Critica reshapes Tassie tungsten mine amid surging metal prices

Critica Limited has recruited a fresh set of eyes to oversee the development direction of the company’s Mt Lindsay projects in Tasmania, one of the biggest undeveloped tungsten-tin deposits in the world.

Engineering giant DRA Global has been drafted in to steer a scoping study centred on a low-impact underground mining concept, replacing earlier open-pit plans as the company repositions Mt Lindsay as a critical minerals play.

The study will drill into a concept-level underground operation, unpacking mine design, development strategy, and early capital and operating cost estimates, with a focus on trimming environmental impact while preserving access to the orebody.

At the heart of the redesign is a savvy process aimed at materially reducing surface tailings. By crushing the waste and mixing it with water to form a slurry, the “paste” can then be used as backfill in the mined-out portion of the deposit. Paired with carefully considered infrastructure placement, the company is aiming to keep the project’s footprint tight and tidy.

‘Mt Lindsay strengthens our portfolio alongside Jupiter.’

Critica Limited chief executive officer Jacob Deysel

Critica says the underground pivot signals a deliberate shift towards a more modern, lower impact plan that balances environmental care with operational flexibility, keeps future development options open and lines up with rising regulatory rules and stakeholder expectations.

DRA’s brief goes beyond the nuts-and-bolts of engineering. It will also map out how Mt Lindsay could be developed, including potential partnerships and alternative processing methods, giving Critica a first look at the economics.

Geologically, Critica’s wholly owned Mt Lindsay stands out as a globally significant tungsten-tin system linked to granitic-hosted skarn style mineralisation. It hosts more than 80,000 tonnes of tin metal and 3.2 million metric tonne units of tungsten, equating to 25,000 tonnes of tungsten metal, underpinned by a 2012 definitive feasibility study based on an open-pit development.

Strategically wedged between the Renison Bell tin mine and the long-life Savage River magnetite operation, the project is plugged into established infrastructure, including renewable hydropower, water, sealed roads, rail and port access, laying a solid foundation for streamlined future development.

Critica Limited chief executive officer Jacob Deysel said: “The scoping study provides a structured pathway to assess value realisation options for Mt Lindsay.”

Mt Lindsay’s appeal rests on two metals punching well above their weight in global industry. Tungsten feeds high-performance alloys, electronics and precision manufacturing, earning its stripes in defence systems, aerospace applications and extreme temperature environments. Meanwhile, tin quietly underpins the solder that keeps the modern electronics world switched on.

With the study now underway, the next steps will centre on detailed workstreams, underground development concepts and maintaining stakeholder and government engagement.

On the approvals front, Critica says engagement with the State Government’s mining and geoscience agency, Mineral Resources Tasmania, and supportive signals at ministerial level are laying the groundwork for a smoother development pathway as the project edges closer to a decision.

Within the wider portfolio, Mt Lindsay is a strategic second string to the company’s bow alongside its huge Jupiter rare earths project in Western Australia.

Jupiter hosts a massive global resource of 1.8 billion tonnes grading 1700ppm total rare earth oxides (TREO) and is progressing through its own study and downstream optimisation programs.

Commodity currents are shifting in Critica’s favour. Tin and tungsten are globally recognised as critical minerals and have surged over the past 18 months amid tightening supplies, driven by export restrictions and disruptions from China, the dominant producer. This dynamic has put a spotlight on large-scale, development-ready assets in stable jurisdictions such as Mt Lindsay.

Critica’s dual-pronged push across rare earth and tungsten-tin has placed it in the slipstream of electrification, defence demand and advanced manufacturing growth, three powerful forces reshaping commodity markets in real time.

With DRA Global now steering the technical reset, Mt Lindsay is stepping out of the shadows and into sharper focus, shaping as a well-timed play in a market hungry for secure, scalable and strategically significant supply.

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