Case Study 1: Moolarben Open Cut 4

Campbell Dynamics was commissioned by Yancoal Australia Pty Ltd to complete a definitive feasibility study of an open cut coal mine within an existing mining lease area. The mine, known as OC4, is part of Stage 2 of the Moolarben Coal Operation located in the western coalfields of NSW, Australia, 40km north-east of the township of Mudgee and 25km east of the township of Gulgong.

The mine has a planned life of 19 years, with an initial output of 5Mtpa in the first year of operation. To take advantage of economies of scale, the OC4 mine needed to use some of the existing infrastructure in use for the operational open cut mine OC1. To accommodate the increased throughput, some upgrades to the OC1 infrastructure were required. This was included in the DFS scope.

The DFS was completed in nine months, on time and in budget. Its comprehensive scope included:

• Review of the project's regulatory background and the complex approvals required to enable its implementation.
• A detailed examination of the quality, quantity and accessibility of the resource, including an assessment of the JORC Report.
• Engineering design (to 20-30% advancement) for plant and infrastructure to enable estimation of costs to an average ±15% accuracy (Class 3 Estimate).
• Review of operational requirements, including local social and economic operating factors, to produce an operating cost estimate.
• Development of an implementation schedule and plan.
• Review of the findings to provide an estimate of costs, value, risk and opportunities, and provide recommendations for next steps.

Campbell Dynamics also coordinated the distribution of the DFS to critical stakeholders, and addressed questions and feedback received from those stakeholders.

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