Underground mining stopped at Spring Creek following notice from Department of Labour

Solid Energy has today stopped underground mining at its Spring Creek Mine, near Greymouth, in accordance with a Prohibition Notice issued this morning by the Department of Labour’s (DoL) Mines Inspectorate on the basis of three recent incidents at the mine.

Barry Bragg, Solid Energy’s Chief Operating Officer, says the incidents occurred due to breakdowns in systems at the mine but adds, “in each case there were multiple safety controls in place which proved effective.

“The company views these incidents very seriously. They should not have happened,” Mr Bragg says. “We recognise that expectations for underground mining have been raised substantially. Solid Energy fully supports this. We will work very closely with the Department to ensure we meet our and their expectations prior to resuming mining at Spring Creek.”

Work to maintain the safety and security of the underground environment will continue. The stoppage of underground work is not expected to affect the mine’s customers as the operation is currently in a development phase with limited coal output. Spring Creek employs about 230 personnel -- mineworkers, tradespeople and professional specialists – with about 40 people working underground at any given time.