Engineering & Mining Journal

JUN 2016

Engineering and Mining Journal - Whether the market is copper, gold, nickel, iron ore, lead/zinc, PGM, diamonds or other commodities, E&MJ takes the lead in projecting trends, following development and reporting on the most efficient operating pr

Issue link: https://emj.epubxp.com/i/689616

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 29 of 99

NEWS - THIS MONTH IN COAL 28 E&MJ; • JUNE 2016 www.e-mj.com Anglo Delivers First Coal From Grosvenor Anglo American recently commissioned its Grosvenor metallurgical coal operation in the Bowen Basin of Queensland, Aus- tralia. The Grosvenor project, which was approved for development at the end of 2011, delivered its frst coal from its long- wall seven months ahead of schedule and more than $100 million below budget. Anglo American expects Grosvenor to produce 3.2 million saleable metric tons (mt) in 2016. At full capacity, the Grosvenor longwall is capable of produc- ing 7.5 million mt/y. When fully ramped up, Grosvenor is expected to operate at an all in sustaining unit cost of A$110/mt (or $82/mt at the current exchange rate). "We have delivered the Grosvenor metallurgical coal project ahead of sched - ule and below budget, with an outstand- ing safety record and in line with our environmental obligations," said Seamus French, CEO of Bulk Commodities for An- glo American. "The Grosvenor mine pro- ject has taken more than 7 million man hours to construct, with almost 6,000 personnel inducted onto the project. We began the installation of the longwall just 24 days before its frst shear and produc- tion of coal—a truly remarkable feat and a result of the team's technical expertise and the modular approach we have taken to our underground longwall operations in Australia." Hatfeld Found Dead; 3 Arrested in Homicide U.S. coal executive Bennett "Ben" Hat- feld, 59, was found dead May 23 at a southern West Virginia cemetery, the vic- tim of a failed robbery attempt. Hatfeld, who was appointed to the board of directors for Foresight Energy, had most recently served as president and CEO of Patriot Coal. He stepped down last year, about a month in advance of the company's Chapter 11 bankruptcy fling. According to local media reports, Hat- feld had been visiting the gravesites of his late wife and other family members, and had parked his Denali SUV nearby. According to the Mingo County Sher- iff's Offce, they believe suspects Anthony Arriaga, 20, of Delphos, Ohio, and Bran- don Fitzpatrick, 18, of Louisa, Kentucky, pulled up behind Hatfeld's SUV with the intention of stealing it. Sheriff James Smith said they believe Arriaga walked up behind Hatfeld and shot twice, hitting him once in the back. Hatfeld then ran for cover near the riverbank and Arriaga followed, and at that time, the sheriff's of- fce believes Fitzpatrick drove away. Nei- ther men stole anything from Hatfeld or his vehicle. Arriaga was arrested and charged with frst-degree murder and conspiracy. Fitz- patrick was arrested on drug charges after a traffc stop. He now faces conspiracy and murder charges. Ricky Peterson, 20, has been charged with accessory after the fact, obstructing an offcer and providing false information to an offcer. Peabody Receives Approval for DIP Financing, Sells Interest in Prairie State Peabody Energy received fnal approval from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Missouri for its $800 million Debtor-in-Possession (DIP) f- nancing facility. The approval, provides Peabody with access to capital to ensure the company can continue operating its business during the Chapter 11 process. The fnancing by a lender group, includes a $500 million term loan, a $200 million bonding accommodation facility, and a cash-collateralized $100 million letter of credit facility. The court also granted fnal orders ap- proving several other motions, including the planned sale of the company's 5.06% interest in the Prairie State Energy Cam- pus. Once the court granted its approval, Peabody announced it would sell its stake in Prairie State to the Wabash Valley Power Association for $57 million, sub- ject to certain customary post-closing adjustments. Prairie State is a 1,600- megawatt coal-fred electricity genera- tion plant and adjacent coal mine in Il- linois, and the plant commenced oper- ations in 2012. It's among the cleanest coal-fred plants in the nation. OKD Files for Insolvency European coal producer New World Re- sources said the OKD Board fled an in- solvency petition with the Czech court during May. The group has held discus- sions with its stakeholders, since the beginning of December 2015, regarding a restructuring of liabilities and the pro- vision of vital additional liquidity, saying the company's fnancial position was very weak and it urgently required an external injection of money. Shares in NWR Plc have been suspended from the London Stock Exchange. Prague Stock Exchange and Warsaw Stock Exchange are current- ly processing a request from NWR Plc to suspend the shares. Blankenship Reports to Federal Prison in California Former Massey Energy CEO Don Blan - kenship reported to a privately run min- imum-security prison camp in Taft, California, according to U.S. Bureau of Prisons offcials. A federal appeals court denied his bid to stay free while he sought to overturn his conspiracy conviction. He will serve one year at the prison, dubbed Club Fed by the mainstream press, and pay a $250,000 fne. At full capacity, the longwall at Grosvenor is expected to produce 7.5 million mt/y.

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of Engineering & Mining Journal - JUN 2016