Glencore, Robbie Katter, Mount Isa Chamber of Commerce, and State Government discuss ‘super pit’

Glencore will not be considering the proposed ‘super pit’ open cut copper mine, but it does have other ideas to keep for Mount Isa.

Traeger MP Robbie Katter overlooks the Mount Isa CBD. He is angry at mining company Glencore and believes that it could be doing more to extend underground copper operations at Enterprise, X41 and Black Rock. Picture: Wesley Monts

Glencore will not be considering the proposed ‘super pit’ open cut copper mine that could free up inaccessible ore in Mount Isa.

Instead it aimed to alleviate future job cut-backs at Mount Isa Mines by considering the reopening of Black Star, which had provided zinc, lead and silver before its closure in 2016.

A Glencore spokeswoman said the company was interested in the long-term future of Mount Isa’s assets, and that it was investing $60m in exploration within the following year.

Its aim was to look for future projects that could replace the copper operations including X41 that would be closing in two years, to be able to transition about 1200 impacted workers.

Opening up the underground mine to an open cut ‘super pit’ has been discussed by industry leaders for more than a decade, and previously considered by former mine owners Xstrata before taken over by Glencore in 2013.

The Mount Isa Mine and its stacks form a key part of vital infrastructure that would have to be removed if underground copper operations were to extend to an open-cut mine. Lyndon Mechielsen/The Australian

But the Glencore spokeswoman reconfirmed the company position that an open-cut copper mine was not going to be able to happen.

“The Mount Isa open pit project is not currently viable as a result of significant challenges relating to mine sequencing, requirement to deconstruct existing infrastructure and the need to relocate parts of the Mount Isa community,” she said.

Traeger MP Robbie Katter said he had supported the super pit idea but that it would remove vital infrastructure such as the copper smelter, which would remain open until 2030 and was an essential part of North West industry.

The Lady Loretta mine will also be closing in 2025, which is about 140 kilometres northwest of Mount Isa.

He said it was an option that could be considered in the future.

“It’s the default one when we’ve run out of options,” Mr Katter said.

“The super pit will someway be utilised and perhaps we build a new smelter in the future, and I believe there is a viable business case for that, but in the time being the super pit sits there for the backstop for viability for feasibility for the North West.”

The copper smelter was important because it was the start of a symbiotic relationship with local industries and provided the resources needed for Incitec Pivot to develop fertiliser, impacting even more jobs.

Mount Isa Chamber of Commerce president Emma Harman said the prospect of the super pit was raised at an Australian Workers’ Union meeting this week.

Mount Isa Chamber of Commerce president Emma Harman said there were plenty of options for the region and that it was not "doom and gloom" with the closure of Glencore's underground copper mine operations in 2025.

“It is an option that has been on the table for some years but it’s not for me to say if it’s a good one or not,” she said.

Ms Harman said there was speculation that there was more copper to be dug, but that Glencore representatives made it clear that the government could do, say, or offer nothing to extend the copper mines’ life.

She said there was plenty of options for the North West Minerals Province and for Glencore, even without a super pit, with an emphasis on exploration.

“(Mount Isa) It’s certainly at a crossroads and certainly is at a transitional point.

“Why would they (Glencore) walk away from all that infrastructure?

“If there is more copper to be found they want to find it.”

Mount Isa resident Mick Bakhash said he was curious to learn what policy makers might have to say about the ‘super pit’ proposal but that it was not a short-term solution for local employment.

“The super pit is the last thing that will happen in Mount Isa,” he said.

“A lot of the ore in that super pit has got infrastructure in the way.”

In Townsville on Thursday Resources Minister Scott Stewart was asked if a ‘super pit’ was talked about in Mount Isa at meetings on Wednesday night.

A resident brought up plans from the 1970s of a “super pit within a super pit”, the Minister said.

Mr Stewart was not aware of those decades-old plans, but said if another proponent wanted to look at reprocessing some of the existing mine sites, the government would work with them.

“There’s also opportunities I think of reprocessing things like tailings dams, looking at other sorts of minerals that might be in those tailings dams as well,” Mr Stewart said.

Originally published as Glencore, Robbie Katter, Mount Isa Chamber of Commerce, and State Government discuss ‘super pit’