JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – ASX-listed coal developer Paringa Resources will be able to move straight into the construction phase for the Poplar Grove mine, in Western Kentucky’s Illinois basin, once it completes a bankable feasibility study (BFS), CEO David Gay revealed on Thursday, as the company has completed all mine development technical work.
The BFS for the proposed 1.8-million-ton-a-year mine, formerly known as No. 2 mine, is nearing completion and will be ready in the “coming months”.
The Poplar Grove mine will mine the same Western Kentucky No.9 (WK No.9) coal seam, use the same room-and-pillar mining methods and employ similar coal processing techniques as adjacent mines operated by US coal company Alliance.
“The WK No.9 coal seam has been mined in this region for over 100 years. This is one of the key strengths of the Buck Creek complex, because it is located in the extremely well understood Western Kentucky region of the Illinois basin, with benchmarks for operating costs, capital costs, mining methods, coal processing techniques, transportation costs and a well-established permitting regime.
“For these reasons, the development, construction and execution risks in building the Poplar Grove and Cypress mines are extremely low relative to other undeveloped projects in the natural resources sector,” Gay said in a statement.
Poplar Grove is located immediately south of the Cypress mine (formerly called No. 1 mine), which is a proposed 3.8-million-ton-a-year development in the Buck Creek complex.
Edited by: Creamer Media Reporter
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