It’s too early to tell the extent of disruption Cyclone Debbie has wrought on the Queensland coal industry.
The cyclone crossed the coast on Tuesday in the Whitsundays.
The Whitsunday region sits on the eastern edge of the northern Bowen Basin minefields and is one of Queensland’s best recognised holiday destinations.
Privately owned company QCoal has five major assets either producing or under development in the region including near Collinsville, which has borne the brunt of a lot of the rain.
The group said it was too early to comment on the extent of any damage or production delays.
BHP Billiton said it was following wet weather management plans at its Bowen Basin mining operations and Hay Point Coal Terminal.
“Mining remains temporarily suspended at our central operations, with minimal personnel on site for security and essential systems monitoring,” a spokesman said.
“Plans are well advanced on when we can safely resume operations.”
North Queensland Bulk Ports Corporation is saying that Abbot Point, Dalrymple Bay and Hay Point remain largely unaffected.
“Marine Safety Queensland has given the ‘okay’ to vessels off the Ports of Hay Point and Abbot Point to return to anchorage from the outer reef,” NQBP chief executive officer Steve Lewis said.
Mines in the northern statistical region produced more than 80mt of coking coal and 11.4mt of thermal coal in the 2015-16 financial year.
The system is now moving south where it’s already dumped inches of rain in the southern Bowen Basin minefields west of Gladstone and Rockhampton.
The Courier Mail has caught a lot of the damage on film.
