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Stanmore Coal Limited has been notified by the Queensland Department of
Employment, Economic Development and Innovation that in relation to the competitive
Application for Exploration Permit for Coal (EPCA) 1769, Stanmore Coal is now the first priority applicant.
The granting of priority applicant status follows an assessment and determination of the relative merits of
the competing applications for the area by the Minister’s delegate and is expected to be followed by the
grant of the EPCA 1769 to Stanmore Coal within approximately six months.
EPCA 1769 covers four sub‐blocks immediately adjacent to the existing Kerlong project (EPC 1552) in the
Bowen Basin. The additional sub‐blocks will form an important part of Stanmore Coal’s greater Kerlong
project as they contain the projected up‐dip extension of the existing Kerlong target seams.
EPC 1552 and EPCA’s 1657, 2176 and 1769 are interpreted to be underlain by the Rangal Coal Measures.
The Rangal Coal Measures in the region contain economically significant coal seams with underground
mining potential and are mined extensively throughout the surrounding operations in this part of the
Bowen Basin. The coal measures contain the laterally persistent Leichhardt seam as well as the Vermont
seam.
The Leichhardt seam (or a suitably developed split of the Leichhardt seam) presents the main economic
target at Kerlong. Although no coal exploration drilling data currently exist within EPC 1552 or EPCA’s
1657, 2176 and 1769, there is evidence in the broader area around the Kerlong Project to suggest that the
Leichhardt seam is laterally extensive and maintains a suitable target thickness (~4 – 11 metres) for an
underground operation. The Leichhardt seam accounts for the majority of existing coal production from
the surrounding open‐cut operations positioned along the subcrop (e.g., Broadlea North, Moorvale,
Coppabella, Burton). The Leichhardt seam is also a key target seam for a number of current and planned
underground operations, most notably at Carborough Downs, the planned northward expansion of
Moorvale into an underground development and at Ellensfield.
While no coal quality data are available for the Kerlong project at this stage, coal quality can be inferred
based on available information from a number of mining and exploration projects within 15 kilometres of
the Kerlong project:
- Where it is mined locally, the Leichhardt seam produces a low ash (7‐10 percent) coking product
and a moderate ash (10‐20 percent) PCI and thermal product with low sulphur and low
phosphorous and moderate to high specific energy; and
- Isorank modelling by SRK Consulting for the top coal‐bearing section of the Rangal Coal Measures
indicates a coal rank range of 1.2 – 1.4 Romax, which is comparable with the rank of the coals mined
at nearby Carborough Downs (1.2 – 1.3 Romax) and the western parts of Moorvale (1.3 – 1.4 Romax).
The Carborough Downs underground longwall mine, located 10 kilometres south of Kerlong, produces
predominantly hard and semi‐hard coking coal products for the export market from the Leichhardt seam.
The seam is generally uniform, ranging in thickness from 4.5 to 5.7 metres in the mine area.
The Moorvale open cut mine, which is located 12 kilometres southeast of Kerlong, produces 2.9 Mtpa of
ROM coal from a nine metre thick coalescence of the Phillips and Leichhardt seams (Macarthur Coal 2010
Annual Report). In FY2010, this resulted in 2.3 Mtpa sales of low volatile PCI, coking and thermal coal into
the export market.
A significant exploration program is planned for Kerlong during the course of 2011, with drilling scheduled
to commence in the second quarter (weather permitting) within the already granted EPC 1552.
Managing Director, Nick Jorss said, “Kerlong is a highly prospective underground coking coal project for
Stanmore Coal surrounded by existing coking and PCI coal mines operated by the major coal companies.
The expected increase in the project area via EPCA 1769 will add significant size to the Kerlong project and
increase the potential for coal at shallower depths. We understand that grant of the additional sub‐blocks
should follow in around six months.
We will use the intervening time to progress our exploration program over our existing EPC 1552 which will
define the extent and coking characteristics of the target coal seams.
With shortages in the coking coal market becoming more evident, Stanmore Coal is very well positioned to
capitalise on this with our portfolio of prospective coking coal projects in the Bowen Basin. One of our key
goals this year is to drill up a number of significant deposits at projects such as Kerlong, Belview and
Emerald, all of which contain coking coal targets, to complement the Mackenzie River and The Range
projects”. More information, click here |
