Tag Archives: coal

NSW regulator recognises Thiess and MACH Energy’s Mount Pleasant mine rehab work

Environmental, Mine operation news, Mining industry recognition, Mining services, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , , ,

Thiess’ Mount Pleasant Operations (MPO) team has been recognised by the New South Wales Resources Regulator for its industry-leading rehabilitation practices, it says.

Recently publishing an information release about the operation’s rehabilitation controls, the regulator recognised how the team enables long-term landform design stability and manages surface water drainage networks through strong quality assurance measures, according to Thiess.

Thiess, in collaboration with MACH Energy Australia (MACH Energy), has introduced quality assurance controls including the sign-off of inspection and test plans across each construction phase – design, bulk shaping, topsoil placement, ripping and seeding and drain construction, to support progressive rehabilitation and reduce ongoing liabilities.

Thiess Environment & Civil Manager, James Anderson, said these controls provide an unmatched foundation for sustainability, maximising rehabilitation outcomes and managing compliance with confidence.

“The implementation of these controls is an example of how we channel our global experience and insight to create advantages for our projects,” Anderson said. “Our proven systems and processes help deliver immediate efficiencies, reduce rework time and lower life of mine costs for our clients.”

Some 2.5 km from Muswellbrook in the Upper Hunter Valley of New South Wales, the Mount Pleasant Operation’s complex landform design aims to meet end land use objectives while minimising impacts and delivering a more visually appealing landscape for the local community, Thiess explains.

Since 2017, Thiess has provided construction services to MACH Energy including bulk profiling and shaping of mine spoil, construction of drainage networks, erosion and sediment control structures, final surface preparation, installation of habitat features, topsoil ripping, seeding and planting.

This includes delivering the operation’s first rehabilitation two months before first coal was mined.

Thiess Environment Superintendent, Peter York, says the team’s robust processes and strict quality controls are critical to ensuring rehabilitation is delivered on time and to design specifications.

“Our rehabilitation is not just about quantity,” York said. “The final outcomes have to be quality as well, capable of meeting an agreed end land use. To help facilitate this, we work with MACH Energy to identify improvement opportunities to proactively manage environmental risks and adapt to changing regulatory conditions and evolving community expectations.

“Our systematic approach is helping us achieve industry firsts for rehabilitation while restoring self-sustaining native woodland ecosystems.”

Thiess will continue to deliver a full suite of mining services at the Mount Pleasant Operation, including rehabilitation, under a new 4.5-year contract extension commencing in April 2022.

Bravus to employ SMW Group Ultrahaul truck trays on Carmichael Cat 796 AC fleet

Coal technology, Equipment maintenance, Mining consumables, Mining equipment, Mining services, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Bravus Mining & Resources has awarded contracts worth more than A$3 million ($2.2 million) to Rockhampton-based SMW Group for a series of new Ultrahaul mine truck trays and a bore field maintenance program.

Bravus Mining & Resources CEO, David Boshoff, said Bravus was keen to capitalise on SMW Group’s 20 years of experience servicing central Queensland’s coal fields.

“There’s an extensive mining services knowledge base in our region, and it has always been our intention to use this and work with businesses based in central Queensland wherever possible,” Boshoff said.

“The Ultrahaul tray is a class-leading product for mine haul trucks that SMW Group has developed specifically for the central Queensland coal industry. The trays are tailored for our fleet of Cat 796 AC haul trucks and will help to maximise production and improve operational efficiency.

“We have been impressed by SMW Group’s willingness to work with us to get the product right for our operations and look forward to seeing the results of this relationship over time.”

SMW Group Chief Operating Officer, Frank Humphreys, said that the contract was a great result for the company and central Queensland manufacturing.

“Securing a contract to supply Ultrahaul trays to the Carmichael Project is a great outcome for SMW Group and is a vote of confidence for central Queensland’s mining services industry,” Humphreys said.

“We are excited to be involved with a high-profile operation like the Carmichael Project.”

Boshoff said the contract would have direct benefits for Mackay and Rockhampton, bolstering the local economies against the impacts of COVID restrictions.

