Ferrowest embraces
BRETT MANNING
MANAGING DIRECTOR
FERROWEST LTD
transported to Eradu where the MPI will be manufactured, before
being shipped out through the port of Geraldton to customers
in Asia.
So why take this extra step here in Australia, instead of just
shipping magnetite concentrate like everyone else? “To make
money for our shareholders,” said Ferrowest Managing Director
Brett Manning. “We have a different goal in mind and different
business plan but not one we make any apologies for.
“
The fundamentals of any business case are the same; it doesn’t
matter whether you are a mining company or the corner store. You
must have a product that customers want, and you must be able to
compete on price and quality. You also need to identify how your
competitive advantages will secure the necessary market share
from your competitors.
“
If you can answer these key questions and produce a business
plan that makes money, then why does it matter that no one
else is doing it? In fact, in my view, it is all the better to have the
first-mover position.
“
There is a strong and growing demand
for MPI in Asia and no dedicated supplier
in the region. Our biggest competitors
are half way around the world in Brazil
and Russia. By bringing together ore,
energy and existing infrastructure, we can
compete on price and grow a competitive
long term business.
“
We also have a superior product that will
be produced with cutting edge technology.
The unique physical form of our proposed
MPI as iron nuggets means our product has
a much higher surface area per tonne. This
means faster heat rates in steel making and
therefore, efficiency and increased output
for our customers,” Mr Manning points out.
It was the identification of the impending
new ITmk3®MPI manufacturing technology
in 2006 that led to the formation of Ferrowest
and the ‘value adding’ business plan.
“
Producing a tonne of steel using the
ITmk3®/electric arc furnace process route will reduce greenhouse
gas production by 30% compared to the blast furnace/basic oxygen
furnace route that currently dominates the industry.
“
Ferrowest’s adoption of this innovative technology puts us
at the front of a generational change in iron making that could
materially reduce greenhouse gas production in the steel industry.
“
The Yogi Mine Project and Eradu MPI project will combine to
make a successful venture, because we are marrying innovative
thinking with a business plan which is targeting a niche market
that is poorly served in our region,” Mr Manning concluded.
Merchant Pig Iron (“MPI”) nuggets
produced by the ITMk3® process
a winning combination
In Australia we seem all too eager to acknowledge that
manufacturing is a dying art, but at least one company in the iron
ore sector is bucking the trend. Ferrowest Ltd was established
in 2006 with one goal in mind – to manufacture merchant pig
iron (MPI) right here in Western Australia. The aim is to couple
the state’s energy, infrastructure, skilled workforce and iron ore
in order to make this high value product. MPI is almost pure iron
at 96%Fe.
The market for MPI is not as large as the iron ore market, but
it is also not well serviced by dedicated facilities in the Asian
region. This makes MPI a niche market to which Ferrowest
can provide a stable source of quality supply in Asia, displacing
market share from importers that are based more remotely from
the Asian demand.
Ferrowest will combine its long-term magnetite concentrate
supply from its planned Yogi Mine Project, located 14 kilometres
East of Yalgoo in WA’s mid-west, with its proposed Eradu MPI
project. The MPI plant will be sited 60 kilometres east of Geraldton.
The business plan is simple enough. The Yogi magnetite
deposit will be mined by conventional open cut methods and
then concentrated on site using crushing, grinding and magnetic
separation to produce a 67%Fe magnetite concentrate. This will be
Drill core being logged at Yogi
MINESITE 2012
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