Roy Hill is an iron ore mining project in the Chichester Range in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, located north of Newman and south of Port Hedland. With indicated and inferred reserves of more than 2.4 billion tonnes, it is set to become one of the largest mining projects in Australia. Mining operations will produce 55 million tonnes of iron ore per annum with an operating life of more than 20 years. Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting is the majority stakeholder in the project with a 70% interest. The remaining 30% stake is held by a consortium comprising POSCO, Marubeni, and China Steel Corporation. As part of the ownership agreement the various consortium partners have also secured their proportionate share of iron ore production from the Roy Hill Project, representing a combined 16.5Mtpa of iron ore at full production.
Mine development
Project work commenced in mid-2011 and so far major dredging work of the harbour at South West Creek, within Port Hedland's inner harbour has been completed. Dredging will entail the removal of 7.5 million m3 of material to a depth of below the low tide mark, and the construction of two new shipping berths: Stanley 1 and Stanley 2. Construction of the Ginbata Airport at the mine site and internal mine roads have also been completed, as has clearing of the centre line for the railway. Ginbata Airport is capable of handling 737 aircraft and will be the hub for transporting the fly in, fly out workforce.
Transport
A new heavy haul, standard gauge railway from the minesite to Port Hedland will be built. The rail system will deliver five 232-wagon train loads of 32,000 tonnes of ore each per day. Capital costs to develop the project are estimated to be at least 7 billion, and the first shipments from the mine are expected in 2015. A permanent village to house 2,000 people is under construction at the mine site. Roy Hill took delivery of the first of 21 ES44ACIsdiesel-electric locomotives in January 2015.
Roy Hill homestead is located about south of the proposed mine site. Roy Hill Station was an important cattle station in the north-west, being on the Meekatharra-Nullagine Road and stock route. The station area is about. The station was established in 1886 by Nat Cooke who owned Mallina Station. Mallina had suffered from several years drought so Cooke was keen to secure new pastures. The first official lease was granted to D. MacKay in 1890 for an area of. In 1915 the property was carrying 10,000 head of cattle. It is situated south of Mulga Downs Station, once owned by Lang Hancock and presently owned by his daughter Gina Rinehart. A nearby bridge crossing the Fortescue River to service the cattle industry was constructed in the late 1920s.