“Having this level of manufacturing capacity in our region is a huge boost, because we can continue to grow our fleet and ramp up operations with minimal impact from COVID induced restrictions and border closures,” he said.

“We are proud to have made good on our promises to Queensland, and especially regional Queensland. We have created more than 2,600 jobs and signed more than $2.2 billion in contracts.

“More than 88% of our contracts are being delivered in Queensland. This work has been spread across all corners of the state to give as many regions as possible the opportunity to benefit from our project, while also enabling us to tap into the highly-skilled construction and resources industry workforce that Queensland possesses.

“We are ramping up our mining fleet and construction on the Coal Handling and Processing Plant is well underway. We are excited to be so close to delivering on our promise to ship first coal this year.”

BHP Mitsui Coal and Barada Barna Aboriginal Corp sign South Walker Creek agreement

Environmental, Mining industry recognition, Steel and iron ore, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , ,

The Barada Barna Aboriginal Corporation (BBAC), on behalf of the Barada Barna people, have entered into a Native Title Project Agreement with BHP Mitsui Coal Pty Ltd (BMC) for the South Walker Creek Mine in central Queensland, Australia.

It is the first agreement of its kind between Barada Barna Aboriginal Corporation and BMC, and is structured to deliver immediate and intergenerational benefits to the Barada Barna people, according to BHP.

The agreement will, BHP says, provide mutual benefits and certainty for BMC and Barada Barna.

Financial benefits will be directed towards priority community projects that enable Barada Barna people to live and work on-country, strengthening their important connection. The agreement also delivers ongoing financial security for socio-economic purposes and non-financial contributions in the form of contracting, business, employment, education and training opportunities for Barada Barna people.

The agreement will also support for the ongoing development and operation of South Walker Creek Mine – including a framework for the parties to work together on cultural heritage management and protecting areas of cultural and environmental significance.

Barada Barna Aboriginal Corp Chairperson, Luarna Walsh, said the agreement will ensure lasting and sustainable benefits for the Barada Barna people.

“The agreement will not only provide long-term benefits for the Barada Barna community, it will also achieve projects that BBAC have had in the pipeline for a considerable amount of time.

“Importantly, it sets Barada Barna on a path of self-determination. It will ensure BBAC is sustainable into the future and help our next generation of descendants achieve their goals through schooling and university, and employment and training. This agreement also provides BBAC with the ability to diversify our income streams, by creating Traditional Owner business’ that can tender for a variety of contracts on country.

“I’m very proud to have been involved in this negotiation alongside fellow Barada Barna Directors, and, after tough and sometimes testing negotiations, to say we have reached a successful outcome.”

BMC Asset President, Elsabe Muller, said the agreement sets out the long-term partnership with the Barada Barna people.

“We’re looking forward to continue working with the Barada Barna people and contributing to their communities benefitting from sustainable economic, social and cultural initiatives,” Muller said.

“The agreement outlines a path forward for a long-term relationship based on trust, respect and mutual benefit. It will also see BMC and Barada Barna work together in relation to the management of cultural heritage at South Walker Creek and deepen our workforces’ knowledge and understanding of Barada Barna history and connection to country through cultural awareness training.”

The Barada Barna people are the native title holders (determined in September 2016) over approximately 3,000 sq.km of land in central Queensland, where BMC’s South Walker Creek open-pit mine is located.

Hillery Group to deliver A$15 million of rail infrastructure for Carmichael

Bulk handling, Coal technology, Mining services, , , , , ,

Bowen Rail Company has contracted the Hillery Group to construct a new rail yard at the Carmichael coal mine and rail project in Queensland, Australia.

The A$15 million ($11 million) rail yard will be an important part of the business’ long term operating plan but is not required for the company to commence rail operations later this year, Bowen Rail said.

Bowen Rail Company CEO, Trista Brohier, said partnering with Hillery was another example of how Bowen Rail was delivering on its promises of jobs and work packages for the Whitsunday region.

