New South Wales
In November Angus Place coal mine near
Lithgow was placed under ‘care and maintenance’ by owners Centennial Coal, affecting about 270 staff.
In a statement the company said, “…a proportion of the Angus Place workforce would be relocated to (nearby) Springvale, where the plan would be to ‘ramp-up’ the mine – increasing production, improving productivity and reducing costs, while also seeking to minimise the number of redundancies.”
“This has been an extremely difficult decision, with Centennial committed to diligently working through a process that will sensitively support those impacted.”
“Unfortunately, the decision is essential if the Joint Venture is to sustain its competitiveness following the reduction in domestic coal demand in the Western Region as a result of the suspension of operations at Wallerawang Power Station, and lower export prices flowing from the currently over-supplied export thermal coal market.”
In December protesters hijacked the first
trainload of coal to leave Maules Creek coal mine, starting with a 58 year-old-man locking himself to the train. A further group of 22 fellow protesters soon joined the man in his protest.
Activist group Frontline Action on Coal claimed to be the organisers of the protest.
However despite the protests, the mine was officially opened in late January by NSW Premier Mike Baird.
At the time of the event NSW Minerals Council CEO, Stephen Galilee said the Premier’s presence at the opening was a welcoming sign of the government’s support of the project.
“Today’s official opening of the Maules Creek project is a positive sign for economic opportunity and job creation in a region that has a long and proud history of coal mining going back to to late 1800s,” Mr Galilee said.
“It’s also a positive sign for the NSW mining industry that this project has been completed ahead of schedule and budget, despite the attempts of a small group of activists to stop the mine from proceeding.”
In January the NSW government announced
changes to legislation requiring all gas industry activities taking place in NSW to have an environment protection licence.
NSW EPA chief environment regulator mark Gifford said it gave the EPA direct regulatory oversight of gas activities, thus the ability to ensure consistent and transparent industry regulation.
“In December protesters hijacked the first trainload of coal to leave Maules Creek coalmine, starting with a 58-year-old-man locking himself to the train.”
“All gas exploration, assessment and production activities, including conventional gas, coal seam gas, tight gas and shale gas are now required to hold an environment protection licence issued by the EPA,” Mr Gifford said.
Gas facilities required to hold an environment protection licence have three months from the regulation commencement to apply for a licence or a licence variation, meaning applications must be submitted by 19 March 2015.
South Australia
October saw South Australia’s State Government approve a new gold mine, the Portia Gold Project. Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Tom Koutsantonis said the mine, located 120km north-west of Broken Hill, is owned by South Australian-based exploration company Havilah Resources.
“This approval signals Havilah Resource’s transition from explorer to miner – which is a significant milestone for the local company,” Mr Koutsantonis said.
Commenting on the approval, Havilah Resources Managing Director, Dr Chris Giles said: “The Portia project has robust economics and it is Havilah’s intent to proceed with the mine development as soon as possible.”
Portia Gold Project’s approval came as South Australia was named the nation’s best low-risk investment destination for the resources industry for the fifth year in a row.
Mr Koutsantonis said the annual RESOURCESTOCKS magazine’s World Risk Survey compared mining jurisdictions around the world by surveying global investors, brokers and executives. Respondants are asked to rate the perceived risk of jurisdictions in key categories such as financial risk, sovereign risk, land access, green tape, land claims, red tape, social risk and infrastructure.
“South Australia came in as number one in Australia and fifth overall in the Canada-Australia comparison of 19 mining provinces, closely following Saskatchewan,” Mr Koutsantonis said.
At the time of print, Arrium Mining was continuing with plans to reopen Iron Knob near Whyalla, despite announcing, in January, that the company would close their Southern Iron Project, south of Coober Pedy.
The company says the reopening of Iron Knob would include mining operations in the Iron Monarch, Iron Princess East and Iron Princess West pits, as well as the construction of crushing and screening operations and the reinstatement of the rail line to Whyalla Port.
