Peak Downs Coal Mine

This article is part of the Global Coal Mine Tracker, a project of Global Energy Monitor.

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Peak Downs Coal Mine is an operating coal mine in Moranbah, Queensland, Australia.

Location

Table 1: Project-level location details

Mine Name	Location	Coordinates (WGS 84)
Peak Downs Coal Mine	Moranbah, Queensland, Australia	-22.2548999, 148.1796569 (exact)

The map below shows the exact location of the coal mine:

Loading map...

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Project Details

Table 2: Project status

Status	Status Detail	Opening Year	Closing Year
Operating	–	1972	–

Table 3: Operation details

Note: The asterisk (*) signifies that the value is a GEM estimated figure.

Capacity (Mtpa)	Production (Mtpa)	Year of Production	Mine Type	Mining Method	Mine Size (km2)	Mine Depth (m)	Workforce Size
9	18.544	2022	Surface	Open Pit	–	60*	1760

Table 4: Coal resources and destination

Total Reserves (Mt)	Year of Total Reserves Recorded	Total Resources (Mt)	Coalfield	Coal Type	Coal Grade	Primary Consumer/ Destination
556	2023	1975	Bowen	Bituminous	Met	Hay Point Coal Terminal

Table 5: Ownership and parent company

Owner	Parent Company	Headquarters
BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance Pty Ltd	BHP [50%]; Mitsubishi Corporation [50%]	Australia

Expansion/Extension

Table 6: Project status

* Added capacity of a coal mine refers to the enhancement in the mine's production capabilities beyond its initial production capacity.

Status	Status Detail	Project Type	Project Phase	Added Capacity (Mtpa)*	Start Year
Proposed	Permitted	Expansion	–	9	–

Note: The above section was automatically generated and is based on data from the GEM April 2024 Global Coal Mine Tracker dataset.

Background

The Peak Downs coal mine is a surface coal mine owned by BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA), near Winchester, Queensland, Australia. 

According to BHP, it is one of Australia's biggest coal mines when measured by recoverable coal reserves. The first coal from Peaks Down Mine was produced in April 1972.

The mine is owned by BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA), a 50:50 joint venture between BHP Billiton and Mitsubishi Development. (BMA also operates the Goonyella Riverside mine, Saraji mine, Norwich Park mine, Blackwater mine, the Gregory Crinum mine as well as the Hay Point Coal Terminal. Coal from the project is exported via the coal loaders at Hay Point, 195km to the south west of the mine.

• Operator: Thiess
• Owners: BHP Billiton (50%) and Mitsubishi Development (50%)
• Location: 30 km north of Moranbah in the Bowen Basin, Queensland, Australia
• GPS Coordinates: -22.2548999, 148.1796569 (exact)
• Status: Operating
• Production: 9.8 million tonnes per annum (2022)
• Total Resource: 1.944 billion tonnes (2022)
• Mineable Reserves: 1.045 billion tonnes (2022)
• Coal Type: Bituminous (Metallurgical)
• Mine Size:
• Mine Type: Surface
• Mining Method: Open cut
• Start Year: 1972
• Source of Financing:

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Additional data

To access additional data, including an interactive map of world coal mines, a downloadable dataset, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Mine Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.