PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Mining giant BHP Billiton and its joint venture (JV) partner Mitsubishi on Monday officially opened its $3.4-billion Caval Ridge metallurgical coal mine, in Queensland.

This is the eighth mine to be opened by the JV.

“Today’s opening of the Caval Ridge mine is a significant milestone for BHP Billiton. The operation will produce metallurgical coal for the steel industry and has been constructed with the latest technology to be one of the most productive, sustainable and highly performing metallurgical coal mines in the world,” said BHP coal president Dean Dalla Valle.

He noted that energy efficiency was a key focus for the mine and had been built into the design and management system, including the use of highly efficient equipment and the optimisation of truck, shovel and dragline movements.

The opencut operation is designed to deliver about 5.5-million tonnes a year of product. The mine has a mine life of about 60 years and retained potential for further expansion.

“Through a focus on increasing productivity and expanding volumes at our existing mines, including the Caval Ridge mine, Mitsubishi Corporation aims to double attributable equity production in its metallurgical coal business by circa 2020. Mitsubishi Corporation intends to further enlarge equity production held by Mitsubishi Development and to enhance the reliable supply of metallurgical coal in order to respond to prospective increases in global demand, including Japan, over the medium to long term,” the conglomerate said in a statement.

Mitsubishi Development is a wholly owned subsidiary of Mitsubishi and is headquartered in Brisbane.

JOBS CONCERN

Meanwhile, labour union CFMEU on Monday urged Prime Minister Tony Abbott, who attended the opening of the mine, to reprimand the diversified major for its recent cuts to staff numbers.

In September, BHP announced that it would cut around 700 staff across its Queensland metallurgical coal assets shared with JV partner Mitsubishi. This just after 258 cuts at the Mt Arthur mine in New South Wales, 230 jobs from the Sarji mine, in Queensland, and 36 redundancies from the Illawarra operation, also in New South Wales.

CFMEU mining and energy district president Stephen Smyth said the region was still reeling from BHP’s “ruthless decision” to cut jobs from across its Bowen basin coal mines just weeks ago.

He pointed out that locals were also not allowed to apply for jobs at the 100% fly-in fly-out (FIFO) Caval Ridge mine being opened on Monday, despite its proximity to the town of Moranbah.

“Prime Minister Abbott should use his trip to Moranbah to pull BHP into line on jobs,” said Smyth.

“BHP insists all employees must live in Brisbane or Cairns to work at Caval Ridge, denying mineworkers real choice about their work and living arrangements. They are locking locals out of work opportunities at a time of great need for jobs.” 

Smyth said that Abbott had an obligation to the people of Queensland to stand up for their interests in the face of powerful mining companies.

“We hope he takes the time to find out what’s really going on in the Bowen basin and pull BHP into line. He must insist BHP prioritise permanent, secure jobs and stop locking local workers out of job opportunities.”

Dalla Valle on Monday conceded that the company’s coal division had to make difficult decisions recently to ensure that its operations remained sustainable, but said that BHP was confident that if it maintained its productivity focus, it would continue to have a globally competitive business that would provide employment opportunities.

He added that having a FIFO operation enabled BHP to reach a wider potential employee pool across the state, bringing greater diversity to the operation and enabling BHP to share the economic benefits of the mine more broadly.

“Over 30 000 people applied for around 950 roles at Caval Ridge and its sister mine Daunia,” Dalla Valle said.

BHP and JV partner Mitsubishi still employ some 7 000 staff over their eight operations, of which six had a residential workforce.