Overview

• State and federal governments have approved a $2.5 billion expansion of the Hope Downs iron ore mine, located about 1,200 kilometres north of Perth in the Pilbara.
• The project will add two new pits that are expected to produce an additional 31 million tonnes of iron ore annually once operational in 2027.
• Rio Tinto and Hancock Prospecting plan to spend $20 billion on infrastructure, including railway crossings and a 6 km realignment of the Great Northern Highway, over the next three years, creating about 950 jobs.
• The expansion will clear up to 4,900 hectares and overlaps native title areas, prompting engagement with Nyiyaparli, Banjima and Ngarlawangga Peoples on heritage and environmental safeguards.
• Analysts view the approval as a vote of confidence even as Western Australia’s iron ore royalty revenue is forecast to fall by nearly 23 percent to $6.6 billion in 2025-26.