Transcription of The Stock Network Interview with Fenix Resources (ASX:FEX), Executive Chairman John Welborn
Lel Smits: Fenix Resources has delivered a record 2026 financial year result, achieving production guidance while setting quarterly records across mining, haulage and shipping. The company shipped 4.4 million tonnes of iron ore, grew shipments by 83%, finished the year with $81 million in cash and is guided to further growth in the year ahead. I’m joined today by Executive Chairman John Wellborn to discuss the record year outlook and pathway to 10 million tonnes per annum.
John, welcome back to the Stock Network.
John Welborn: My pleasure. It’s nice to be back.
Lel Smits: Great to have you on. And look, Fenix has delivered record mining, haulage and shipping results while achieving production guidance. Can you outline for us really what’s driving this performance and also what you think it says about your integrated operating model? I
John Welborn: think it says that it’s working. So Fenix is an ASX listed iron ore producer. We have a mining business, we have a haulage and logistics business, and then we have a port export business in Geraldton. We operate in the Midwest.
And we set a number of different records in the June quarter across that integrated supply chain. Our mining performance during FY26 was actually very consistent. And in the June quarter, we managed to haul a record number of tonnes, 500 kilometres from the Midwest mining locations all the way through to the Geraldton port.
And we matched that with a record number of ships exported. So that’s a fantastic end of the year and allowed us to meet very close to the midpoint of our guidance, which was 4.5 million tonnes. And that’s triple the production that we were doing two years ago.
So it was a really pleasing result. And how we did that is really strong teamwork across those three businesses and within those businesses. There’s actually a lot going on at Fenix at the moment as we transition and aim for even greater records in the future.
Lel Smits: Excellent. Now, you do have $81 million in cash, also a new funding facility and the Mirror Vault partnership. Also, as you referenced, that higher guidance for the year ahead. What are you focused on in terms of your next phase of growth?
John Welborn: First of all, we’re focused on maintaining the efficiency and safety of our existing operations and then continuing our track record of successful incremental growth, as well as transformational cost saving growth. We published a scoping study in December that outlined a pathway to 10 million tonnes and a pathway to reduce our current C1 cash cost of around 75 Australian dollars, FOB Geraldton to 55 Australian dollars, FOB Geraldton. And so doubling the multiplier by going from 5 million tonnes to 10 million tonnes and reducing cost is going to generate hundreds of millions of dollars of extra earnings for Fenix on an annual basis.
That’s very exciting. That’s the goal. What we’re focused on is continuing to be very careful with our approval process, very cognizant of the safety of our operations in mining, in road haulage, at the port, across that whole business and building a really a team of motivated, like-minded people who are excited about the business we’re building.
Lel Smits: Excellent. And more on that pathway to 10 million tonnes per annum, you’ve got, you know, the current FY27 underway, also the World Range DFS due later this year. Can you perhaps go into a little bit more detail in terms of what needs to happen as you’re progressing towards the 10 million tonnes per annum and what investors really should be looking out for here?
John Welborn: The key element of the transformation to 10 million tonnes is the construction of a 244 kilometre private haul road.
Currently, we have, we’re aiming to have 90 road trains operating during the course of the current financial year. Every day, Fenix is currently hauling iron ore more than 120,000 kilometres. And to put that in context, if that was one truck, it’s three times round the earth at the circumference.
So we’re doing a lot of kilometres on public roads, 500 kilometres from the mine. The construction of a private haul road will take 20% of that journey off the distance. So it’ll save roughly 100 kilometres.
More importantly, it will allow us to use bigger, heavier gear, much more efficient, and it will transition us for that last 100 kilometres into Geraldton to be able to use the existing midwest rail network. So the key element of the 10 million tonne a year project is a transformation in our logistics, which is going to be far more efficient and enable greater tonnage.
Lel Smits: John, thank you for the update on Fenix resources.
John Welborn: Thanks very much.
Ends