“Portia Gold Project’s approval came as South Australia was named the nation’s best low-risk investment destination for the resources industry for the fifth year in a row.”
BHP Billiton donated A$250,000 to the South Australian State Emergency Relief Fund to help those affected by destructive bushfires in December and January.
Darryl Cuzzubbo, Asset President of BHP’s Olympic Dam commented, “The bushfires have had a considerable impact on hundreds of lives and for families who have lost their homes, it is devastating. We hope this donation will provide some support for those experiencing difficulties during this time.”
The State Emergency Relief Fund confirmed that 100 per cent of all donations will be provided to those in need to re-establish themselves after this disaster.
As well as the A$250,000 donation, BHP Billiton Sustainable Communities will donate two dollars for every one dollar donated by an employee to relief efforts through the BHP Billiton Matched Giving Program.
Queensland
In December operations were suspended
at Middlemount’s Grasstree mine when a 45-year-old worker was crushed to death after an underground wall collapsed on top of him.
According to the ABC, police say the miner was working in the Anglo American underground coal mine in Central Queensland at around midnight when the incident occurred. Rescue teams were reportedly on the scene quickly but were not able to revive the man after retrieving his body.
It was Grasstree’s second fatality of 2014, after an electrician collapsed and died in a restricted area in May. An initial investigation by the Mines Inspectorate found electrician Paul McGuire may have been overcome by inert gas.
In January Queensland enjoyed a world-first milestone, when the first cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from BG Group’s QCLNG facility on Curtis Island near Gladstone was loaded on a tanker for export.
QCLNG is the world’s first LNG project to be supplied by coal seam gas. Production from the plant’s first LNG train was the result of more than four years of development on Curtis Island.
Andrew Gould, interim Executive Chairman said it was an immense achievement.
“The start-up of QCLNG is testament to the hard work, skill and dedication of all our employees, partners and customers including the thousands of individuals who have been involved in physically building the plant.”
The project will expand further with the start-up of the second train in the third quarter of 2015. At plateau production, expected during 2016, QCLNG will have an output of around eight million tonnes of LNG a year.
The far south west corner of the state could soon be the next boom region for Queensland’s resources sector with the government announcing a new plan to open up the gas-and-oil-rich Cooper Basin.
In December, Mines Minister Andrew Cripps released the Cooper Basin Industry Development Strategy aimed at encouraging exploration and investment in the area.
Mr Cripps said the Cooper Basin contained vast natural gas and oil resources and was considered one of Australia’s most prospective and commercially-viable regions for deep gas and oil development.
“It is estimated that at current levels of demand in the Australian East Coast Gas Market, there is potentially well over 100 years of gas resource in the basin,” he said.
“QCLNG is the world’s first LNG project to be supplied by coal seam gas.”
Adani’s massive 16.2 billion dollar Carmichael coal mine in the Galilee Basin is gearing up to begin construction later this year with the company appointing key contractors.
Downer has been awarded the highly lucrative mining services and infrastructure contract, while Parsons Brinkerhof has been appointed Project Management Consultant.
Parsons Brinckerhof has already appointed Turner & Townsend to provide programme support services during the initial phase of works.
Northern Territory
As public comment closed on Energy Resources planned new underground uranium mine at Kakadu in December, activist groups claimed the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) process was flawed because, “…a key report containing information pivotal to a meaningful analysis of the project remains unfinished and unpublished.”
A peer-reviewed report found that at the time of the latest incident at the mine, a tank failure, ERA’s management of process safety and its corporate governance did not meet expected standards.
In response to the report, ERA Chief Executive, Andrea Sutton, said the company had produced a detailed plan for the improvement of process safety management and governance at Ranger.
“A key element of our action plan is to improve our monitoring of process safety hazards and the tracking of actions to address process safety management.”
Ms Sutton confirmed that measures to ensure greater awareness and understanding of process safety measures remain a high priority.
In February, workers at a fly-in, fly-out (FIFO) camp near Darwin were issued with a notice warning that the anti-social behaviour of some residents could result in the village having its liquor licence revoked.
