Mastermyne will earn $280 million over four years as the mining operator at Constellation Mining’s Cook Colliery coal mine in Queensland.
In July 2021, the contractor was selected to restart the mine, after it was purchased and put under care and maintenance by Constellation parent company QCoal one year earlier.
This included the recommissioning of existing underground infrastructure, overhauling of mining equipment, establishment of production panels and associated procurement works.
Now, the four-year term will see Mastermyne ramp the operation back up to about four million tonnes of run-of-mine coal per annum.
Mastermyne parent company Metarock chief executive officer Tony Caruso said it was a great time to be restarting another Queensland coal mine.
“We are pleased to have executed this contract with QCoal and to be bringing Cook Colliery back intro production at a time when we are experiencing record coal prices” Caruso said.
Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) found that coal and non-ferrous metals were among those to underpin Australia’s export price index for the December quarter.
In the past six months, never-before-seen coal prices of more than $US200 per tonne have underpinned significant export values and the resurgence of companies like Whitehaven Coal.
The Mastermyne contract includes an option to extend by two years and will employ about 190 people full-time. 60 of these roles are already working on site following the mine’s restart last year.
As coal mine operator, Mastermyne will be responsible for delivering ROM coal to the surface stockpile, while Constellation will manage all processing, rail, shipping and marketing of the product.