Mt Owen is situated between two regional thrust faults, the Hunter Thrust and the Hebden Thrust that limit the lateral extent of the coal seams. Seam dips vary throughout the deposit, with dips being steep (up to 45 º ) in the areas near the Hunter and Hebden Thrusts where parallel thrusts dislocate the seam by up to 40 metres.

Up to 22 mineable coal intervals are recognised, ranging in thickness from 0.2 metre to 10 metres, within a stratigraphic interval of approximately 350 metres, the coal seams comprise a total thickness of approximately 55 metres.

The seams for which there is potential for economic extraction at Mt Owen include the Lemington Seams, Pikes Gully Seams, Arties Seams, Upper Liddell Seams, Middle Liddell Seams, Lower Liddell Seams, Barrett Seams, Upper Hebden Seams and the Lower Hebden Seams.

Mining operations at Mt Owen Open Cut Coal Mine (MTO) began in 1993 under the management of Hunter Valley Coal Corporation Pty Limited (HVCC). Xstrata (now Glencore) acquired MTO in 2003. MTO was granted DA 14-01-2004 in December 2004, which was supported by the MTO Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), December 2003 (Umwelt, 2003).

A modification to DA 14-1-2004 was approved in December 2010. This allowed for the construction and operation of a rail facility on the MTO rail loop. Further modification was approved in 2014 to increase the CHPP to 17 Million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) run-of-mine (ROM) coal equivalent from MTO, Ravensworth East and Glendell.

In January 2018 an application was made to DP&E to surrender DA 14-01-2004 as it is replaced by SSD-5850. Approval to surrender DA 14-01-2004 was received from DP&E on 29 May 2018.

Mining at Mt Owen occurs within the Wittingham Coal Measures with the North Pit located between the Hunter Thrust and the Hebden Thrust. The North Pit currently extracts coal from 22 mineable intervals, representative of 11 identifiable coal seams. Coal seams present range from the Lemington to the Lower Hebden seam and range in thickness from approximately 0.1 m to 10 m.

A modification to DA SSD-5850 was approved in August 2017 to allow for the inclusion of the Greater Ravensworth Water Sharing Scheme (GRAWTS), and the construction of a water pipeline from Integra Underground Mine to MGO.

Mt Owen Continued Operation (MOCO) received approval in November 2016, under SSD-5850. The approval combined the existing development consentsfor Mt Owen and Ravensworth East, extending the operation until 2031.

In August 2017, MGO modified SSD-5850 (‘Mod 1’) to allow for the construction of a mine water pipeline from Integra Underground Mine to MGO. In September 2019, Modification 2 (Mod 2) to SSD5850 was approved. This allows the additional mining of 35 Mt of ROM coal and extends the life of mine to 31 December 2037. During January 2020, Modification 3 (Mod 3), an administrative mod, was approved by DPIE for the inclusion of one land parcel within the ‘Schedule of Land’. Modification 5 (Mod 5) was approved by DPIE in January 2021. This allowed the modification of Condition 27 of Schedule 3 of SSD-5850 to remove the requirement to establish the TSR Offset site as a biodiversity offset and instead nominate the number of biodiversity credits required to be retired in accordance with the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016. Modification 6 (Mod 6) was approved in June 2021. Mod 6 allows for the construction of a water transfer pipeline between MGO and Ravensworth under the existing GRAWTS. Mod 6 also approved the installation of a new asset registration at the WRD, and amendment of the SSD-5850 Project Boundary.

MTO is operated by Thiess Proprietary Limited.

ROM coal extracted from all pits is hauled via internal haul roads to ROM stockpiles at the CHPP. When required, ROM coal is stored in-pit prior to being transported to the CHPP. In-pit ROM stockpiles allow flexibility in the mining sequence when the existing ROM Pad’s as well as clean coal stockpile are at maximum capacity. This is infrequently caused via external delays such as major railway shut-downs where washed coal cannot be transported from site to the Newcastle port. Coal from MTO is blended with Ravensworth East and Glendell and the three operations feed the CHPP and associated infrastructure, which has a total approved capacity of 17 Mtpa of ROM coal.

Processed coal, both semi-soft and thermal, are primarily transported via the Main Northern Rail Line to the Port of Newcastle for export, or by conveyor or rail for domestic use as required.

The CHPP consists of a South ROM stockpile and North ROM stockpile of an approximate 350,000 tonne and 300,00 ........