The ABC reported that the note was distributed to residents of the Maningurr-Ma FIFO village which houses FIFO workers from the Ichthys LNG project. The camp is managed by construction contractor JKC.
The note said incidents including high noise levels, abuse of village staff, “possession of fireworks” and “defecation in public places” ran against the village code of conduct and could see perpetrators evicted.
The note also mentioned “residents falling asleep in public areas while drunk” as another prohibited offence.
Eight residents had reportedly already been kicked out of the village for poor conduct and the note warned that further incidents could result in the camp becoming “dry”.
“The liquor licence for the village will come under scrutiny from the NT Liquor Licensing Board, resulting in a dry village,” the ABC quoted the note.
JKC project director John Bramley issued a statement to the ABC reinforcing their position.
“All employees take part in extensive induction training and all village residents must adhere to a strict code of conduct – which they must sign as a binding agreement at the time of their employment,” Mr Bramley said.
“Any resident contravening the code of conduct will be disciplined and could face termination of employment.
“JKC holds as its highest priority the safety and wellbeing of its workforce and we do not apologise for setting high standards and expecting them to be met.”
Western Australia
In September a significant gas discovery in Western Australia’s Mid-West was described as a ‘game-changer’ by the State Mines Minister Bill Marmion.
Preliminary results showed that AWE Limited’s Senecio-3 appraisal well, located on private property 14 kilometres west of Dongara, could yield up to 140 billion cubic feet of gas.
Mr Bruce Clement, AWE’s Managing Director, said it was “a very exciting discovery that adds considerable momentum to the near-term development potential of the Senecio gas field and other nearby prospects in the north Perth Basin.”
Mr Marmion said AWE Limited’s Senecio-3 find was very exciting for the local gas industry, “promising to revitalise what had been a declining gas field”.
Workers at the Roy Hill mine construction site in the Pilbara were rocked by news in December that a piece of fruit at the site canteen was had been laced with cyanide. The disturbing discovery was made after a FIFO worker complained to catering staff about the discolouration of a kiwi fruit.
Management notified police after a chemical analysis confirmed the fruit contained cyanide, a chemical not stored or used on the site. In a statement, police spokesman Samuel Dinnison said it was uncertain whether the poisoning was deliberate.
“At this point in time it is not known what the intent of the poison was, or if there was a specific target,” Mr Dinnison said.
Speaking to the ABC, Roy Hill Holdings chief executive Barry Fitzgerald said the poisoning was very troubling.
“Both we and the police are treating this as an entirely isolated incident and obviously the police are taking this seriously and we would hope that they would find out what the cause is and who the perpetrator was,” he said.
“Our first and foremost priority is the safety and wellbeing of our people. We have tightened our food security as a means of ensuring no further incidents occur.”
“Management notified police after a chemical analysis confirmed the fruit contained cyanide, a chemical not stored or used on the site.”
More bad news for Roy Hill in January with the Department of Mines and Petroleum (DMP) issuing two prohibition safety notices.
The DMP issued the notices after concerns were raised over the unsafe operation of cranes and elevated working platforms at the site.
According to the DMP, at least two near-miss safety incidents involving cranes and elevated working platforms have been reported, however no workers have been injured.
Prohibition notices are issued when the DMP considers something at a mine to be dangerous or potentially dangerous and urgent action is required.
Victoria
In September three mine sub-contractors were arrested and charged with stealing 340 litres of fuel from the Iluka Resources Murray Basin mine near Ouyen in Victoria’s northwest.
According to the Sunraysia Daily newspaper, Ouyen police believed that it was not the first time the men had stolen valuable goods and commodities from the mine site where they were employed as sub-contractors.
The men, from Bendigo and Myrtleford, were allegedly taking goods from the mine site and hiding them on a farm located near the front entrance to the mine, according to Ouyen police. At the end of their shift they would return to the farm to collect the stolen goods.
