This follows the Cloncurry project’s first shipment of native copper concentrate transported to Townsville for export under the agreement with China Oceanwide International Investment Co.

CuDeco said preliminary analysis of the sulphide copper concentrate at Rocklands indicated the grade was well above the minimum specification of 25% copper. “This indicates the processing plant is performing well and ore and concentrate characteristics are in line with design expectations,” the company said.

CuDeco said it was on track to begin continuous bulk shipments of sulphide copper concentrates in late September or early October.

CuDeco’s Managing Director, Dr Dianmin Chen said the quality of the sulphide copper concentrates was excellent, particularly given it is still early in the production ramp-up phase.

“The concentrate grades are expected to improve even further once the grinding and flotation circuits are fine-tuned to reach optimised design performance levels,” he said.

“While we continue to ship our native copper concentrates to our customer, we are confident that Rocklands will deliver the first shipment of sulphide copper concentrates on time as we ramp up towards full production. More significant revenues are expected to follow the commencement of bulk shipping and sale of our sulphide copper concentrates and we are determined to ensure this occurs as quickly and smoothly as possible, for the benefit of all stakeholders.”