Based on the location of EPC1114, the target coal sequence and predicted range of coal rank and quality, the Belview project has the potential to support a range of products from premium quality thermal, PCI, to a prime coking coal, managing director Nick Jorss said.
“We believe that these results provide strong evidence of the extension into the Belview project area of the prime coking coal seams that have been mined by BHP at the adjacent Leichhardt mine. A further drilling program is planned for 2011 to confirm seam thickness and depth through the western part of the project.
“Stanmore Coal will have a big year in 2011, with significant work planned to progress Mackenzie River and The Range projects. There will also be an extensive drilling program across our suite of metallurgical coal exploration targets to identify which of these will follow Mackenzie River and The
Range in our development pipeline.”
The Belview Project is located approximately 4km east of the historic Leichhardt mine, where the 6â€6.5m thick Gemini seam of prime coking coal was mined underground by BHP in the 1960s to 1980s.
The depth of workings at Leichhardt ranged from 350m to 410m. The Gemini seam represents the coalescence of the adjacent Castor and Pollux seams.
According to data provided under a data sharing arrangement with the coal seam gas company, the depth to the top of the Rangal Coal Measures in the coal seam gas well was 740m, slightly shallower than predicted for this location by the geological model constructed for Stanmore Coal by SRK Consulting.
Previous work on seam splits in the region points to the potential for the thick Gemini seam to continue into the Belview project area along the western boundary of the tenement.
No exploration drilling has previously been conducted in this part of the tenement.
Stanmore is planning follow-up drilling along the western boundary of the project where Rangal coal seam depths are modelled by SRK to occur from around 550m.
The Belview project is well located for infrastructure, being adjacent to the existing rail line to coal ports at Gladstone, Jorss said.