Their unsophisticated operation became unstuck when the owner of the farm became suspicious of fuel drums appearing on his property and notified police.
Also in September, Victorian Minister for Energy and Resources Russell Northe announced an additional $5 million in funding for the Cooperative Research Centre for Greenhouse Gas Technologies (CO2CRC).
The Minister said the funds would go toward world-leading research in carbon dioxide storage at the Otway site.
Following an examination of the international progress of carbon capture and storage (CCS) at Australia’s biennial National CCS Conference, CO2CRC CEO Dr Richard Aldous said that the Victorian Government had recognised the crucial role that technology has to play in tackling climate change.
“In a world in which demand for fossil fuels is projected to continue for many decades, we must embrace all technologies with real potential to limit, or prevent, carbon emissions from fossil fuel use. CCS is a vital component in that portfolio of technologies,” Dr Aldous said.
“The Victorian Government’s new funding confirms the next stage of the CO2CRC Otway Project research program will go ahead, and it secures the ongoing use of Victoria’s brown coal.”
According to Dr Aldous, the Otway Project had shown that CO2 storage is a safe, credible and long-term option for mitigating emissions that would otherwise be allowed to escape into the atmosphere.
“Their unsophisticated operation became unstuck when the owner of the farm became suspicious of fuel drums appearing on his property and notified police.”
At present, CCS is the only available method of making significant cuts to emissions from fossil fuel-powered energy.
Dr Aldous said that the funding would go toward new experiments to take place at the Otway site.
“Otway offers one of the most comprehensive CO2 monitoring programs of its type in the world, providing technical information on geosequestration processes, technologies and monitoring, as well as verification schemes,” he said.
During the past 10 years, the Otway Project has injected and stored more than 60,000 tonnes of CO2 in a depleted gas reservoir deep underground near Warrnambool in Victoria.
Tasmania
Australian Bauxite Limited received approval in early December from Northern Midlands Council to begin construction on their Bald Hill bauxite mine in northern Tasmania.
Australian Bauxite’s Chief Operating Officer, Leon Hawker, said the mine would contribute toward the economic development of the region in a manner that is compatible with existing environmental, landscape and primary industry values.
“The final approval by Northern Midlands Council paves the way for Australian Bauxite to commence mining operations on schedule – a credit to all concerned,” Mr Hawker said.
“This is the first new bauxite mine in Australia for over 35 years and will introduce a new bauxite supply into the seaborne bauxite market when the market is strong. This is an exciting time for the company, its shareholders and staff.”
The Tasmanian Minerals and Energy Council has wholeheartedly endorsed the State Government’s move to tighten the defamation act, claiming the move will, “…restore the right for Tasmanian businesses to challenge misleading campaigns against them.”
CEO of the Tasmanian Minerals and Energy Council, Wayne Bould, said the new law would provide certainty for Tasmanian companies and their workforces and supports employers against those who would spread mistruths about them and their business activities.
“For far too long certain individuals and certain extreme environmental groups have been deliberately communicating inaccurate and damaging information at every opportunity about our State’s mining industry and they have not been held accountable,” Mr Bould said.
“That is one of the main reasons that we support these laws.
“This is the first new bauxite mine in Australia for over 35 years and will introduce a new bauxite supply into the seaborne bauxite market when the market is strong.”
“I would like to be clear that we support freedom of speech, but that speech needs to be fact rather than scurrilous and unfounded supposition. We also support the belief, however, that people do not have the right to publically state misleading information to further their ideological beliefs and at the expense of truth and justice.
A new mine will be developed near Tullah after the Waratah-Wynyard Council approved the application in January.
The mine, operated by Mancala Resources, will be built in the Burns Peak Forest Reserve, nine kilometres north-east of Tullah.
The development will be a small open-cut and underground mine producing lead zinc ore for up to three years, with 60,000 tonnes of the mineral permitted to be mined from the site per year.
Cr Kevin Hyland said the development was a great opportunity for the region, citing the only downside being that the mine was restricted to three years.