Rio Tinto Coal Australia
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Rio Tinto Coal Australia (RTCA) is an Australian mining organisation, and is part of the Energy Group of Rio Tinto Group. In Queensland, RTCA operates the Blair Athol, Hail Creek, Kestrel and Tarong Mines. RTCA also manages the Coal & Allied operations in New South Wales. The Coal & Allied operations are the Bengalla, Hunter Valley and Mount Thorley Warkworth mines.
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[edit] RTCA Operations
[edit] RTCA Queensland Operations
[edit] Blair Athol Mine
Blair Athol Mine is an open-cut operation near Clermont. Mining operations are scheduled to cease in 2016.
Coal is hauled using 170 tonne capacity rear dump trucks to the Coal Handling Plant (CHP). The CHP includes a primary crusher station, and secondary and tertiary screening and crushing stations.
Coal product is stored on three stockpiles. Total stockpile capacity is 600,000 tonnes. Coal can be fed directly from the plant to the train loading bin. Trains operated by QR take up to 9,500 tonnes of coal each to the Dalrymple Bay Coal terminal for shipping.
[edit] Clermont Mine
RTCA plans to develop a new open cut thermal coal mine in central Queensland near Clermont. [1]The mine is estimated to cost $A950 million.[1] The mine is expected to reach a full capacity of 12.2 Mtpa in 2013. .[1]At this rate of production mine life is about 17 years. Clermont Mine will be a truck and shovel operation. .[1]Coal from the mine will be transported to the existing coal handling plant at Blair Athol Mine along a 13.3 kilometre conveyor.[1]
[edit] Hail Creek Mine
Hail Creek Mine is an 8 million tonne per annum open-cut operation with reserves of more than 200 million tonnes. Reserve estimates are based on borehole data. The mine produces two coking coal products: “Hail Creek” brand and “Brumby” brand. The coal is mined from both the Elphinstone Seam (average 6.4 metres thick) and the Hynds Seam (average 8.3 metres thick). The mine was officially opened in November 2003. Overburden is removed by dragline. The coal is loaded onto 240 tonne rear dump trucks using excavators. The Coal Handling and Preparation Plant (CHPP) removes impurities, such as rock and ash, from the run of mine coal to meet product specifications. The Hail Creek Mine deposit was discovered in 1968.
[edit] Kestrel Mine
Kestrel Mine is located on Lilyvale Road, near Emerald, in the Bowen Basin coal mining area.
Kestrel Mine was called Gordonstone Mine when founded by mining company ARCO. Operations commenced in 1992. RTCA purchased an 80% interest in the mine in February 1999. The remaining 20% interest is held by Mitsui Kestrel Coal Investment, which is owned by the Mitsui Group. The mining operation is managed by RTCA.
The name "Kestrel" was selected by a vote of employees in 1999. The Nankeen Kestrel, a small, slim falcon, is common to the area.
[edit] Tarong Mine
Tarong's Meandu Mine is the supplier of coal to Tarong Power Station. The mine commenced coal delivery in 1983. The coal is mined from the Tarong Basin. After blasting, a dragline and a truck and shovel fleet are used to remove the rock and overburden to expose the coal seam. After the coal has been drilled and blasted, it is transported using 180 tonne haul trucks. The Coal Handling and Preparation Plant (CHPP) washes the coal to required specifications. It is then transported to Tarong Power Station by conveyor belt. Environmentally, Tarong Mine is located in the headwaters of the Burnett River system, and is surrounded by State Forest and the Tarong National Park.
[edit] RTCA New South Wales Operations(Coal & Allied)
[edit] Bengalla Mine
Bengalla Mine is a 6.6 million tonne per year open cut operation located about four kilometres west of Muswellbrook. The mine produced 5.9 million tonne of thermal coal in 2005, and has marketable reserves of 154.6 million tonnes. The mine is owned by a number of interests:
| Owner | Interest |
|---|---|
| CNA Bengalla Investments Pty Ltd | 40% |
| Wesfarmers Bengalla Limited | 40% |
| Tawer Bengalla Pty Ltd | 10% |
| Mitsui Bengalla Investment Pty Ltd | 10% |
Bengalla Mine is a truck and excavator operation, with a P&H 9020-65B dragline for overburden removal. The excavator is a Hitachi EX3500 model. The truck fleet consists of five Euclid R280 rear dump trucks and four Euclid R190 dump trucks. Other major equipment includes two Svedala SKF 50i drills and a Le Tourneau L1800 loader. The mine has about 220 employees.
[edit] Hunter Valley Operations
Hunter Valley Operations (commonly known in the business as "HVO") is a multi-seam, multiple open cut mining operation. It is the largest single coal mine in the Hunter Valley (predominantly because it is an amalgamation of about 3 previously independent mines). The earliest production started in the current West Pit in 1968 (which was opened as the Howick mine). The Lemington mine, which was acquired and merged into Hunter Valley Operations in 2001, began production in 1971, and the original Hunter Valley mine began production in 1979.
HVO is owned 100% by Coal & Allied Industries Limited. The mine is located about 24km North-West of Singleton, New South Wales (the administration building is located on Lemington Road).
The mining areas are:
- West Pit: Open cut truck/shovel and dragline operation.
