under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act is open for public comment until October 26. 

The greenfield mine is proposed for Binjour, about 115 km southwest of the Port of Bundaberg and 25 km west of Gayndah. Project documents indicate annual production of 600,000 to 800,000 tonnes of run-of-mine (ROM) and product bauxite, with an upper limit of approximately 1.2 million tonnes per annum. The mine is expected to operate for 20–25 years.

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During the first 10 to 15 years, operations would focus on high-grade ore zones that require only screening and sorting to produce marketable bauxite. Where necessary, dry beneficiation would use crushing and screening to separate ore lumps by size. A triple-deck vibrating screen will be used to remove fines with high silica levels. No complex beneficiation or chemical processing is proposed at the mine site.

The ore would be transported to a site at the Port of Bundaberg for sorting, blending and stockpiling before shipment.

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ABx has confirmed a JORC-compliant resource of 37 million tonnes of gibbsite-type metallurgical bauxite at Binjour. The resource was defined through approximately 930 drillholes, covering 19,098 metres of drilling across the Binjour Plateau.

Good Importing International (GII) is investing in the Sunrise project in exchange for a 70 per cent interest in ABx Group subsidiary ABx3.