The clean-up at Gemco mine continues as insurance enters play

Seven-months on, the Cyclone Megan clean-up is still impacting one of the Territory’s top mines. Read the latest.

The repair bill at Gemco’s Groote Eylandt manganese mine has hit $171m, seven months after Cyclone Megan devastated the site and shut down production for months.

The company is in the process of stockpiling ore ahead of the looming Wet Season, as the damage bill from the category three cyclone mounts and dewatering at the site reaches its final stages.

Mine owners South32 and Anglo American were recently reported injecting an additional $96m into the clean-up, which is focused around the wharf which was badly damaged when it was struck by a tanker berthed nearby during the cyclone.

A Gemco employee took this image of the smashed wharf after Cyclone Megan.

At its recent full-year presentation, the company flagged an increase in production from 1000 thousand wet metric tonnes in financial year 2025 to 3200kwmt in financial year 2026.

The statement said this financial year’s capital expenditure would be about $175m, the company’s 60 per cent share “as we repair and install infrastructure including the wharf and critical bridge”.

The company is on-track to recommence operations in the first quarter of next year, subject to the maintenance of construction productivity during the Wet, “with sales volumes to progressively increase over fourth-quarter 2025”.

A Gemco employee said Groote Eylandt and the mine site had been "severely damaged" by tropical cyclone Megan.

The company is still looking to finalise insurance from the storm including the wharf rebuild costs.

“Our insurers have confirmed that the damage caused by Tropical Cyclone Megan is covered under our property damage and business interruption insurance,” the report said.

“We are continuing to work with our insurers to assess the timing and value of recoveries under these polices.”

The Gemco pit immediately after Cyclone Megan.

A company spokesman said despite the disruption, the company was on track to recommence operations next year.

“At Gemco we have commenced a phased return to mining activities and expect to recommence wharf operations in the third quarter of the 2025 financial year, returning to normalised production rates in the 2026 financial year,” he said.

The site in August, with more water still to be removed.

“Our insurers have confirmed the damage from Tropical Cyclone Megan is covered under our Property Damage and Business Interruption Insurance and we continue to work with our insurers to assess the timing and value of recoveries under these policies. We expect to receive the first insurance instalment this quarter.”

Over two days on March 16 and 17, Tropical Cyclone Megan severely impacted operations at Groote Eylandt, with record rainfall of 681mm and the second strongest wind gusts of the past 20 years.

Despite about 90 contractors and consultants being stood down, the company’s permanent workforce of about 1200 remained on the payroll.

Gemco’s Australian Manganese mine is one of the Northern Territory’s largest, generating about $70m in royalties to NT Government coffers and tens-of-millions in additional dollars to traditional owners.

Originally published as The clean-up at Gemco mine continues as insurance enters play