PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Coal miner Cockatoo Coal has reported record monthly production from its Baralaba project, in Queensland, during June, which assisted in its quarterly production reaching 231 384 t.
This was compared with the 119 906 t run-of-mine production reported in the previous quarter.
The Baralaba operations produced 97 558 t of coal during the quarter across both its Baralaba Central and Baralaba North projects. Mining operations started at Baralaba North during the quarter under review, following the completion of the northern flood levee.
The opening of the Baralaba North mine provides immediate access to 100% pulverised coal injection coal for the next two years, which would provide sufficient time for the completion of a coal handling and processing plant in 2016, Cockatoo said.
Cockatoo MD Andrew Lawson said the quarter’s activities had the company delivering on its strategy and ahead of its targets.
“It is pleasing to announce a production record of 97 559 t of coal at the Baralaba complex, which is in line with the scheduled ramp-up to one-million tonnes a year. We will continue to diligently transition operations from Baralaba Central to Baralaba North over the next quarter, maximising the effectiveness of both pits.”
Lawson pointed out that the progress on the approvals pathway also continued to be encouraging, with the company aiming to obtain increased approval to mine at a rate of 3.5-million tonnes a year.