The Rotowaro coalfield and opencast mine is the second largest opencast coal mine in New Zealand.
The mine is located in the Rotowaro coal field, an area that has had a long history of both open cast and underground mining. It was first mined in 1915 after a branch railway and a bridge were established over the Waikato River. The current opencast mine opened in 1958.
The coal is low ash, low sulphur thermal coal. Both the lower seam and upper seam of the moderately complex Waikato coal measures are present.
The high-quality sub-bituminous coal is sought after in the following industries:
- steelmaking
- lime manufacturing
- meat works
- timber processing plants
- light industrial plants, and
- horticulture.
The mine has opportunities for extension to the north-west, the east and the south. Project teams have commenced working on the economic viability of these areas to extending the life of mine.
Mine information
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- Ownership
- 65% BRL 35% Talleys Energy
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- Location
- 10 km west of Huntly
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- License/Permit
- CML 37155, ACML 37155-01, EP 56220, EP 60146
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- Coal types
- Sub-bituminous, domestic thermal coal
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- Life of mine
- 5+ years
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- Coal Reserves
- 1.4 Mt
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- Coal Resources
- 7.9 Mt
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- Last FY production
- 520 Kt