Iluka has a synthetic rutile processing plant at North Capel as well as a metallurgical testing facility and laboratory.

Synthetic rutile is a high-grade titanium dioxide product used predominantly as a feedstock to make pigment. It is produced by upgrading the mineral ilmenite in a hydrometallurgical kiln, thereby increasing the titanium content in the final product from ~55% to ~92%, delivering a value-added product.

The ilmenite Iluka extracts from mineral sands mining is sent to the Capel facility, comprising two synthetic rutile kilns - SR1 and SR2.

SR1 has an annual production capacity of ~110 thousand tonnes of synthetic rutile. Adjacent to SR1 is the SR2 kiln, which has an annual production capacity of ~225 to 230 thousand tonnes of synthetic rutile. 

The product is trucked to the Port of Bunbury for export to customers around the world. Synthetic rutile is further refined to become titanium dioxide, which is used by pigment producers and titanium metals customers. 

Iluka's Capel operations commenced in 1956 as Western Titanium Ltd (which later became RGC) and after various mergers over the next 40 years adopted the Iluka Resources name in 1999. 

Iluka has 160 employees at Capel. 

Production activities at SR2, which processes material from Cataby, were suspended on 1 December 2025 given subdued demand in the mineral sands market. The workforce has been retained to enable a safe and rapid re-start when conditions warrant.

Iluka's Eneabba operations in Western Australia involve the reclaiming, processing and sale of a strategic one million tonne stockpile high in monazite (a mineral containing rare earth elements) and mineral sands.

Via a strategic partnership with the Australian Government, Iluka is building Australia's first fully-integrated rare earths refinery at Eneabba for the production of separated rare earth oxides, including neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium and terbium.

This a significant infrastructure asset that puts Iluka and Australia at the forefront of an independent Western rare earths supply chain. The refinery will be capable of processing feedstocks from Iluka's stockpile, existing operations, and third-party producers.

With a construction workforce of approximately 700 to 900 people at its peak, the refinery will employ 270 people once operational.

Commissioning of the refinery is expected in 2027. In parallel, Iluka is progressing a feasibility study into metallisation - the next stage in the rare earths value chain.