Winchester magnesite deposit is located within the Batchelor project, 70km south from Darwin in the Northern Territory. The project has a JORC Code compliant resource of 16.6 million tonnes of 91%-pure magnesite (MgCO3). This project has been progressed to bankable feasibility study stage.

Project is located just 30 minutes from the suburbs of Darwin. Rail line, gas pipeline, sealed transcontinental highway and high voltage power lines cross the project area providing the project with excellent basic infrastructure and logistics.

Winchester magnesite project
Pilot plant in operation

Winchester magnesite project
Feasibility study smelter layout

Aluminium is 50% heavier than magnesium and steel is 400% heavier than magnesium. Magnesium is the lightest of all metals used as the basis for constructional alloys. It is this property which entices automobile manufacturers to replace denser materials, not only steels, cast irons and copper base alloys but even aluminium alloys by magnesium based alloys. The requirement to reduce the weight of car components as a result in part of the introduction of legislation limiting emission has triggered renewed interest in magnesium. The growth rate over the next 10 years has been forecast to be 7% per annum.

Another rapidly growing sector where magnesium is becoming preferred material is building and construction industry where magnesium oxide is becoming a material of choice for structural applications, internal and external finishes, decorative applications and furniture. Magnesium oxide (MgO) board has a density of around 0.8-1.1g/cm3 is easy to transport and install. It has intensity of impact resistance 2-3 times greater than wall of gypsum board and is about 10 times stronger than gyprock. MgO board can be glued-on, cut down, nailed, veneered, painted, sawn, planed, thin panels of the board can be easily cut by knife. Most importantly, it is flexible, fireproof, weather proof and breathable. It remains flameless at 1,200 degrees (non-flammability: GB8624 grade A), resistant to deformation in wet, and dry, hot and cold conditions. MgO board is also a great sound insulator - sound loss through a 6mm board is - 29dB.

NanoMag is a patented environmentally friendly process for the production and marketing of high strength, light weight magnesium sheet with nanometer microstructures for automotive, aerospace, military, biomedical and other applications. The process, developed in conjunction with the Department of Material Science & Engineering at the University of Michigan and under the sponsorship of the National Science Foundation, offers numerous advantages in material integrity and cost savings over any other product now available. The key to the NanoMag technology is its ability to create fine-grained strengthening of magnesium alloys at low cost.

The net result is a stronger, more reliable, more formable and lighter weight magnesium sheet with properties similar to steel and with a comparable strength to density ratio as that of steel but at one-fourth the weight. Because of its lighter weight, substituting magnesium sheet for aluminum and other materials reduces vehicle fuel consumption. It also offers greater personal protection in military applications. In addition to military, automotive, aviation and aerospace applications NanoMag can be used as a base material for the manufacture of fuel cells and electronic products.

It is widely believed this new process will gain wide acceptance in the biomedical industry to produce temporary connecting pins and plates since magnesium dissolves in the body with no adverse effects. The density and strength of NanoMag material is more like human bone than virtually any other currently popular implant materials. Because of this, the process can be used to produce biodegradable implants for hard tissue.

Another new area of magnesium use is the rapidly developing field of superconductivity. Magnesium is a key element in magnesium diboride MgB2 which becomes superconductive at a temperature of 39K.

Project location near Darwin means easy access to Australian and Asian markets

MgO building board

MgO boards, tiles, veneered products

MgO injection formed and extruded products

Prefabricated MgO building