Researchers have identified what is believed to be the world’s largest iron ore deposit beneath Western Australia’s Hamersley region.
According to Futura, the deposit contains an estimated 55 billion metric tonnes of high-grade iron ore, with iron concentrations exceeding 60 percent.
The discovery is valued at around £4.5 trillion and could reinforce Australia’s position as the world’s leading iron ore exporter for many years. Although Hamersley has been mined for decades, new imaging and analytical techniques revealed the true scale and quality of the deposit.
Scientists also revised the age of the geological formations, concluding they are around 1.4 billion years old, rather than the previously estimated 2.2 billion years.
Breakthrough research
The findings were published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences by a research team led by Curtin University. Advanced chemical and isotopic methods allowed researchers to reassess both the purity and formation history of the ore.
Associate Professor Martin Danisík, a geochronologist on the project, said: “Finding a connection between these enormous iron deposits and shifts in supercontinent cycles gives us new insight into ancient geological processes.”
The analysis showed iron concentrations of more than 60 percent, compared with earlier estimates of around 30 percent, making it one of the richest known iron deposits.
Beyond economics
Researchers say the implications go beyond market value. Dr Courtney-Davis noted that the same techniques used to identify the deposit could improve mining practices.
“This isn’t just about science,” she said. “These technologies could make mining cleaner, less wasteful, and more environmentally responsible.”
Economists say the long-term increase in iron supply could influence global prices, steel production, and trade relationships, particularly with major importers such as China.
Rewriting Earth’s history
Danisík previously explained that linking iron deposits to tectonic activity helps clarify how Earth’s crust developed. “Linking these giant deposits to supercontinent cycles gives us a clearer picture of how Earth’s crust evolved,” he said.
“Until now, the exact timeline of these formations changing from 30 per cent iron as they originally were, to more than 60 per cent iron as they are today, was unclear,” he added, noting that new uranium and lead isotope techniques allowed researchers to directly date the minerals.
The team concluded that major tectonic events played a central role in forming the vast deposits, highlighting the planet’s dynamic geological past.
