Mineral Resources and Jiangxi Ganfeng Lithium have approved a A$490 million brownfield expansion at the Mt Marion lithium operation in Western Australia, adding an underground mine and new flotation plant to increase recoveries and throughput. The final investment decision covers transitioning from a purely open-pit operation to a combined open-pit/underground layout, with flotation enabling higher-grade concentrate production from existing ore types. The partners expect the upgrade to materially extend Mt Marion’s mine life by decades, with implications for long-term tailings, water balance and underground geotechnical design.

Elizabeth Gaines will resign as executive director of Fortescue after 13 years with the iron ore major, including four years as chief executive officer. During her CEO tenure she oversaw the ramp-up of the 30–40Mtpa Eliwana mine and rail project in the Pilbara and advanced the 22Mtpa Iron Bridge magnetite project towards production. Her departure signals further leadership transition as Fortescue pursues its green hydrogen and decarbonisation strategy alongside its core hematite export business.

Technology trials in mining are being reframed from simple proof of concept (PoC) exercises – which only test whether a tool works technically, such as an AI drill-optimisation algorithm or a new fleet-management platform – to proof of value (PoV) programmes that quantify impacts on KPIs like cost per tonne, unplanned downtime, and recovery. PoV design typically hard-wires baselines, control groups, and production-scale timeframes into trials, rather than short, isolated pilots on a single loader or crusher line. For engineers, the shift means specifying measurable value hypotheses up front and integrating trials with existing dispatch, SCADA, and planning systems.