- Carrington Pit: Multi-seam, open cut using truck and shovel.
- Riverview: Shallow, three seam dragline operation with a minor truck/shovel prestrip fleet.
- Cheshunt pit: Multi-seam, open cut using truck/shovel fleet.
The mining equipment used is:
- 1 Bucyrus Erie 1570W electric walking dragline (53m3 bucket)
- 1 Bucyrus Erie 1370W electric walking dragline (50m3 bucket)
- 1 P&H 4100XPB electric rope shovel (50m3 bucket).
- 1 P&H 4100A electric rope shovel (43m3 bucket).
- 1 P&H 4100 electric rope shovel (43m3 bucket)
- 2 P&H 2800XP electric rope shovels (26m3 bucket)
- 1 O&K RH170 hydraulic excavator (21m3 bucket)
- 51 trucks (218t capacity)
- 1 Ingersoll Rand DMM-2 drill.
- 2 Reedrill SK50i drill.
- 2 Driltech D75KS drills
- 1 Driltech D60KL drill
- 2 Driltech D40KS drills
- 1 Le Tourneau L1850 frontend loader.
- 1 Le Tourneau L1800 frontend loader.
- 4 Le Tourneau L1400 frontend loaders.
- 1 Le Tourneau L1100 frontend loader.
- 2 Le Tourneau L1000 frontend loaders.
- 3 Caterpillar 992D frontend loaders
- 14 Caterpillar D11 dozers
- 4 Komatsu 475-A dozers
- 2 Caterpillar scrapers
The Hunter Valley coal preparation plant (HVCPP) is consented to receive has a capacity of about 20 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) run of mine (ROM) coal utilising dense medium cyclones and spirals. Product conveyor to Hunter Valley load point. The Howick coal preparation plant (HCPP) is consented to take 6Mtpa ROM coal, utilising dense medium cyclones and spirals. It has a conveyor for domestic supply to Macquarie Generation power station. The Lemington Coal Preparation Plant (LCPP) has a capacity of 5.5Mtpa but is currently idle.
HVO has marketable reserves of thermal and coking coal of about 320.3Mt (meaning a life span in excess of 20 years. In 2007, production of coking coal was 1.83Mt, and thermal coal produced was 8.264Mt. This was down on previous years with Hunter Valley coal chain constraints and the severe weather events of June. [2]
[edit] Mount Thorley Warkworth
Mount Thorley Warkworth (commonly known in the business as "MTW") is an open cut coal mine in the Hunter Valley. In 2001 Coal & Allied purchased an interest in the Warkworth mine adjacent to its existing Mount Thorley Operations. The mine produces thermal and coking coal.
The ownership of the two mines is as follows:
| Mine | Owner | Interest |
|---|---|---|
| Mount Thorley | Coal & Allied Industries Limited | 80% |
| POSCO Australia Pty Ltd | 20% | |
| Total | 100% | |
| Warkworth | CNA Warkworth Australasia Pty Ltd | 26.82% |
| CNA Resources Ltd | 28.75% | |
| Mitsubishi Development Pty. Limited | 28.90% | |
| Nippon Steel Australia Pty Limited | 9.53% | |
| Mitsubishi Materials (Australia) Pty Limited | 6% | |
| Total | 100% |
MTW is located about 15km south-west of Singleton, New South Wales near the industrial estate of Mount Thorley.
The pits are mined using draglines, shovel and trucks, to a depth of 100m. There are three main pit areas, West, North and South pits.
The major mining equipment is:
- 1 P&H 9020 dragline (75m3 bucket)
- 1 Bucyrus Erie 1370W dragline (45- 48m3 bucket)
- 1 P&H 4100A shovel (46m3 bucket)
- 1 Hitachi EX3600 excavator (24m3 bucket)
- 6 Caterpillar 789C trucks (190 tonne capacity)
- 4 Caterpillar 789CR trucks (190 tonne capacity)
- 4 Dresser 730E trucks (190 tonne capacity)
- 9 Liebherr KL2450 trucks (240 tonne capacity)
- 10 Komatsu 830E trucks (240 tonne capacity)
- 1 Reedrill SK75 drills
- 4 Reedrill SK-SS
- 1 Driltech D40K4L
- 1 Le Tourneau L1800 frontend loader
- 1 Le Tourneau L1400 frontend loader
- 1 Caterpillar 994 frontend loader
The coal preparation plants at MTW have a capacity of 9 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of feed yielding about 5.8Mtpa of saleable coal, utilising crushing, screening, dense medium separation, froth flotation. Three-stage double roll crushers, dense medium cyclones, spirals, froth flotation unit, screen bowl centrifuges, automatic stackers/reclaimers.
The marketable reserves at MTW are Mount Thorley of 20.5Mt and at Warkworth of 161.6Mt. [3]
[edit] Sponsorship
[edit] Newcastle Knights
Coal & Allied have been the major (naming rights) sponsor for the Newcastle Knights Rugby League team in the Australian Rugby League competition since 2005.[4]
[edit] QMEA
RTCA is a platinum sponsor of the Queensland Minerals and Energy Academy (QMEA). [5] The sponsorship includes a first year tertiary study scholarship to encourage students into the minerals and energy sector. [5]
