The geology at WCC (Werris Creek Coal) Mine as located within the Werrie Basin is containing Permian sedimentary and volcanic rocks that unconformably overlie the Middle Cambrian to earliest Permian basement of the Tamworth Belt, Southern New England Orogen. The geology at WCC is an outlier of the Early Permian Willow Tree Formation, which is now recognised as equivalent to the Greta Coal Measures, which unconformably overlies the Werrie Basalt.

Two lithostratigraphic units occur within the equivalent Greta Coal Measures (Skeletar Formation and Rowan Formation) and one lithostratigraphic unit from the Maitland Group (Railway View Conglomerate) are recognised in the Werris Creek outlier. The equivalent Greta Coal Measures contains at least nine coal seams, with the formal names of coal members chosen to correspond with the earlier alphabetical seam identification. The coal seams range in depth from as little as 10m at subcrop to an estimated 180m in the centre of the basin. Weathering depths range from 10 – 50m. Individual seam thicknesses are up to 8m but are more commonly in the range 3 - 4m. Underlying the coal measures is the Werrie Basalt, a sequence of deeply weathered basaltic lavas, volcanoclastics and palaeosols.

The Werris Creek coal deposit is contained within a closed syncline whose longitudinal axis is oriented NNW-SSE. Dips near subcrop are up to 60o , but flatten towards the centre of the basin. The irregular upper surface of the Werrie B ........

Mine operations at WCC involve open cut mining with a truck and excavator/shovels fleet to produce up to 2.5 Mtpa ROM. Final landform construction and rehabilitation activities are also undertaken progressively after coal removal.

ROM coal is transported to directly to the ROM Coal Pad with coal immediately adjacent to the roof and floor of each seam stockpiled separately for use in blending to produce coal products with a higher ash specification. The ROM coal does not require washing to achieve the coal quality requirements of the product coal. The product coal is transported internally from the Coal Processing Area to a rail load-out facility via a purpose-built rail load-out road. Product coal is loaded to rail wagons via an overhead rail load-out bin and despatched along the Main Northern Railway to the Port of Newcastle.

Mining is currently approved at WCC up until 2032 and incorporates the following key activities:

-Continued development of coal mining operations in the Willow Tree Formation to facilitate a Run of Mine (ROM) coal production rate of up to 2.5 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa).
-Transport of ROM coal is transported internally from the ROM Coal Pad to a Rail Load-Out Facility and despatched along the Main Northern Railway to the Port of Newcastle. 50,000 Coal is also approved to be tonnes of coal is transported by road to domestic customers.
-Progressive backfilling of the mine void behind the advancing open cut ........

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