“We’re pleased that we can now share with the Bowen community how our commitments on jobs and contracts for the Whitsundays are coming to life,” Brohier said. “Partnering with Hillery is a perfect example of this and we couldn’t have picked a better local company to do the job considering their strong technical expertise and knowledge of the region.”

Hillery Group is a family-owned business in Bowen, Queensland, stablished over 30 years ago with, currently, more than 100 employees. Hillery Group specialises in civil construction and plant hire and is an operator of four local quarries, supplying these materials across regional Queensland.

CEO of Hillery Group, Luke Hillery, said the project was a big win for his business and the community.

“We’re really proud to have been given the opportunity to deliver this critical piece of infrastructure for Bowen Rail,” Hillery said. “We see the value that this business will bring to our region for the long term, and it’s great to be one of the first cabs off the rank to win a big contract of this nature. It’s not often we see contracts to build rail yards in Bowen, so we were excited at the opportunity to partner with the Bowen Rail team.”

Brohier said clearing and earthworks are now well progressed in the rail yard’s delivery, with other exciting announcements for Bowen Rail expected shortly.

“We launched the Bowen Rail company in August last year, and we have been enthusiastically working behind the scenes since then to establish our business for operations,” she said.

“We’ve been busy setting up our systems, team and infrastructure, and we’re looking forward to sharing our ongoing progress with our fellow community members as we work towards running trains with our first customer’s coal product from the Carmichael mine later this year. Watch this space!”

Thiess extends relationship with MACH Energy Australia at Mount Pleasant

Coal technology, Environmental, Mine operation news, Mining services, , , , , , , , , ,

Thiess has been awarded a contract extension by MACH Energy Australia to continue providing mining services at the Mount Pleasant Operation in the Hunter Valley, New South Wales, Australia.

The contract extension, which will commence in April 2022, will generate revenue of approximately A$920 million ($678 million) to Thiess over four-and-a-half years.

Having commenced operations when Mount Pleasant was a greenfield coal mine in 2017, Thiess is to continue providing full-scope mining services including drill and blast, overburden removal, coal mining services and rehabilitation.

Thiess Chief Executive Officer and Executive Chairman, Michael Wright, said: “Since 2017, Thiess has provided expert planning and optimum mine sequencing to deliver exceptional outcomes for our client. This contract extension builds on our strong five-year relationship with MACH Energy at Mount Pleasant. We’re pleased to continue to drive long-term social, environmental and economic value for the Upper Hunter region.”

Thiess Executive General Manager Australia & Pacific, Shaun Newberry, said: “We’re proud to continue our work at Mount Pleasant where we have a proven track record of delivering industry-leading environmental practices. We also look forward to continuing our strong relationship with the Muswellbrook community to ensure we deliver mutually beneficial outcomes.”

Thiess says it has a strong presence in the Hunter Valley where it provides mining services at three mines.

Mining fleet changes hands at Boggabri coal operation

Coal technology, Equipment maintenance, Mining equipment, Mining services, , , , , , ,

Most of the major mining equipment used at the Boggabri coal mine in New South Wales, Australia, is to be sold to Boggabri Coal Operations (BCO), part of the Idemitsu Group, following the exercise of an option between BCO and Golding Contractors, a subsidiary of NRW Holdings.

The transaction for the fleet, which includes 38 major mobile mining assets, has a target completion date of the end of July 2021.

Golding will continue to perform maintenance services on site across these, and another 50 (approximately) pieces of major mining equipment, engaging a workforce of over 150 personnel on site, NRW said.

The equipment will be sold for circa-A$81 million ($61 million) of which circa-A$64 million will pay down asset financing debt, NRW said.

NRW’s CEO and Managing Director, Jules Pemberton, said: “The option for BCO to acquire all or part of the associated mining fleet was identified at the time of the acquisition of BGC Contracting. This transaction will reduce debt and increase return on capital employed.

“We look forward to continuing to support BCO to ensure we are best placed to continue to provide our services beyond the current contract completion date of December 2022.”

