Fortescue has announced its first quarter production report for the financial year 2025 (FY25). Fortescue Metals chief executive officer, Dino Otranto, said: “Fortescue had a strong start to FY25 with record first quarter iron ore shipments of 47.7 million metric tonnes (Mmt), which included 1.6 Mmt from Iron Bridge. This was achieved while maintaining our focus on safety with a Group TRIFR (total recordable injury frequency rate) of 1.2. This strong operating performance means we are on track to meet our FY25 market guidance.”

Key points within the quarterly report include:

• Total ore mined was 57.1 Mmt in the first quarter of FY25. This was 2% higher than the prior comparable period. Total ore processed of 48.0 Mmt was in line with the first quarter of FY24
• Total iron ore shipments of 47.7 Mmt was 4% higher than the first quarter of FY24 and a record for a first quarter. It included 1.6 Mmt from Iron Bridge
• Hematite average revenue of US $83 per dry metric tonne (dmt) for the quarter, realising 83% of the average Platts 62% CFR Index.
• Cash of US $3.4 billion and net debt of US $2.1 billion at 30 September 2024 after payment of the FY24 final dividend of US $1.9 billion and capital expenditure of US $0.8 billion in the quarter.

Fortescue Energy chief executive officer, Mark Hutchinson, said “It has been an extremely successful quarter for our green technology team, as we unveiled our autonomous battery-electric T 264 truck to the world. We also signed a US $2.8 billion partnership with Liebherr to jointly develop and validate a range of zero emission equipment solutions for mining and heavy industry. We commenced works at our Green Metal Project at Christmas Creek which marks a pivotal moment in our journey to build a green metal supply chain.”

Meanwhile, work continues on Fortescue’s four green hydrogen projects in Australia, the United States, Norway and Brazil.