Juno locks in final development approval for Mt Mason DSO iron ore project

Juno now has all the government approvals needed for the development of its Mt Mason DSO hematite project in Western Australia.

Juno Minerals (ASX:JNO) has been granted the Native Vegetation Clearing Permit (NVCP) for its Mt Mason direct shipping ore (DSO) hematite project.

This is a significant milestone for the company, with all approvals now in hand allowing the development to go ahead, subject to the company making a final investment decision (FID).

Juno previously received approval for the Yunndaga rail siding NVCP and the Project Works approval.

Mt Mason hosts high grade at-surface resources of 5.9 million tonnes at 60.1% iron ore (measured 4.8 million tonnes, indicated 1.08 million tonnes and inferred 0.32 million tonnes).

It has the potential to be a low-cost start-up, near-term project with a short payback period and strong positive cash flows.

Juno is utilising contractors to minimise upfront capital costs and reduce the development timeline.

With Mt Mason now fully approved, Juno is focused on securing the logistics supply chain to export DSO out through the Port of Esperance.

Juno said it was in regular talks with Southern Ports in relation to the current capacity available. The company is also in discussions with Arc Infrastructure regarding rail track access to Esperance, which is another critical part of the logistics solution.

Once the logistics supply chain solution is in place, Juno can make a final investment decision.

Iron ore price heading north

Juno looks to be well positioned to start development of the Mt Mason project at a time of rising prices.

After a steep fall from record highs of well over $US200 a tonne mid-last year, it looks as if the price of the key steelmaking ingredient has turned a corner. From a bottom of around $US92 a tonne in November, the iron ore price has jumped 75% and is currently sitting just over $US160 a tonne.

The rising price has been attributed to disruptions stemming from the Russia-Ukraine conflict and strong indicators that China, which is one of the world’s largest importers of iron ore, will roll out a fresh round of stimulus.

This article was developed in collaboration with Juno Minerals, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.