New Cat D11 dozer arrives at Stanwell’s Meandu coal mine

Coal technology, Mine operation news, Mining equipment, Mining services, , , , , , ,

Stanwell’s Meandu coal mine in Queensland, Australia, has taken delivery of a new Cat D11 dozer from local distributor Hastings Deering.

Ensuring safe and efficient operation, the dozer provides operators with full command, as well as delivering higher productivity at lower cost, Stanwell said.

The mine, owned by Stanwell, has a 7 Mt/y thermal coal capability and is in Queensland’s South Burnett Region.

Engineered to be rebuilt multiple times, the new D11 has a redesigned main frame delivering lower total cost of ownership over the life of the machine, Cat says. Time-saving service updates reduce daily maintenance and boost machine uptime.

The unit comes with new load-sensing hydraulics, high-horsepower reverse and the latest technology to provide higher material movement at a lower cost per tonne.

The first new generation D11 dozer in the world started work at BHP Mitsubishi Alliance’s (BMA) Blackwater coal mine in Queensland, in 2019. National Group secured the first of these dozers earlier from Cat dealer Hastings Deering as part of an order that would see six of these machines hauled by its National Heavy Haulage subsidiary.

Wescoal after RoM upgrade with Acrux, IMS Engineering XRT ore sorting solution

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Acrux Sorting Technology has announced that its advanced sensor-based sorting technology is to be deployed at a Wescoal Holdings Ltd-owned coal mining operation in South Africa.

Acrux subsidiary, Acrux Sorting Coal (ASC), has signed a coal beneficiation agreement with two wholly owned subsidiaries of Wescoal, whereby ASC will deploy advanced sensor-based sorting technology to upgrade lower-grade coal from the mines.

Under the agreement, ASC will provide a fully funded turnkey crushing, screening and sensor-based sorting solution centred around advance dual-energy X-ray Transmission (XRT) unit to process run of mine (RoM) coal.

The plant is to be designed, constructed, commissioned, operated and maintained by IMS Engineering Limited, Acrux’s partner on such ore sorting projects. IMS Engineering is a subsidiary of Germany-based HAZEMAG & EPR GmbH.

ASC’s sorting solution offers significant economic benefits as coal resources can now be upgraded to be included as a saleable product, which will reposition the mines along the cost curve, it said.

Paul Bracher, Managing Director of IMS, said: “The XRT technology has proven its ability to upgrade RoM coal through rejecting material that has sulphur or ash content that exceeds programmed parameters.”

The solution will also have a positive environmental impact as no water is used during beneficiation, and the carbon footprint is reduced through the optimisation of transportation and materials handling.

Wescoal’s Executive Director, Thivha Tshithavhane, said: “This sorting technology solution will enable us to impact on ESG, while creating shareholder value from optimising our coal resources at no capital investment.”

Sean Browne, ASC’s Chairman and Group Founder, added: “Partnering with Wescoal underlines our commitment to driving sustainable innovations that reduce the environmental impact of mining.”

Blue Energy investigates potential to power Isaac Plains fleet on hydrogen

Coal technology, Environmental, Mining equipment, Mining services, Power supply for mines, Sustainable mining, , , , , , , , , ,

Blue Energy Ltd says it has executed a non-binding memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Stanmore Resources Ltd that could see mine gas converted to hydrogen to power Stanmore’s Isaac Plains Complex equipment fleet.

The latest MoU relates to future pilot production activities at Stanmore’s ATP 814 tenement in the Bowen Basin of Queensland, Australia, but it builds on a previously announced non-binding MoU for the commercialisation of mine gas from Stanmore’s proposed underground operation adjacent to ATP814.

The gas used by Blue for conversion to hydrogen will be pilot gas which would otherwise be flared, and this trial project will reduce greenhouse gas emissions from Blue’s activities and also reduce diesel fuel usage by Stanmore which, in turn, reduces the CO2 produced by the combustion cycle of their fleet of vehicles, Blue said. The company is currently investigating off-the-shelf modular hydrogen generation equipment that is portable and able to be installed either centrally or at the well head, with the hydrogen generated transported in purpose-built cylinders to Stanmore’s Isaac Plains Complex site for use in their vehicle fleet.

