Mining Intelligence and News
Australia

Ironbark No. 1 (Ellensfield) Mine

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Categories

Overview

Mine TypeUnderground
StatusActive
Commodities
  • Coal (metallurgical)
  • Coal (thermal)
Mining Method
  • Longwall
  • Bord-and-pillar
Production Start... Lock
Mine Life... Lock
SnapshotThe Ironbark No.1 operation achieved first coal in August 2022 just seven months after commencing construction in January 2022.

Longwall commences early 2024 until the mid 2030’s when it relocates back to Carborough Downs.

Mine planning to date has only considered the Leichardt coal seam. The entire ML area is fully permitted to mine the Vermont seam throughout, which underlies the Leichardt seam by approx. 40-60m. Mining of the Vermont coal seam will extend the mine life by another 15-20 years after the Leichardt seam has been mined out.

Owners

SourceSource
CompanyInterestOwnership
Fitzroy QLD Resources Ltd (UK) 100 % Indirect
Fitzroy (CQ) Pty Ltd holds Ironbark No. 1 Mine through its wholly owned subsidiary Ironbark No. 1 Pty Ltd.

Deposit type

  • Sedimentary

Summary:

The Ironbark No. 1 Coal Mine is located in the northern Bowen Basin coalfields in Central Queensland.

The geology of the mine site comprises the Permian Rangal Coal Measures and overlying Triassic Rewan Group sediments. These sediments outcrop at the surface or are overlain by Tertiary sediments. Localised deposits of unconsolidated alluvium occur within the creek beds that traverse the mine site.

At a regional scale, the target Rangal Coal Measures sub-crop to the north-west of the Ironbark No. 1 Coal Mine. The Rewan Formation covers the property with the overlying Clematis Group outcropping in the Carborough Range to the east. The underlying Fort Cooper Coal Measures and the upper Yarrabee Tuff marker band occur below the Rangal Coal Measures at mineable depths.

Rangal Coal Seam Geology.
The Leichhardt and Vermont Seams of the Rangal Coal Measures form the principal economic coal resources in the Ironbark No. 1 Coal Mine. A high gamma marker occurs immediately below the floor of the Vermont Upper Seam and it is interpreted to be the Yarrabee Tuff. The Yarrabee Tuff averages 0.5m thick. This tuff marks the interpreted top of the Fort Cooper Coal Measures.

Leichhardt Seam.
The Leichhardt Seam is typically 4.5 - 5.0m thick, thinning towards the southern boundary of the deposit.

The Leichhardt Seam has typically been divided into four plies, Q1 to Q4, however up to seven plies have been logged in some holes. The uppermost ply, Q1, is dull and high ash (30% - 40% ash) and often has calcite veining and is noted to be comparatively strong. This ply is planned to be left as roof due to coal quality and strata control benefits.

The coal below the Q1 is the principal target working section (LHDWS). For modelling and economic evaluation, the Leichhardt Seam is modelled in two sections, Q1 and LHDWS. The LHDWS is defined from cored holes.

In the eastern portion of the Project area, a minor seam occurs 40 - 50m below the Leichhardt Seam named the Leichhardt Lower. The seam has been identified in only three holes in the area.

Vermont Seam
The Vermont Seam in the property has three plies; the Vermont Upper (VU), the Yarrabee Tuff (YT) and the Vermont Lower (VL). The Vermont Seam occurs 55 - 65m below the Leichhardt Seam.

The Vermont Upper ranges from 1.5 - 3.5m and averages 2.4m thick. The VU is typically the better quality of the Vermont Seam plies with an average raw ash of 24%. The Yarrabee Tuff is viewed as the regional stratigraphic marker delineating the base of the Rangal Coal Measures.

The Vermont Lower ranges from 0.8 - 1.7m and averages 1.3m thick. The VL has an average raw ash average of 36%.

Girrah Seam.
Coal seams below the Yarrabee Tuff exhibit a significant content of tuffaceous material, high inherent ash and low yielding washability characteristics. In the Project area, the Girrah Seam lies close to the VL and has a thickness greater than 15m.

Reserves

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Mining Methods

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Comminution

Crushers and Mills

Milling equipment has not been reported.

Processing

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Production

CommodityUnits2023
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Coal (PCI) t  ....  Subscribe
Coal (hard coking) t  ....  Subscribe
Coal (metallurgical & thermal) t
All production numbers are expressed as clean coal.

Operational metrics

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Production Costs

Commodity production costs have not been reported.

Heavy Mobile Equipment

Fleet data has not been reported.

Personnel

Mine Management

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