MARKETS

DBCT knocked by Hamish then derailment

QUEENSLAND'S Dalrymple Bay Coal Terminal has been the victim of misfortune with its operations ha...

Blair Price
DBCT knocked by Hamish then derailment

On Tuesday at 10.30am, a train derailed at the Coppabella Yard, the main staging point for coal trains in the Goonyella coal rail system southwest of Mackay.

A Queensland Rail spokesman told International Longwall News yesterday the train derailed after colliding with stationary wagons.

He said both train drivers in the lead locomotive were given the all clear by paramedics and did not require hospitalisation, however the Coppabella Yard is expected to be closed for recovery operations until 10pm last night.

While the Hail Creek branch of the Goonyella rail system serving Rio Tinto’s Hail Creek coal mine and BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance’s South Walker mine reopened at 3pm Wednesday, the spokesman said the network will ramp up to full operation by late Friday.

“Any further repairs required will be identified once the wagons have been removed,” he said.

A DBCT spokesman told ILN one or coal two trains arrived Wednesday night, but now the issue at port was in-loading due to the derailment.

Earlier in the week the issue was out-loading as most of the 21 ships at DBCT fled south to avoid Cyclone Hamish, which was travelling off the coast in a southeasterly direction.

While the cyclone did not cause any direct damage, the rough ground swells also caused delays with returning ships being unable to make their berths at the terminal.

The spokesman said the two separate events have impacted DBCT’s normal operations from Sunday to Wednesday.

All 21 ships have now returned to the terminal.

DBCT serves 10 northern Bowen Basin mines and is operated by Babcock & Brown Infrastructure Group.

The QR spokesman said an urgent inquiry into the derailment was underway and included independent expertise.

TOPICS:

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining Monthly Intelligence team.

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining Monthly Intelligence team.

editions

ESG Mining Company Index: Benchmarking the Future of Sustainable Mining

The ESG Mining Company Index report provides an in-depth evaluation of ESG performance of 61 of the world's largest mining companies. Using a robust framework, it assesses each company across 9 meticulously weighted indicators within 6 essential pillars.

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence Exploration Report 2024 (feat. Opaxe data)

A comprehensive review of exploration trends and technologies, highlighting the best intercepts and discoveries and the latest initial resource estimates.

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence Future Fleets Report 2024

The report paints a picture of the equipment landscape and includes detailed profiles of mines that are employing these fleets

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence Digitalisation Report 2023

An in-depth review of operations that use digitalisation technology to drive improvements across all areas of mining production