While Griffin has not commented on the cause of the dispute, the mine-operating contractor Carna Civil and Mining ordered its workers off the job on Monday, according to media reports.

The last dispute between Griffin’s Indian parent company Lanco Infratech and the contractor, which impacted production from July, has already left the Griffin-affiliated Bluewaters power station with low coal stockpiles.

There is speculation that Bluewaters might need to intervene and take over Griffin’s operations.

“It is believed Bluewaters' coal reserves have barely recovered since they were depleted during the last shut down in August and the company may have no other option to secure supply,”The West Australian reported.

“Under the terms of Bluewaters' agreement with Griffin, the generator is a secured creditor with rights to appoint a receiver to run the mine in the event supplies are threatened.

“Bluewaters was tight-lipped yesterday. However, it is believed the ‘default level’, which is triggered when its coal stockpiles dip below a set level, could be reached within days.”

The newspaper also reported that the Bureau of Meteorology is attempting to recover from Griffin an unpaid debt of $45,000, while Energy Minister and Treasurer Mike Nahan is “closely” watching the situation at this stage.

Lanco acquired the Griffin Coal assets, a key part of former coal tycoon Ric Stowe’s business empire, in 2011. In June it finally received state government approval to develop a $A500 million export facility at Bunbury which could allow it to ramp up production to 15 million tonnes per annum.