Unreliable machinery postponed work at a Queensland coal operation in the Central Highlands region.
Production could be delayed by up to six weeks due to a broken down dragline at Coronado Global Resources’ Curragh Coal Mine in Blackwater, 209km west of Rockhampton.
“In mid-September one of the draglines at Curragh experienced a mechanical failure in the propel unit. Repairs are already underway and expected to be completed no later than the end of October,” the proponent said in its fiscal 2023 (FY23) guidance.
“Production from Curragh in FY23 will be impacted due to the resulting delayed ability to move waste. Coronado is revising its plans for the balance of 2023 and full year 2024 to mitigate as much as possible the impact from these dragline repairs.”
Executive chairman Gerry Spindler is optimistic his employer will avoid a “material cash impact” due to the setback.
“Notwithstanding these two short term non-recurring operational challenges, net of the efficiency gains in capital expenditures, we expect this to have a minimal impact on year-end cash on the balance sheet of a maximum US$10 million (A$15.8M) reduction assuming none of the lost production can be recovered,” he said in a public statement.
Saleable coal production fell from the originally forecast 16.8Mt-17.2Mt to just 16.2Mt-16.4Mt for FY23.
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