Quinbrook forges ahead with green iron project in Gladstone

Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners, a global investment manager specialising in energy transition infrastructure, announced the commencement of the development phase for the proposed Green Iron Project in Gladstone, Queensland.

Teaming up with Central Queensland Metals (CQM), which holds exploration permits for Queensland’s largest magnetite deposit, Quinbrook will sponsor the detailed evaluation and testing of the ore deposit.

Leveraging Australia’s top-tier metallurgical expertise, the project aims to prove the quality and scale of the Eulogie resource, located 70km west of Gladstone, Quinbrook said in a news release.

According to the firm, the Eulogie resource is estimated to contain 465 million tonnes of vanadiferous titanomagnetite ore, with the potential to support a resource double this amount after further exploration.

This project aligns with Quinbrook’s portfolio of renewable energy and storage projects in central Queensland, designed to power multiple new energy-intensive manufacturing projects as part of the Queensland Government’s Energy and Jobs Plan.

Projected as a capital investment of up to $3.5 billion, the Gladstone Green Iron project encompasses exploration, development, mining, and concentration of magnetite ore at Eulogie.

It also involves the transportation of concentrated ore to the Gladstone State Development Zone and potential conversion to green iron using hydrogen from the Central Queensland Hydrogen Project (CQ-H2).

Quinbrook has secured exclusive land rights adjacent to CQ-H2 and is in joint venture discussions with Stanwell Corporation for hydrogen supply and renewable power delivery.

The project is anticipated to take several years to complete, with planning approvals underway. Quinbrook has received expressions of interest from global industry players and plans to select a partner for the design, construction, and operation of the green iron elements once development progresses.

David Scaysbrook, co-founder and managing partner of Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners, stated, “Gladstone has all the fundamentals needed for a world-class green iron project, with many compelling cost advantages. This is exactly the type of project the ‘Made in Australia’ and critical minerals policies are designed to support.”

Meanwhile, Brian Restall, managing director and regional leader of Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners, emphasised, “With Gladstone Green Iron, we are using our long-established project development DNA to identify unique industrial sites that can host new green manufacturing and processing industries.”