Iron ore juniors to challenge majors again with new port

Fortescue Metals Group Ltd, Aquila Resources Ltd and Metallurgical Corporation of China Ltd (MCC) have submitted a concept plan to the Western Australian government for a planned new port at Anketell Point.

The multi-billion-dollar development would be on the other side of the bay from Rio's Cape Lambert facilities.

It would allow Fortescue, Aquila and MCC to export iron ore from their respective projects without relying on Rio to give them access to Cape Lambert.

These are Fortescue's Solomon project east of Wittenoom, Aquila's West Pilbara project south of Pannawonica and MCC's Cape Lambert project near Roebourne.

The planned development was given the green light on Thursday by the WA government, which pledged to chip in $3.5 million for construction costs.

A capital cost estimate is not yet available but the lion's share of funding would come from private enterprise, Fortescue executive director Russell Scrimshaw told reporters.

Fortescue plans to use the new port when the company runs out of capacity at its existing facilities at Port Hedland, which it built in 2007 and 2008 rather than ask Rio Tinto or BHP Billiton Ltd for port space.

Fortescue also constructed its own rail line to link its Cloudbreak mine in the Chichester Ranges to Port Hedland.

The new port development could become a large capital outlay for Fortescue, which is considering building a railway line to Ankatell Point if it does not succeed in gaining access to the existing rail network in the area owned by Rio Tinto.

"I think it is inevitable ... as we did with the initial Chichester project that we have built ... if we are able to develop a resource of a sufficient scale to justify that expenditure ... we believe we will build our own rail system to this port," Fortescue executive director Russell Scrimshaw said on Thursday.

Aquila said in a statement on Friday it had spent about $145 million on rail, port and mine studies to date.

Exports from the new port are expected to commence in 2015.

However Aquila executive chairman Tony Poli has been reported as saying there is a possibility the timeline could be brought forward by two years, in line with the start of production from the company's project.