Cyclone Veronica Affects Ports and Mine Infrastructure in Pilbara, Western Australia, an Industrial Info Market Brief

Cyclone Veronica in Western Australia's Pilbara region has temporarily affected all major iron ore and lithium mine operations and shut down the biggest iron ore port in the world, which accounts for more than 55% of world's total seaborne iron ore.

The category 4 cyclone has caused flooding and some level of damage to mining infrastructure; however, many mines are now resuming and expect to be fully operational by the end of this week. So far, the economic impact of the cyclone has been minimal, and all personnel are safe and accounted for.

Pilbara ports and rail infrastructure have taken the major brunt of the storm as all three major ports, Port Hedland, Dampier and Cape Lambert, sent all non-critical fly-in, fly-out employees home. The shutdown of export ports has added to a global iron ore supply shortage caused after the Vale mine disaster in Brazil. All port operations are expected to be restarted and ramp up by end of this week.