The Three Springs talc operation is located 330km north of Perth in Western Australia and is the biggest talc resource in Australia. It was acquired in August 2001, through Luzenac Australia Pty Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Rio Tinto Group, from WMC Resources Ltd. The mine is capable of producing 200,000 tonnes of higher value talc annually. The talc mill uses the latest processing technology to transform fine grain talc into high-value products for paper, paint, technical ceramics and plastics industries.