Predominantly an export coal producer, Charbon is located in the Western Coalfields near Kandos and Rylstone.
Safety is a high priority for the mine and in 2011 Charbon achieved a significant milestone - being more than two years lost time injury free. This has been achieved through the introduction of a number of proactive Company and mine-site initiatives to further improve safety.
Other significant achievements at Charbon include:
- Completed development and extraction operations in the Southern underground section of the mine;
- Obtaining mining approvals to allow secondary extraction for the Eastern Underground areas;
- Re-established production in an ‘old’ area of the mine, now known as ‘Eastern Underground’, with an identified resource of approximately 2.5 million tonnes;
- Commenced mining in the Western Underground (Haystack) area;
- Successfully introduced and implemented ‘place changing’ for the development of underground roadways;
- Successfully introduced the use of a mono-rail system for cable handling in ‘place changing’ panels.
Charbon is unique in that it is the only Centennial mine that utilises a mono-rail in conjunction with the place changing method of development, which provides both safety and operational benefits. The innovation has been recognised by NSW Minerals Council and has been nominated as a finalist in the 2012 annual OHS Conference awards.