Opening of the Cawse nickel mine near Kalgoorlie

13/5/99
Premier Richard Court says today's opening of the Cawse nickel mine near Kalgoorlie is a classic example of the mining sector taking up the challenge of lowering costs to produce a world competitive product.
The mine - operated by Centaur Mining and Exploration - is said to be the world's first high pressure acid leaching operation to mine and treat laterite nickel ore to produce nickel metal on site.
Mr Court said that the basic techniques required to treat lateritic ores had been known since the 1950s, but until now had been regarded as too complex and costly by nickel producers.
"Companies like Centaur have accepted the challenge of improving the acid leaching technology and applying it to show that it can be economically applied to laterite nickel," he said.
"Centaur has utilised the best of Western Australian design and engineering to get this project off the ground.
Mr Court said the project was also proof of the vital role that energy deregulation was playing in improving the competitiveness of WA's mining industry.
"The delivery of economic and reliable energy - brought about by the construction of the Goldfields Gas Transmission Pipeline - has been a crucial factor in making the Cawse nickel operation commercially feasible," he said.
The Cawse mine produces nickel with cobalt as an important by-product. It is expected to have an annual capacity of 9,000 tonnes of nickel and 2,000 tonnes of cobalt.
The annual production of nickel alone would be worth an estimated $65 million.
Mr Court said the Cawse mine and the development of other new generation nickel projects, such as Murrin Murrin and Bulong, were providing a welcome boost for the State's minerals industry and the Goldfields region in particular.
"During the construction phase the workforce at Cawse peaked at around 450 and there are now about 200 people working on the mine's operations," the Premier said.
Media Contact: Casey Cahill 9222 9475