Murray River Coal Mine
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Murray River Coal Mine is a proposed coal mine in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, Canada.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Mine Name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Murray River Coal Mine | Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, Canada[1][2] | 55.141319, -121.0796155 (approximate) |
The map below shows the approximate location of the coal mine:
Project Details
Table 2: Project status
| Status | Status Detail | Project Type | Opening Year | Closing Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Proposed[3] | Construction[3] | New[3] | 2021 | – |
Table 3: Operation details
| Capacity (Mtpa) | Production (Mtpa) | Year of Production | Mine Type | Mining Method | Mine Size (km2) | Mine Depth (m) | Workforce Size |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4[3] | – | – | Underground[1] | Longwall[1] | 160[4] | 800*[4] | 780 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3180[4] | – | 688[4] | Peace River | Bituminous | Met[1] | – |
Table 5: Ownership and parent company
| Owner | Parent Company | Headquarters |
|---|---|---|
| HD Mining[4] | HD Mining International [100.0%] | Canada |
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 Murray River coal mine project is a proposed coal mine near Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, Canada. The project has estimated reserves of more than 3.18 billion tonnes. Initial mine site development will focus on the 37-square-kilometer Plot 1, containing a proven deposit of 688 million tonnes. Surface work was set to being in 2012.[5]
Permitting Details
Owner HD Mining International began the environmental assessment (EA) process for the project in 2012, and in October 2015, the provincial British Columbia Environmental Assessment Office issued an environmental assessment certificate, which was good for 5 years.[6] The project also required federal approval, which was granted in December 2017 with a required substantial start deadline of October 1, 2020.[7] The project received a Mines Act permit on April 5, 2018, and an Environmental Management Act (EMA) permit on July 11, 2018.[8]
Citing delays in the project's development (including delays in receiving the federal EA, controversy over plans to hire foreign workers, and concerns about southern mountain caribou populations), HD Mining requested a five-year extension months before the October 2020 substantial start deadline. This request was granted in July 2020, and a new, extended EAC expiration of October 1, 2025 was set.[9][10][11]
As of February 2025, the Environmental Assessment Office determined that the Murray River Coal Project has indeed been substantially started.[12] Now that the project has been substantially started, the EAC will remain in effect for the life of the project and will not expire.[12]
Construction of the Murray River mine site is expected to take 3 years.[13]
Articles and Resources
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.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 (PDF) http://www.hdminingintl.com/uploads/files/murray-river-fact-sheet.pdf.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20240121032326/http://www.hdminingintl.com/project-map. Archived from the original on 21 January 2024.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 https://web.archive.org/web/20240903172419/https://www.projects.eao.gov.bc.ca/p/5885119caaecd9001b822d93/project-details. Archived from the original on 03 September 2024.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 https://web.archive.org/web/20240722232452/https://www.hdminingintl.com/murray-river-project. Archived from the original on 22 July 2024.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ Murray River Project, HD Mining website, accessed October 2019.
- ↑ Project Status, HD Mining, accessed October 2019.
- ↑ Murray River Coal Project, Government of Canada website, accessed October 2019.
- ↑ Murray River Overview, BC Mine Information, accessed October 2019.
- ↑ Supplemental Information Request for Respecting Application to Extend Environmental Assessment Certificate for the Murray River Coal Project, British Columbia Environmental Assessment Office, Accessed March 2025.
- ↑ Certificate Extension Decision Letter, British Columbia Environmental Assessment Office, accessed June 2022.
- ↑ HD Mining’s contentious Murray River coal project put on hold, The Globe and Mail, MARCH 14, 2016.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 [1], British Columbia Environmental Assessment Office, Accessed March 2025.
- ↑ Murray River Project, HD Mining, February 8, 2018.
