China’s Pigment Dumping Blamed for Critical Minerals Mining Shutdown, 200 Jobs on the Line

Despite strong financial performance, the company will slow and then cease operation of some of its assets as international demand weakens.

Work is to slow, then stop for at least a year, at Iluka Resources Cataby mine in Western Australia, pictured here in 2020. Courtesy of Iluka Resources

Australian critical minerals miner Iluka Resources will slow, then stop, production at its Cataby mine in Western Australia as it responds to falling worldwide demand, particularly from China.

The company primarily mines titanium, which is processed into pigments, and are then used as bright white colourants, opacifiers (used to make liquids and gels less transparent), and UV blockers in a wide range of products.