PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Maules Creek mine, in New South Wales, was posed to deliver its first coal train this week, some three months ahead of schedule, owner Whitehaven Coal said on Wednesday.
Following a test train earlier this week, coal from the Maules Creek mine was now poised to leave for the port at Newcastle.
“The railing of the first coal from Maules Creek is a significant achievement for Whitehaven. Railing first coal less than a year from when construction started is a fantastic outcome,” said Whitehaven MD and CEO Paul Flynn.
He noted that the project was already having a substantial positive economic impact on local communities, providing employment for some 600 people during the construction phase.
“Once fully operational, the mine will employ around 450 full time workers. Most of these workers will be hired from the local Gunnedah/Narrabri region, ensuring the mine has a significant positive impact on local families and towns for many years to come.”
Opencut operations at Maules Creek started in August this year, and the $767-million project was expected to deliver some 13-million tonnes of coal a year. The commissioning of the coal handling and preparation plant, as well as other related infrastructure, was expected to continue until July next year, at which time the mien would be declared fully commercial.
In its first full year of operations, Maules Creek was expected to produce around six-million tonnes of run-of-mine coal.