Australia’s Metro Mining Ltd. announced this week that it has chosen to end the mining season early at its Bauxite Hills Mine due to a “significant weather system” currently forming offshore that may endanger safety at the mine and shipping operations.
Metro Mining identified a low-pressure system in the Gulf of Carpentaria that is expected to send strong winds and waves into the area. The firm says such weather is likely to endanger mining operations as well as offshore shipping operations at Bauxite Hills.
Prior to the closure, Metro Mining reports that it was on pace to produce between 3.6 million and 3.7 million metric wet tons of sales for 2022, which was in line with its previously declared guidance. However, due to the early closure and a mechanical failure at the floating barge TSA Skardon, this year’s expected total sales will be 3.41 million wet metric tons.
Although the year’s output was less than expected, Metro says it still represents an all-time high for yearly production.
Metro Mining is based in Brisbane and began life when it was spun off from Cape Alumina Ltd. upon its takeover by MetroCoal Ltd in 2014. The firm has exploration rights in over 500 square miles of western Cape York, which is second to only Rio Tinto Alcan.
