Name and Location
Red Hill mining lease coal project, Queensland, Australia.

Client
BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA), through its joint venture manager, BM Alliance Coal Operations.

Project Description
The proposed project is an expansion of the existing Goonyella Riverside and Broadmeadow (GRB) mine complex, in the Bowen basin, in central Queensland.

The key components of the project are the new underground Red Hill mine (RHM) to the east of the Goonyella Riverside mine (GRM), the expansion of the GRM to provide key infrastructure for the RHM and the extension of longwall panels – 14, 15 and 16 – of the existing Broadmeadow underground mine (BRM) into the RHM lease area.

Coal will be extracted by longwall mining using thick-seam mining to maximise resource recovery. Coal will be processed on site through a coal handling preparation plant, then loaded onto trains for shipment to a coal terminal for export overseas. At full production, the potential capacity of the extended complex will be about 32.5 millions a year.
The RHM will include:
• an underground footprint of 3 600 ha;
• a mine layout comprising a main drive, extending east to west, with longwall panels ranging to the north and south;
• potential production capacity of 14-million tonnes a year of high-quality hard coking coal over 20 to 25 years;
• underground mining to target the Gooyella middle seam;
• a network of bores and associated surface infrastructure for mine gas predrainage (incidental mine gas, or IMG) and management of goaf methane drainage to enable the safe extraction of coal;
• a ventilation system for underground workings;
• a bridge across the Isaac river to provide a crossing point for mine-related infrastructure, including water pipelines and a power supply; and
• a new accommodation village, with capacity for up to 3 000 workers.
The expansion of the GRM will include:
• a new mine industrial area(MIA);
• a new coal handling and preparation plant (CHPP);
• the construction of an entry point for mine access;
• a conveyor system linking the RHM to the Red Hill CHPP;
• a new 66 kV transmission line to provide power from the existing GRB mine complex;
• associated coal handling infrastructure and stockpiles; a new conveyor system linking product coal stockpiles to a new rail load-out facility; and
• mine and MIA flooding protection, potentially requiring a levee along the west bank of the Isaac river.

The extension of the three BRM longwall panels will include infrastructure required for gas drainage to enable safe and efficient mining, as well as the management of waste and water produced from drainage of IMG to be integrated with the existing BRM waste and water management systems.

Further, the project will require an additional 50 MW of power.

New power lines are being built to provide power for existing operations and the RHM.

The project has a 20- to 25-year mine life.

Net Present Value/Internal Rate of Return
Not stated.

Value
Not stated.

Duration
Subject to the granting of required approvals, BMA estimates a two- to three-year construction period starting in 2020.

Latest Developments
In June this year, the Queensland Coordinator-General approved BMA’s RHM, but prohibited the mine from relying fully on a fly-in, fly-out (Fifo) workforce.

Conditions imposed by the Coordinator-General included that the RHM was not being allowed to fully use Fifo employees, with detailed and regular reporting expected on workforce composition and operations.

BMA would also be required to provide an audit of existing housing capacity before the project starts and to ensure that existing capacity is used most efficiently.

State Development and Natural Resources Minister Dr Anthony Lynham said the Coordinator-General will review the conditions following the completion of government reviews into Fifo to ensure that those findings are taken into account.

Conditions were also set to avoid, mitigate or offset predicted environmental impacts of the project.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
None stated.

On Budget and on Time?
Not stated.

Contact Details for Project Information
BMA, tel +61 7 3226 0600 or fax +61 7 3229 2575.