Gujarat said all roof supports were now on site and assembling of the longwall was taking place.

The company cleared legal hurdles blocking land around the colliery back in June by paying $45 million to acquire the 93 hectares of associated mining lands around NRE No.1.

The mining land acquired was crucial not only for current operations but also for the proposed future development as the company would require the land for operational logistics including coal handling and stockpiling.

To further prepare the mine, Gujarat achieved 1303 metres of development driveage in the Wonga East area during the recent quarter.

Two Sandvik MB670 continuous miners are developing the Wonga Mains roadway and completing driveage to install the longwall and associated coal clearance systems.

Three production units were manned for seven-day production during the second quarter following the transfer of an estimated 150 personnel from the No. 4 shaft to the Wonga East site.

Meanwhile, production at Gujarat’s LW11 NRE Wongawilli had a safe run in the June quarter, with the relocation of LW19 completed.

Gujarat said Longwall 15 development at Wongawilli continued to be conducted at a high standard which would ensure the block was established for later efficient longwall extraction.

While necessary geological drilling was completed to obtain much-needed ground water monitoring data at the Wongawilli Colliery, Gujarat said there had been some “unavoidable” delays during the quarter.

Gujarat attributed wet weather for drilling delays at the colliery which halted drilling for a couple of weeks.

The NRE Wongawilli Colliery is in the final stages of the state planning process to gain Part 3A approval under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

Once approved, Wongawilli will be able to mine continually with a mine life of up to eight years.