Queensland Gives Prescribed Status to Sugarbag Hill Quartz Sand Project

Queensland's Crisafulli government said on April 1 that UltraHPQ's Sugarbag Hill ultra-purity quartz sand project has been declared a prescribed project, a move that will speed up development.

Sugarbag Hill currently has a JORC-compliant measured and indicated resource of approximately 1.2 million tonnes and a projected mine life of 12.4 years. The deposit is open along strike.

UltraHPQ plans to build a manufacturing facility at the Lansdown Eco-Industrial Precinct in Townsville.

“This project will help strengthen Queensland’s critical minerals capability, inject hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of investment and create hundreds of jobs in North and Far North Queensland,” said Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie.

Quartz is recognized as a critical mineral in Australia, and is used in the creation of advanced manufacturing equipment such as semiconductors and specialised glass.

Dale Last, minister for natural resources and mines, manufacturing and regional and rural development, and member for Burdekin, said this declaration underscores the Crisafulli government’s commitment to backing resource projects that grow regional economies and create jobs for people in Queensland.

Sugarbag Hill is expected to create 600 construction jobs and 140 ongoing jobs in the state.

"We welcome the Queensland Government’s support, which reinforces the strategic importance of our project to the State’s Critical Minerals Strategy," said UltraHPQ CEO Stuart Jones.

"This declaration allows us to progress project approvals more efficiently and with greater certainty as we move through the Detailed Feasibility Study and Engineering stage," he added.

A final investment decision for Sugarbag Hill is expected in early 2027, while construction is targeted for 2028.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Gabrielle de la Cruz, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.