McArthur River Mine in the Northern Territory is one of Glencore’s most remote Australian operations.

The open cut mine produces zinc and lead for use in a wide range of commercial and domestic products. In 2022, McArthur River Mine produced 273,765 tonnes of zinc, 51,447 tonnes of lead and nearly 1.5 million ounces of silver.

Zinc, lead and silver are mined, processed and stored onsite before making a long journey to customers all over the world. Learn more about our process.

Operating since 1995, McArthur River Mine is a key contributor to the Northern Territory and national economy, providing significant employment and purchasing of goods and services.

Our location

McArthur River Mine is located in the Gulf of Carpentaria region:

• 970 kilometres south-east of Darwin by road, or 716 kilometres by air

• 65 kilometres south-west of Borroloola township, with a population 871 (2016 Census).

Road train and ship transfers

Our lead concentrate is trucked 800 kilometres to our Mount Isa Mines lead smelter for further processing.

While zinc concentrate, which also contains silver, is trucked 120 kilometres north to the Bing Bong Loading Facility at the southern end of the Gulf.

There it is loaded on to MV Aburri, a bulk carrier run by Carpentaria Shipping Services. Specifically designed for our operations, MV Aburri expertly navigates the Gulf channel to an offshore transfer zone, where the concentrate is transferred to ocean-going ships.