Crews re-enter ‘Zone B’ at North Goonyella mine five years after underground blaze

A mining giant has taken a massive step towards resuming work at one of its key Bowen Basin operations after an underground fire five years ago stopped production. DETAILS

Global mining giant Peabody has taken a huge leap towards resuming operations at its flagship Bowen Basin mine following a spontaneous underground blaze that halted work since 2018.

It has been five years since the underground coal fire put the long-term viability of North Goonyella mine into question.

Thick black smoke was seen billowing from the underground mine, about 65km north of Moranbah and 160km west of Mackay, after the spontaneous blaze sparked in September, despite efforts to treat the oxidation levels.

However Peabody has achieved a significant milestone with crews successfully re-entering Zone B with longwall operations expected to begin in 2026.

General manager Daniel Proffitt said it was the “culminations of four years hard work to get back to this position”.

Peabody's North Goonyella mine. Picture: Supplied by Peabody

“For Peabody this would be the most important asset we have at this time with the capital we’ve outlaid to get this operation back up and running,” Mr Proffitt said, labelling North Goonyella one of the best coking coals in the world.

“With the quality of coal that we have … being a premium hard coking coal, you’ll see those royalties will be significant with what’s given back to the community.

QMRS crews preparing and deploying underground as part of the requirements before the Peabody crews entered Zone B. Pictures: Supplied by Peabody

“We have customers routinely ringing up, ‘when are we going to get this coal back on the market, how do we secure some’.

“So we’ve already got pre orders ready when we kick off our longwall in 2026.”

In 2019 worker had re-entered Zone A of the mine however Zone B is significant because it is the area where mining actually takes place.

Smoke billows from the mine at North Goonyella from a fire that started in September last year.

Mr Proffitt said Peabody had sourced as much of the labour, supplied, equipment and manufacturing as possible from within the Mackay and Isaac regions.

“Whether that’s Mackay, Nebo, Moranbah … trying to get as much from local vendors as we possible can,” he said.

QMRS crews preparing and deploying underground as part of the requirements before the Peabody crews entered Zone B. Pictures: Supplied by Peabody

Queensland Mine Rescue Service general manager Raymond Smith said the crew would undertake reconnaissance to understand the environment and compile a captain’s report before handing over to North Goonyella mine.

In other big news for the company, Peabody has also reached an agreement to acquire a large portion of the Wards Well coal deposit adjacent to North Goonyella US$136 million, providing an opportunity to extend the mine’s life by over 20 years.

President of Peabody’s Australian Operations Jamie Frankcombe said going back underground into Zone B was pivotal in the US$489 million long-term development of North Goonyella.

“This is a really exciting turning point for Peabody and the team at North Goonyella as we move further underground towards the coal seam and take a big step in our staged approach to restarting one of the best steelmaking coal mines in the world.“

“We still have a lot of work ahead of us but we’re pleased to see North Goonyella fully funded and on track for development coal in the first quarter of 2024 with longwall coal targeted for 2026.

“The mine is very important to the local community and to Queensland, providing jobs, royalties and exports for the entire State.”