More than 50 million tonnes of silica access. Production targeted to more than double. And the first international shipment is being prepared through Far North Queensland’s Port of Mourilyan.
Silica Resources Australia’s Mourilyan Silica expansion is moving into a new phase as mining and domestic sales become established and the company prepares to enter international export markets.
The broader expansion program is reported at more than $100 million, while a $30 million Queensland Investment Corporation investment through the Queensland Critical Minerals Fund has helped fund plant, equipment and land acquisitions required for the next stage.
Queensland’s latest update says those investments provide access to more than 50 million tonnes of silica sand and support a production ramp-up from approximately 360,000 tonnes per annum to more than 750,000 tonnes per annum within five years.
For the Far North Queensland supply chain, the expansion increasingly spans mining, processing, road, storage, haulage, rail feasibility and port-export infrastructure.
SRA already has mining and domestic sales established at Mourilyan and recently completed a 25,300-tonne domestic order for the Northern Territory.
The next commercial step is international trade.
Current industry reporting says SRA is still finalising the destination and parcel size for its first export, with an initial shipment of approximately 20,000 to 40,000 tonnes into Asia currently anticipated.
The broader Mourilyan expansion has been reported at more than $100 million.
Within that program, Queensland Investment Corporation committed $30 million through the Queensland Critical Minerals Fund to support plant, equipment and land acquisitions.
The $100M-plus figure should be treated as the reported broader expansion value rather than as a newly awarded single construction contract.
More than 50Mt is accessible — but it should not be called the current formal reserve
Queensland’s latest announcement says the QIC-backed plant, equipment and land acquisitions provide SRA with the ability to mine more than 50 million tonnes of silica sand across the project site.
SRA’s own current project information uses a more specific resource classification.
The company lists an existing reserve of approximately 29.2 million tonnes and says it is progressing an update to more than 40 million tonnes based on its March 2026 mineral-resource work.
Accordingly, the 50Mt+ figure is best understood as resource access rather than a 50Mt formal reserve.
This is no longer an entirely pre-development mining project
Stage 1 processing was commissioned in 2025 and domestic mining and sales are already established.
The current investment phase is about expanding the operation, increasing product quality and capacity, broadening the accessible resource area and establishing a sustainable export chain.
Output is targeted to rise from around 360,000tpa to more than 750,000tpa
The production target indicates a planned increase of more than 100% from the current annual output base.
Queensland says SRA’s annual production base of approximately 360,000 tonnes is expected to increase to more than 750,000 tonnes within five years.
Higher-value processing is part of the growth strategy
The project does not simply excavate and export unprocessed sand.
Silica is excavated, conveyed, washed and processed to customer-specific particle sizes before being bagged or loaded for transport.
Expansion work has also included development of low-iron processing capability designed to further remove impurities and produce higher-value silica for demanding industrial markets.
Mourilyan creates a relatively simple mine-to-market chain — but every link must scale
New storage, road and potential rail infrastructure are progressing around the mine
The latest expansion reporting shows that the next phase extends beyond mining equipment and processing capacity.
SRA is advancing engineering and design work for a major storage facility supporting the expanded operation and product handling.
SRA is progressing an upgrade with Cassowary Coast Regional Council, with the company funding the works.
SRA and MSF Sugar have signed an MoU to assess use and potential expansion of the regional cane-rail network for silica transport.
SRA has a long-term port lease arrangement and intends to develop common-user export infrastructure as the international trade program expands.
The cane-rail concept is particularly notable because it could reduce reliance on road haulage as volumes grow.
It remains a feasibility pathway rather than a confirmed rail construction project, but it adds another future infrastructure interface for industry to monitor.
Port of Mourilyan is becoming part of a new mineral-export chain
Mourilyan Harbour is approximately 27km from the mine and has historically been strongly associated with the sugar industry.
Ports North describes Mourilyan as a natural deep-water port with bulk sugar and molasses facilities, live-cattle capability and a recently developed approximately 2ha open bulk-storage stock pad designed to accommodate commodities including silica sand.
SRA now has a long-term lease arrangement supporting its planned export program.
The company also says it intends to develop its own common-user infrastructure at the port as the operation expands.
The first shipment is expected later in 2026
SRA is currently firming up the size and destination of the first overseas shipment.
Current reporting indicates a parcel of approximately 20,000 to 40,000 tonnes into Asia is being considered.
Once established, international shipments would add silica to Mourilyan’s existing bulk and regional trade activity and strengthen the commercial role of the port in Far North Queensland’s resource sector.
Major mine construction is approaching completion — future exposure shifts toward expansion and operations
This is an important distinction for contractors.
Industry Queensland reports final construction of the current mining operation is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2026.
The entire $100M-plus expansion should therefore not be interpreted as an untouched future construction package.
Mining and domestic sales are already operating, Stage 1 processing has been commissioned and substantial investment has already been deployed.
The remaining and future opportunity increasingly sits around capacity expansion, processing upgrades, storage, transport, port logistics, maintenance and the infrastructure needed to sustain higher production.
Contractor exposure is broadening from construction into long-term operating support
Mourilyan is targeting higher-value markets than conventional construction sand
Silica flour is an industrial feedstock used across a wide range of products.
SRA identifies applications including high-grade glass, solar products, ceramics, fibreglass, touch screens, automotive applications, defence products and technology manufacturing.
The commercial strategy is therefore based not only on producing more tonnes, but on processing product to specifications suitable for higher-value domestic and export markets.
That makes processing consistency, contamination control, storage and logistics increasingly important as the export program scales.
The expansion adds another resource-and-port industry to the Cassowary Coast
Mourilyan sits in a region more commonly associated with agriculture, sugar and tourism than with large mineral-processing projects.
The silica expansion broadens that economic base.
It also creates practical interfaces with existing regional industries.
The proposed cane-rail study with MSF Sugar is perhaps the clearest example: infrastructure built around the sugar industry could potentially support mineral logistics if engineering and commercial studies show the concept is viable.
Likewise, greater utilisation of Mourilyan Harbour could strengthen the port’s role beyond traditional sugar and molasses exports.
The first export is the next major commercial milestone
The project is transitioning from established domestic production toward a larger export-oriented operating model.
SRA already has mining and domestic sales established, while the Stage 1 processing plant has been commissioned and additional land has been secured.
The company is also advancing engineering for storage and road infrastructure, with production targeted to rise to more than 750,000tpa within five years.
A long-term Mourilyan port lease provides the pathway to international markets as the first export shipment is prepared.
As early mine and plant construction approaches completion, future delivery requirements increasingly shift toward capacity expansion, process optimisation, storage, transport infrastructure, port logistics, maintenance and recurring operational support.
Key milestones ahead include the first export shipment, Q4 completion of current construction, the 9,500sqm storage project, Stephenson Road upgrade, port infrastructure and the outcome of SRA’s cane-rail work with MSF Sugar.
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Sources
- Queensland Government — Queensland Critical Minerals Fund delivers silica investment in regional Queensland, 11 August 2026
- Silica Resources Australia — Mourilyan Silica Project
- Industry Queensland — Silica investment bearing fruit in Mourilyan region, 11 August 2026
- Ports North — Port of Mourilyan trade and bulk-storage capability
- Queensland Government — $30M investment sparks jobs surge for Far North, October 2025