Metro Mining Limited announced it is remobilising production and services team back to site from next week. The target for mining start is 24 March with ship-loading due to commence on 2 April, one or two weeks earlier than normal, when the floating crane barge, TSA Skardon, returns to site after an accommodation refit. The traded bauxite market continues to remain firm after a strong 2022 with Chinese bauxite imports breaking previous records of 126 Million tonnes (Mt), up 17% year on year.

Demand is expected to remain strong in 2023 as alumina capacity increases and as traded bauxite supply is constrained by the exit of Indonesia from the market. This should see prices for Australian bauxite to continue to rise through the year. MMI has agreed offtake agreements for up to 5 Mt for 2023 and has secured Second Quarter '23 price outcomes approx.

30% higher than CY 2022 across 1.4 Mt of sales. MMI has invested in maintenance and upgrade work through the wet season. Scania and Blake Machinery Group have been making necessary modifications to the new prime mover fleet which will be arriving at site from March.

All trailers have received maintenance and additional trailers have been procured. Site maintenance has been focused on the screen grizzly feeders, conveyors and chutes to build on the capital spent in 2022 on screen decks. The Barge Loading Facility will also have completed a major capacity upgrade from 1500 to 2000 tonnes per hour through chute modification and speed improvement in time for operational restart.

The planned production rate is 3.5 to 4 Mt/a in Second Quarter and then ramping up in Third Quarter to a 5 to 6 Mt/a rate aligned with the already funded capacity upgrades to the relevant parts of the Bauxite Hills flow sheet. The production estimate for CY 2023 is 4.5 to 5 Mt, with additional sales above the capacity of the first floating crane barge being loaded via geared vessels. MMI has been finalising project engineering, procurement and financing for the remaining elements of the 7 mt/a expansion, the 2nd floating crane barge and enhanced screen solution, and expects to be able to announce an update before the end of March 2023.