The environmental approval clears the path for BCI Minerals (BCI) to commence operations.

BCI received environmental approval from the Federal Government for its Mardie Salt and Potash Project (Mardie) in Western Australia. This allows Mardie to commence operations by filling evaporation ponds 1 to 3 with seawater, starting on 10 September. Once the ponds are full, BCI Minerals can update its groundwater monitoring and management plan (GMMP) and resubmit it to the Western Australian and Federal environmental regulators for approval, prior to filling evaporation ponds 4 through 9.

The approval also allows further construction in the northern area of the project, the ‘Optimised Mardie Project’ (OMP), which was not included in the original Definitive Feasibility Study (DFS) footprint. Construction commenced on 10 September. The OMP was approved on 19 October, 2023, and included various changes to the project such as the expansion to the abovementioned northern area that allowed for project layout optimisation. The additional area features ponds 8 and 9, and the majority of the crystalliser pools.

The Mardie Salt and Potash Project is owned by Mardie Minerals Pty Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of BCI Minerals Limited (BCI). The project involves a 5.35Mtpy industrial grade salt solar evaporation operation on the Pilbara coast of Western Australia (WA) and will also produce 140ktpy of potassium sulphate (SOP). The company has completed 48% of the construction of the ‘salt-first’ portion of the project and aims to achieve the first salt on ship in Q4 2026. In June 2024, BCI signed a 21-year, US$398M transhipment services agreement with CSL Australia Pty Ltd. BCI Minerals has signed offtake agreements with Indonesian and Chinese counterparties and is negotiating with large organisations for other Asian markets.