Mining

Mining

Australia’s second largest open cut mine is adjacent to the Yallourn Power Station and annually mines around 18 million tonnes of high moisture brown coal.

While we retain ownership of the mine, it is operated in an alliance by Roche Thiess Linfox (RTL) Joint Venture. RTL provides the latest mining and earth moving technology to assist in Yallourn’s modernisation.

Major projects

Diversion of the Morwell River
Work on diverting the Morwell River through the centre of the open cut along an elevated channel was completed in May 2005. The diversion has significant environmental benefits over the original proposal and enables access to new coal reserves in the East Field Mine Extension and the Maryvale Field. The diversion required 10 million cubic metres of earth to build the elevated open channel - equivalent to the Melbourne Cricket Ground filled to twice the height of Melbourne’s tallest building, the Rialto Towers. From late 2011, coal from the East Field Mine Extension will be exhausted and mining will commence in the Maryvale Field.

Download Morwell River Diversion Fact Sheet

Introduction of new mining technology
Massive satellite-guided D11R bulldozers have replaced the 1950s era bucket wheel coal dredgers. The dozers are capable of pushing at least 2400 tonnes of coal per hour to a feeder breaker, which loads the coal onto a moving conveyor for delivery to the power station’s furnaces. This is enough coal to meet the power station’s needs at full generation. More than 38 kilometres of conveyors are located in the mine for carrying coal to the power station.