GEMCO documents
Our Groote Eylandt Mining Company operation (GEMCO), located on an island in the Gulf of Carpentaria off the Australian coast, produces high-grade manganese ore.
Few other mines have a location quite like our Northern Territory manganese mine, on the island of Groote Eylandt, next to the pristine waters of the Gulf of Carpentaria in Australia’s north.
We have a long history on Groote Eylandt, with mining starting here more than half a century ago and a processing plant commissioned on the island not long after. Since then the plant has gone through several expansions, with the most recent one completed in 2013.
GEMCO is an open-cut mining operation, producing high-grade manganese ore that is shipped to our Tasmanian manganese alloy plant and around the world.
It is currently the largest and lowest-cost manganese ore producer in the world, which we hold a 60 per cent share in, with Anglo America Plc holding the remaining 40 per cent.
We're helping to provide a better quality of life for Indigenous Australians and their families living with Machado Joseph Disease.
Read moreGroote Eylandt is home to the Anindilyakwa people, who are the traditional owners of the land. We have aligned our community investments with the Traditional Owners, working to improve opportunities for local people.
Education is a priority for people on the island so we are partnering with the Graham Polly Farmer Foundation to support school-aged children on Groote Eylandt to improve their literacy and numeracy skills.
The health of local people is also a major concern, with the genetic, neurodegerative disease Machado Joseph Disease (MJD) predicted to have some of the highest rates of people living with the disease on Groote Eylandt, than anywhere else in the world.
We have supported the MJD Foundation to improve quality of life for Indigenous Australians living with the disease. This has included new equipment and services like physiotherapy delivered ‘On Country’, aimed at slowing the disease’s progression.
GEMCO has partnered with a local Indigenous business to help transform lives.
Read moreOur Australian operations have celebrated the history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Read moreProviding education and raising awareness of mental health and associated mental health conditions.
Read moreGet in touch with GEMCO
Ryan is an experienced operations leader having worked at GEMCO in senior roles since 2013. Growing up in Australia's Central Queensland, Ryan worked extensively in the coalfields prior to joining South32. He has an Honours Degree in Electrical Engineering and 25 years of experience across production and maintenance roles in the resources industry. Ryan is passionate about continuously improving how we operate to deliver safe production, and supporting the communities of Groote Eylandt.
Liam Stower, Corporate Affairs
GEMCOEmail: [email protected]