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Bathurst aims for late 2011 production from Buller coalfield
14 May 2010 - Perth-based coal developer Bathurst Resources Ltd says it plans to begin a new export coking and thermal coal export mine from Buller by late 2011.
Sources: Bathurst Resources and Lindsay Clark
The company plans to initially mine from the Denniston escarpment and later develop the remaining potential 50-90 million tonne within its Buller coal resource.
Bathurst Resources said that its initial production target is 1 million tonnes a year, increasing to 2 million tonnes a year.
Bathurst recently withdrew from its coal interests in the United States to concentrate on New Zealand.
The company has entered into an initial joint venture with Christchurch-based L&M Coal Holdings leading to a 100% acquisition. The sale and purchase agreement aims to be signed by the end of May 2010. Payments to the seller would be aligned with production milestones.
L&M Coal currently holds two exploration permits, both in the Buller area. The permits covering 22,700 ha and approximately 35 km long, lie to the east and west of Solid Energy’s Stockton mine.
Bathurst said in the presentation that it plans to exploit both hard coking coal and thermal coal from the same Brunner Coal Measures as at Stockton with the primary mining seam Mangatini up to 10 m thick under overburden varying between 20 m and 40 m.
The company lists a number of prospects within the permits. The Denniston –Escarpment area has an exploration target of 5-10 million tonnes, Denniston – Western Plateau 10-25 million tonnes with Banbury and Burnetts Face another 1-2 million tonnes.
A detailed mine schedule at the Escarpment has been completed. The Escarpment, north Millerton and Blackburn (on the eastern side of the plateau) were the most advanced.
The Deep Creek and Seddonville were other areas with advanced exploration.
The initial sales target would be 850,000 tonnes of hard coking coal and 150,000 tonnes of thermal coal.
Under Bathurst’s development plan sketched out in the presentation coal would be mined by open cut mining. A wash plant would be built on site and a 4 km slurry pipeline to the railhead.
Coal would be railed to Westport 10 km away and shipped to New Plymouth for export by Panamex sized ships.
Bathurst Resources managing director Hamish Bohannan, a mining engineer with 30 years experience in the resources industry, said positive meetings had been held with the New Zealand Government which had been supportive.
He expected capital expenditure to be about $US50-60 million (about $NZ70-83M) with operating expense between $US55-70/tonne. Current coal prices were $US200/t for hard coking and $US100/t for thermal coal.
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