The Nymboida project has potential to produce both thermal and coking coal products based on information from historical mining data and existing coal exploration data for the licence and surrounding area.
Covering an area of 59 square kilometres, the project is located approximately 35km southwest of Grafton, which is 300km by rail to the coal export port of Brisbane.
“Waratah Coal believes only a moderately sized resource would be needed to justify mine development due to the proximity to existing infrastructure and the strong demand for coking coal,” the company said.
The aim of the drilling is to confirm that a moderate sized resource of coking quality coal does exist, which will then lead to a more extensive program focused on proving a resource for the purposes of mining.
SRK Consulting’s August 2006 technical report on the Nymboida project found:
- Moderate resource potential in a brownfields area;
- Good quality and variety of coal products;
- Close proximity to infrastructure; and
- Capacity to achieve results quickly and efficiently.