A New South Wales Mine Safety Unit investigation into the wall collapse at Austar that killed two miners is examining its design, the incident site geotechnical conditions, and the suitability of engineering and strata controls.

The previous redeployment of Austar development crews to the Abel and Ashton mines in April 2014 was determined unsustainable during the period, with all three operations subsequently restructured in an effort to improve operational efficiencies and reduce costs.

The restructure of the Abel mine resulted in an improved production performance, up 9% on the previous quarter, despite challenging geological conditions experienced in the main workings.

Equity share saleable coal production for the company was 4.39 million tonnes, down 1% on the previous quarter, and down 1% year-on-year.

With the Stratford operation having reached the end of its economically recoverable reserves, Yancoal remains focused on achieving approval for the proposed Stratford expansion project. If approved, the expansion will provide a further 21.5Mt of ROM coal over 11 years.

Combined production for the Stratford and Duralie mines was down 13% on the previous quarter, in accordance with production expectations.

The NSW Planning Assessment Commission approved the Duralie modification in December 2014, providing increased flexibility in mine planning and sequencing and enabling the extraction of the fully approved reserve.

In Queensland, Yarrabee maintained its strong performance throughout the period, up 20% on the previous quarter. Productivity improvements at Yarrabee and the restart of longwall production at Ashton drove saleable coal production for the quarter.

Ashton’s restart of longwall production following a scheduled move drove gains, up 190% on the previous quarter.

During the period, Yancoal also secured 100% ownership of the Ashton operation, purchasing former joint venture partner ICRA Ashton Pty Ltd’s 10% holding in October.

The NSW Land and Environment Court granted approval to the Ashton southeast open cut project, subject to conditions, in December.

Moolarben’s product optimisation strategy introduced in the September quarter continued to generate steady production throughout the December quarter.

During the quarter Moolarben also concluded arrangements to secure access to all remaining land required for the future development of the Moolarben stage two project, if approved.