Aquila Coal Mine

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Aquila Coal Mine is an operating coal mine in Bundoora, Queensland, Australia.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Mine Name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Aquila Coal Mine	Bundoora, Queensland, Australia	-22.9816055, 148.5373229 (exact)

The map below shows the exact location of the coal mine:

Loading map...

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Project Details

Table 2: Project status

Status	Status Detail	Opening Year	Closing Year
Operating	–	2022	–

Table 3: Operation details

Note: The asterisk (*) signifies that the value is a GEM estimated figure.

Capacity (Mtpa)	Production (Mtpa)	Year of Production	Mine Type	Mining Method	Mine Size (km2)	Mine Depth (m)	Workforce Size
–	3.446	2022	Underground	Longwall	–	175	573*

Table 4: Coal resources and destination

Total Reserves (Mt)	Year of Total Reserves Recorded	Total Resources (Mt)	Coalfield	Coal Type	Coal Grade	Primary Consumer/ Destination
29.6	2022	42.2	Bowen	Bituminous	Met	–

Table 5: Ownership and parent company

Owner	Parent Company	Headquarters
Capcoal	Anglo American PLC [70.0%]; Mitsui & Co Ltd [30.0%]	Australia, UK, Japan

Table 6: Historical production (unit: million tonnes per annum)

ROM or Saleable	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023
Saleable	–	–	–	–	–	3	4

Note: The above section was automatically generated and is based on data from the Global Coal Mine Tracker April 2024 release and the September supplement.

Background

The Aquila mine is an underground mine, operated by Anglo American, as part of the Capcoal Mining Complex, located 16.5 kilometers southwest from Middlemount, Queensland, Australia.

The mine closed in 2009, but reopened with an expansion in February 2022. The Aquila mine began operating as a bord and pillar operation in the Capcoal Mining Complex 2005. In March 2009, the mine shut down due to the global financial crisis. Operations recommenced in August 2010, but the mine was once again placed under care and maintenance in July 2013.

In July 2019, Anglo American decided to prepare the mine for production again. However, this time the mine would feature a longwall extraction system with two longwalls which would allow it to operate without the downtime that is usually required for longwall moves. Both longwalls are fully remote-capable, and will be sequentially operated from our site-based remote operations center on the surface of the Aquila mine, making it one of the most “technologically advanced underground mines in the world”, says Anglo American’s CEO of Metallurgical Coal business, Tyler Mitchelson. Development work began in September 2019, and production started in February 2022, with the total capital cost being $323 million.

By bringing the Aquila mine out of care and maintenance and into production, the Capcoal Mining Complex’s operation will be extended another 5 years, until 2028.

• Operator: Mastermyne Ltd.
• Owners: Anglo American plc (70%) and Mitsui & co. (30%)
• Location: Bundoora, Queensland, Australia
• GPS Coordinates: -22.9816055, 148.5373229 (exact)
• Status: Operating
• Production: 3.4 mtpa for the entire Capcoal Mining Complex (2022)
• Total Resource: 42.2 mt (2022)
• Mineable Reserves: 44.5 (2022)
• Coal Type: Coking coal (Metallurgical)
• Mine Size:
• Mine Depth: 70-280 m (170 m average)
• Mine Type: Underground
• Workforce Size: 600
• Start Years: 2005, 2022
• Source of Financing:

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Additional data

To access additional data, including an interactive map of world coal mines, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Mine Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.