Bengalla mine

The Mount Thorley Warkworth mine is an open cut coal mine located four km south west of Muswellbrook in the Hunter Valley in New South Wales. The mine "international markets with up to six million tonnes of thermal coal per annum."

On its website Coal & Allied states that "Bengalla's history as a project goes back to 1990, when the NSW Government called for expressions of interest from mining companies to develop a coal resource. Development Consent was granted for Bengalla in 1996 and the site commenced production in 1999. Coal & Allied acquired its interest in Bengalla in 2001, and is the manager of the site on behalf of the joint venture partners, CNA Bengalla Investments Pty Ltd (40 per cent), Wesfarmers Bengalla Limited (40 per cent), Taipower Bengalla Pty Ltd (10 per cent) and Mitsui Bengalla Investments Pty Ltd (10 per cent)."

As of the end of 2008 Coal & Allied stated the project had 267 employees. On its website Coal & Allied states that "In 2008 the mine produced more than five million tonnes of thermal coal. After being washed and prepared for sale, the coal is loaded onto trains for transportation 115km to the Port Warratah coal terminal in Newcastle where it is shipped to international customers. Bengalla had marketable reserves of 132 million tonnes as at 31 December 2008."

In November 2010, Rio Tinto subsidiary Coal & Allied and its joint-venture partners, Wesfarmers, Mitsui and Taipower, approved a A$141-million expansion to the mine, which will increase yearly production to 9.3-million tons, from 7.8-million tons. Wesfarmers MD Steward Butel said that a feasibility study for a second stage expansion to increase production to 10.7-million tons a year was also under way.

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