Wandoan Coal Project

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Wandoan Coal Project is a shelved coal mine in Queensland, Australia.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Mine Name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Wandoan Coal Project	Queensland, Australia	-26.12621, 149.8487 (exact)

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

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Project Details

Table 2: Project status

Status	Status Detail	Opening Year	Closing Year
Shelved	–	2027 (planned)	–

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
22	–	–	Surface	Open Pit	320	50*	*

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
846	–	1200	Wandoan	Subbituminous	Thermal	–

Table 5: Ownership and parent company

Owner	Parent Company	Headquarters
Wandoan Joint Venture	Glencore PLC; Sumitomo Corp	Switzerland, India, Japan

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 Wandoan Coal Project is a proposed open cut coal mine near Wandoan in the Bowen Basin in Queensland, Australia. The mining lease was applied for in 2007, and the project’s environmental impact statement was approved in 2010, while commonwealth environmental approval was received in 2011.

In September 2013 , while Glencore was awaiting the granting of the Mining Leases for the project by the Queensland State Government, Glencore announced that the project had been put on hold and that the decision would not change with granting of the Mining Leases. Glencore said it will continue to assess the project’s timing against the global coal market and its overall portfolio, demonstrating supply discipline. Glencore said it will only bring on new production volumes if it is confident that doing so will not materially add to oversupply in the market and have a negative impact on global coal prices.

The proposed mining lease application area covers approximately 32,000 hectares in the largely un-mined Surat Basin. According to the proponents, Glencore the mine would "have an expected life of more than 30 years" producing approximately 30 million tonnes run-of-mine coal a year. In its outline of the project it was stated that the project could be expanded to 40 million tonnes a year "if market conditions change and warrant the installation and operation of a fourth coal preparation plant unit". The mine complex would include a number of open-cut mines.

In 2019 the Wandoan Coal Project got its environmental approvals from both the Queensland and Federal Governments. The mining lease was granted in 2017.

Glencore's has listed the project as "on hold" since 2013, although it's still considered proposed by the Queensland government. It is likely the project has been shelved until the company assess "the project’s timing against the global coal market and our overall portfolio." The IEA downsized the project to 18 million tonnes in 2022

• Sponsor: Glencore Coal Queensland (75%) along with ICRA Wandoan (12.5%) and Sumisho Coal Australia (12.5%)
• Parent Company: Glencore, ICRA and Sumitomo Corporation respectively
• Location: Surat Basin just west of the Wandoan township
• GPS Coordinates: -26.12621, 149.8487 (exact)
• Status: Shelved
• Production Capacity: 30 Mtpa
• Total Resource: in excess of 1,200 million tonnes
• Mineable Reserves: 846 million tonnes
• Coal type: Thermal
• Mine Size: 32,000 hectares
• Mine Type: surface
• Start Year:
• Source of Financing:

Opposition to the mine

Local landowners were objecting to the mine on the grounds of water impacts, impact on farmland, and other impacts on their lives and businesses. Friends of the Earth objected to the mine on the grounds of the global climate change impacts of burning 40 million tonnes of coal each year for 35 years.

Lock the Gate and GetUp are against the mine. Following the final approvals Lock the Gate spokesperson, Carmel Flint said, “The approval of this mine by Minister Anthony Lynham marks a very dark day for farming in Queensland. The mine will extract 22 million tonnes of coal each year for 35 years and destroy up to 32,000 hectares of farmland on the Western Downs. A large number of farmers have already been displaced by Glencore over this vast area, and now we fear that remaining farmers on and near the lease will be forced out. This project will be eligible for a secretive Queensland Government loan via the royalty deferral package announced in June... The Queensland Government has completely lost its way – they need to urgently rethink their ‘coal at all costs’ agenda and instead stand up for agriculture, water security and a safe climate.”

Lawsuits

On 4 May 2011, Xstrata faced the Land Court of Queensland over the greenhouse impacts of the coal mine and the impacts on farmers who live on the proposed mine site. Friends of the Earth lodged an objection with the Land Court over the carbon dioxide emissions from the mine. Seventy farming and grazing properties lay inside the Wandoan mining lease. The farmers were unsucessful in their case against the Land Court in 2012. The trial called a variety of experts to give evidence on the impacts that this mine will have on Queensland’s environment and the global climate. The Wandoan Coal Project’s estimated greenhouse gas emissions (0.08% of Australia's total GHG emissions) was outlined in both the project’s Environmental Impact Statement – released in December 2008 – and November 2009 supplementary EIS, but excluded emissions associated with the subsequent burning of the coal by third parties.

After several months of deliberations, the court rejected the climate change arguments. The landowners had a mixed outcome. The Erbacher family and a couple of other local landowners continued with their legal fight. In 2013 the farmers won a landmark compensation claim against Xstrata − which the company appealing. Glencore Xstrata lost the appeal in 2014.

Ownership

The Wandoan Coal Project was being developed by Xstrata Coal Queensland part of global mining group Xstrata. Xstrata was acquired by Glencore in 2013 and the asset swapped hands. The Wandoan project would be a joint venture comprising "Xstrata Coal Queensland (XCQ) (75% ownership), ICRA (Itochu) (12.5% ownership) and Sumisho Coal Australia (12.5% ownership)."

Transport

To deliver the coal to the Wiggins Island Coal Terminal at Gladstone port for export, a 200km long trainline is required. The proposed Surat Basin Rail, has been at a standstill since 2012 due to depressed coal prices. One of the four proponents involved in the rail project, ATEC Rail Group Limited, said in its last update of the project that its time frame was "uncertain".

In 2017 Glencore said "Adding significant new tonnes to the market at this time could adversely impact the profitability of existing thermal coal production, potentially putting jobs at risk as the market adjusts downwards as a result of oversupply. The Wandoan Coal Project will require a multi-billion dollar capital investment for both the mine and related rail infrastructure."

The project proponents state that "XCQ [Xstrata Coal Queensland] is participating in a Joint Venture to investigate the construction of a new rail connection known as the Surat Basin Rail, between Wandoan and the existing Moura-Gladstone line at Banana. XCQ is also working closely with QR Network regarding upgrades to its existing connections from Moura to Gladstone, and is coordinating with potential new port developments at Wiggins Island, of which Glencore is a part owner, and Balaclava Island. Together these developments comprise the Surat Basin Coal Value Chain, which would provide critical mass to open up the Surat Basin in Queensland for major investment and regional development." (The section of proposed railway line between Wandoan and the existing Moura-Gladstone line is sometimes referred to as the Southern Missing Link railway line.) There is speculation that if the Wandoan mine does not commence then other projects to exploit coal from the Surat Basin may not happen as the rail project relies on Wandoan and the other mines rely on the railway.

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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.