Australian iron ore majors are adding new mines to the market. BHP is ramping up the South Flank mine, which is expected to reach an 80mt/year capacity by June 2024. Fortescue loaded its first iron ore concentrate cargo from the Iron Bridge Magnetite asset in July this year and has set a 22mt/year nameplate capacity for it. Rio Tinto is also nearing full capacity with the new Gudai-Darri mine. Mineral Resources is making progress with the Onslow Iron project, which is targeted to export 30mt/year when it reaches full capacity.

This is helping Australia export record volumes of iron ore in 2023. DBX forecasts total volumes for the year to reach 947mt, which is expected to be up 17mt from last year, already an all-time high.

‍