500m to 1 billion tonnes of coal is possible , page-37

Hey Jto,

Those formations coal measures sit between the Rangals and the older Moranbah CM/German Creek Fm. Terminology depends whether you are in the north or south of the Basin.

Basically they were laid down during a period of volcanic activity and lots of ash either fell directly into the basin or was reworked and deposited there. The seams have thin bands of pretty reasonable coking coal but its a strange specification when you look at it closely.

Problem with these coals are that with current mining and washing technology there is no way you can make money from them despite Aquila, Stanmore and NRL claiming they can.

There could be opportunity in places to selectively mine certain plys that are low ash and are thick enough to remove individually but it looks unlikely that this will occur over the majority of the basin in the near future.

Innovative mining and washing techniques may overcome this in time but there is lots of better quality and easier to mine coal that will be exploited before the money and technology becomes available if ever IMO.

Gaz