en.Wedoany.com Reported - Austral Resources Australia (ASX: AR1), an ASX-listed copper producer, has recently advanced the refurbishment of its Rocklands copper mine processing plant in northwest Queensland by successfully procuring a 4.75-megawatt semi-autogenous grinding (SAG) mill, expected to arrive on site in late July 2026. The project is progressing as planned to restore operations at the sulfide processing plant, targeting a restart of copper concentrate production in 2027.
The Rocklands copper project, located approximately 17 kilometers west of Cloncurry, Queensland, features a 3-million-tonne-per-annum sulfide processing plant and associated infrastructure. Previously held by Copper Resources Australia, the mine entered care and maintenance in 2024. Austral Resources acquired the project from Glencore through a purchase agreement, including three mining leases and one exploration permit. According to a joint statement issued by the Queensland Government in February 2026, the state government, through the Queensland Investment Corporation, invested A$15 million in refurbishing the Rocklands sulfide processing hub. The project is expected to produce 26,300 tonnes of copper annually upon restart, creating 250 jobs.
The core of the processing plant refurbishment involves simplifying the traditional crushing and grinding circuit, replacing the original three-stage cone crusher circuit with a single SAG mill and pebble crusher configuration. The front-end circuit redesign was completed by CMD Consulting, focusing on efficient production of high-grade copper concentrate to reduce operational risks, lower capital intensity, and align with global mature copper processing plant designs. Existing ball mills, flotation circuits, thickening and filtration, and concentrate handling facilities have been confirmed through detailed engineering assessments to be suitable for the designed 3-million-tonne-per-annum throughput, requiring only minor modifications for integration into the new process flow.
For the plant refurbishment, Austral has engaged GR Engineering Services for engineering design and construction management. Front-end engineering design commenced in early April 2026 and is scheduled for completion by the end of July. Demolition activities are accelerating ahead of the mill's arrival, with civil construction expected to start in the third quarter of 2026, aiming for completion before the 2026/27 wet season. While advancing the Rocklands refurbishment, the company has commenced mining operations at the Flying Horse and Mt Clarke deposits in the West Wing operations area, currently supplying ore to the Mt Kelly oxide processing plant and progressively exposing sulfide ore for future feed to the Rocklands plant. Upon restart, Austral will become a dual-line copper producer capable of processing both oxide and sulfide copper ores. Following a non-binding memorandum of understanding signed with Maronan Metals in 2025, the company has recently entered into a new non-binding cooperation memorandum with Transition Resources for third-party ore toll processing.
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