The Mount Carbine tungsten mining and processing operation is located about 130km north-west of Cairns.

The mine is operated by EQ Resources (ASX: EQR), which (in mid-2026) has approved a $39 million expansion project to overcome a processing bottleneck by boosting crushing capacity.

It is designed to lift the critical minerals operation’s crushing capacity from about 1Mtpa to about 2Mtpa while streamlining and automating the existing materials handling.

Mining at Mount Carbine dates back to the 1890s, with large-scale open-cut operations established in the 1970s and 1980s.

The site hosts one of the largest tungsten deposits outside China, with mineralisation occurring primarily as scheelite within quartz veins and skarn systems.

Modern operations previously focused on reprocessing historical stockpiles and tailings but have recently progressed to recommence open-pit mining.

The operation produces tungsten concentrate, which is used in applications such as hard metals, cutting tools and high-strength alloys.