Blue Energy’s Managing Director, John Phillips, said: “Being able to avoid flaring of pilot gas production by converting it to hydrogen is a step forward in reducing emissions prior to gas developments, and, in this case, has the added bonus of also lowering emissions from neighbouring mining operations.”

Blue is in the process of establishing technology partners for this hydrogen trial and, now with a foundation hydrogen offtaker secured, is confident the use of blue hydrogen from its pre-development activities is a positive step toward lowering the greenhouse gas emission footprint of the Bowen Basin coal mining precinct.

Anglo American Australia invests in gas, spontaneous combustion management research

Automation, Coal technology, Mine operation news, Mining equipment, Mining safety, Mining services, , , , , ,

Anglo American Australia says it is committing another A$5 million ($3.8 million) towards improving safety at its underground coal mines in the country following the release of recommendations from the Board of Inquiry’s report into an incident that occurred at its Grosvenor mine in May 2020.

Tyler Mitchelson, CEO of Anglo American’s Metallurgical Coal business, said the company is already acting on the recommendations of the report, referencing A$60 million of investment in safety initiatives the company has carried out over the last year.

The latest A$5 million investment will fund underground mining research, in partnership with industry research and technology partners, to improve the industry’s knowledge in certain technical areas, Mitchelson said.

“We have been clear from the outset that the incident on 6 May, 2020, in which five of our colleagues were badly injured was unacceptable,” he said. “The safety of our workforce is always our first priority.”

In the last year, Anglo has put in place a range of measures to address issues that have come to light through detailed investigations and evidence before the Board of Inquiry. Over this period, it has already committed more than A$60 million in technology pilots, additional gas drainage infrastructure, expert reviews and further improvements to a range of processes and controls.

Mitchelson said: “Underground coal mining, particularly in the area where Grosvenor Mine is located, is complex with many interacting considerations and, as the board has identified, further research into certain technical areas such as gas and spontaneous combustion management would benefit the industry. We will be helping to advance knowledge in these areas through our further A$5 million funding commitment.

“The Board of Inquiry’s reports have made a number of recommendations, and we are confident we have already addressed, or will address, these ahead of the restart of longwall mining at Grosvenor Mine later this year.”

Longwall mining operations at Moranbah North Mine safely restarted earlier this month, in line with regulatory approvals, with production expected to ramp up over coming weeks.

Anglo American’s Operating Model, the company’s primary operational management system, is currently being updated at Grosvenor and, together with a range of other measures such as the use of data science, will ensure the company has the very latest in systems thinking, design and technology to ensure operational stability and control, and ultimately safe production, he added.

“The use of automation and remote operation presents us with the single biggest opportunity to remove people from high-risk areas and we are fast-tracking this work across our operations, including commissioning ground-breaking research into automation in development mining with CSIRO,” Mitchelson said.

This work will see the two companies undertake a world-first trial of technology to support automation in the roadway development phase of underground coal mining.

On top of this, Anglo American Australia has commenced a pilot study at Moranbah North to assess the use of pressure sensors to remove power from the longwall face. Initial laboratory testing has been successfully completed and pilot hardware has been installed at Moranbah North Mine, it said. Full-scale hardware and processing systems will be installed at Grosvenor ahead of a restart of operations.

“A further layer of quality control has already been introduced for the supply of Intrinsically Safe underground mining equipment,” the company said.

Anglo American Australia has also invested in data and strata capabilities to change the way it mines, with its newly-established Met Coal Analytics Centre already operationalising gas and strata management analytics to predictive capabilities, with work under way to support its mines.

The company already has gas management improvement measures underway, with A$1.5 billion allocated for gas management over five years across the company’s underground mines. It has also completed a project to increase gas drainage capacity at Grosvenor Mine and introduced enhanced gas management reporting across the business.

Last year, Anglo announced that, to support alignment with Queensland statutory reporting, any gas exceedances of above 2.5% in its underground mines will now be treated as Anglo American HPIs as a High Potential Incident in accordance with the company’s global risk management processes.