Cumnock mine
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The Cumnock mine, formerly known as Liddell State Coal Mine, was an underground and open cut thermal coal mine that operated for nearly 50 years and was put on care and maintenance in 2011. Cumnock Mine is also a part of Ravensworth Surface Operations.[1] The mine located between the townships of Muswellbrook and Singleton, south of the Macquarie Generation Power Stations.
Location
Background
Mining at Cumnock mine has been ongoing since the 1950s, beginning with underground mining and interspersed with open cut methods in 1993-1994 and 2002-2003.[1] In 2003, Xstrata, the majority-owner at the time, shut down the underground longwall operations as a result of adverse geological conditions. They announced that they would continue on with open cut operations.[2]
Xstrata bought out all other shares in the mine to become the sole owner in 2007. At the time of the sale, Cumnock was expected to exhaust all of its coal reserves by the end of 2008.[3]
According to a 2012 report on coal mine particulate matter control in the Cumnock Colliery, “Following completion of underground and open cut mining at Cumnock in 2008, a small open cut coal reserve (known as the Wash Plant Pit) was identified beneath the Cumnock Coal Handling and Preparation Plant (CHPP), with an extraction limit of 1 million tonne per annum (Mtpa).” This mining was completed by 2011, when the Cumnock mine was placed on care and maintenance.[4]
According to the same report, “All coal mining activities thus came to an end at Cumnock in 2011. Current and planned activities at Cumnock are limited to the following: pumping of wet tailings from Ravensworth Coal Handling and Processing Plant to voids and pits approved for tailings emplacement, … and on-going progressive rehabilitation works.”[4]
Project Details
- Sponsor: Cumnock No.1 Colliery Pty Ltd[5]
- Parent Company: Glencore[1]
- Location: Located between Muswellbrook and Singleton in the Upper Hunter Valley in New South Wales.[1]
- GPS Coordinates: -32.403044, 150.998616 (approximate)
- Status: Care and maintenance as of 2011[4]
- Production Capacity: 1 mtpa (during times of operation)
- Total Resource:
- Mineable Reserves: 0 Mt[5]
- Coal type: thermal[1]
- Mine Size:
- Mine Type: underground and open cut[1]
- Start Year: 1951[2]
- Source of Financing:
Articles and resources
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 "Cumnock Mine," "Australian Government: Bioregional Assessments," accessed June 2020.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Cumnock closes after ten years," "Australia's Mining Monthly," September 29, 2003.
- ↑ "Xstrata to acquire Cumnock Coal," "Australia's Mining Monthly," July 18, 2007.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "[https://web.archive.org/web/20160302145615/http://www.ravensworthoperations.com.au/EN/Publications/ManagementPlans/Cumnock%20BMP%20Determination_Final%20Report_29%20June%202012_R0.pdf CUMNOCK NO.1 COLLIERY – COAL MINE PARTICULATE MATTER CONTROL BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICE DETERMINATION]," "Ravensworth Operations," July 2012.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Environmental Assessment: Cumnock Wash Plant Mining and Rehabilitation Project," "Umwelt Environmental Consultants," December 2008.
