MinRes Lamb Creek Pilbara project: early works and logistics lens for engineers
Reviewed by Tom Sullivan

First reported on Australian Mining
30 Second Briefing
Mineral Resources (MinRes) has broken ground at its Lamb Creek iron ore project in the Pilbara, signalling the next phase of its onshore iron ore growth alongside existing hubs such as Iron Valley and Koolyanobbing. The project is expected to leverage MinRes’ integrated model of mine-to-port logistics, including its privately operated haulage and transhipping infrastructure, to move ore efficiently from remote deposits to coastal export points. For geotechnical and civil teams, early works will centre on pit development, haul road construction and foundation preparation for crushing and screening facilities in a cyclonic, high-temperature environment.
Technical Brief
- Lamb Creek is planned as a standalone iron ore hub complementing MinRes’ existing Pilbara operations.
- MinRes will apply its in-house crushing, screening and processing designs rather than third-party plant packages.
- Project sequencing is structured to align mine development with staged ramp-up of MinRes’ port capacity.
- Lamb Creek ore will be blended with other MinRes products to maintain consistent Pilbara export specifications.
- Capital allocation is being phased to reuse existing MinRes mobile mining and processing fleets where possible.
- MinRes’ ownership of key logistics assets reduces reliance on third-party rail access negotiations and tariffs.
- For similar remote Pilbara deposits, vertically integrated mine-to-port control is becoming a preferred economic model.
Our Take
Mineral Resources features in our database as one of the few ASX iron ore and lithium players simultaneously managing a formal three-stage leadership transition, which suggests continuity at Lamb Creek will be closely tied to how that succession process is sequenced.
With BHP and Rio Tinto already trialling battery-electric Cat 793 XE haul trucks at the Jimblebar iron ore mine in the Pilbara, any new Pilbara iron ore project by MinRes such as Lamb Creek will likely face early stakeholder questions about its haulage fleet decarbonisation pathway.
Among the 16 iron ore–tagged pieces in our coverage, most Pilbara items focus on the majors, so Lamb Creek gives Mineral Resources a chance to position itself as a third force in the region rather than just a contractor or mid-tier supplier into others’ supply chains.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
Related Articles
Related Industries & Products
Mining
Geotechnical software solutions for mining operations including CMRR analysis, hydrogeological testing, and data management.
Construction
Quality control software for construction companies with material testing, batch tracking, and compliance management.
CMRR-io
Streamline coal mine roof stability assessments with our cloud-based CMRR software featuring automated calculations, multi-scenario analysis, and collaborative workflows.
HYDROGEO-io
Comprehensive hydrogeological testing platform for managing, analysing, and reporting on packer tests, lugeon values, and hydraulic conductivity assessments.
GEODB-io
Centralised geotechnical data management solution for storing, accessing, and analysing all your site investigation and material testing data.


