Broken Hill Cobalt Blue is now recognised as a nationally significant project.
Member for Parkes Mark Coulton met with Joe Kaderavek, CEO of Broken Hill Cobalt Blue (BHCB) and Adam Randall, BHCB Demonstration Plant Manager, to make the announcement at Cobalt Blue in Broken Hill.
“The project will provide a boost to our local economy both in Broken Hill and surrounding regions. Projects such as this will help guarantee our region’s future prosperity and build on our rich and proud mining history,” Mr Coulton said.
Mr Kaderavek added that the recognition helps with global deals.
“The first thing international companies do is check if your business is supported by the Government, and this recognition will make this support clear,” he said.
Broken Hill’s cobalt to be highly priced
Broken Hill Cobalt Blue is a triple threat to other companies producing Cobalt Sulphate.
As Mr Kaderavek explained, the company is sustainable, ethically sourced and has a low environmental impact.
Added to this, he explained the cobalt sulphate would have its certificate of origin, which will be highly valued by global companies becoming more aware of questionable sources such as those shown in the Four Corners program on Cobalt mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo on February 24.
The Four Corners episode reported that ‘mining is dangerous, corruption and violence is rife, and though child labour has been banned, it’s common.’
And as such, it is given access to the Major Projects Facilitation Agency, creating one point of contact with the Federal Government to help navigate the regulatory approval pathways.
Jobs and training
Mr Kaderavek said they intentionally named the mine after Broken Hill first to a state where they were from, and their intent was to support the town by encouraging workers to be from Broken Hill or move to the town.
“I’ve seen the damage fly in fly out workers can do to a town, and we don’t want that for Broken Hill,” he said.
He explained the intent to start liaising with schools to help students understand the potential jobs at the mine, the future offer of apprenticeships and assistance in students learning.
The mine should have 400 to 450 workers employed eventually.
“Broken Hill has excellent educational facilities and connections with employers, so whether they are at TAFE or University or whatever, they can be helped in Broken Hill,” he added.
