Whitehaven Coal

Narrabri Coal Loadout Facility Optimisation Project

Site Overview

The Narrabri coal mine is one of five mines operated by Whitehaven Coal in the Gunnedah Basin of NSW, Australia.

The mine is Whitehaven’s only underground operation and has been successfully operating since 2012, with current mine life up to 2044. It employs around 500 people, most of whom live locally, and produces approximately 11 million tonnes of high-quality thermal coal per annum.

All the coal produced by Whitehaven’s assets are transported along the railway for shipment at the Port of Newcastle.

Map showing location of Narrabri Coal in relation to other places in Queensland and Australia
The Narrabri coal mine is one of five mines operated by Whitehaven Coal in the Gunnedah basin of NSW, Australia.
Narrabri Coal Train Loadout Facility Optimisation Project
Narrabri Coal

Background

In 2021, the operations management staff at the Narrabri Coal Mine identified a need to improve the automation of the site’s Train Loadout (TLO) facility. There were both localised and company-wide business drivers for this, including:

A gap analysis of the existing control philosophy and operations of the TLO was also identified as a valuable exercise, as this could provide the site with a revised control strategy and additional functionality.

Project Scope

To support the optimisation of the TLO, Whitehaven engaged Mipac to undertake the abovementioned gap analysis of the existing control philosophy and operation of the TLO, with the aim to provide a revised control strategy with additional functionality for the site.

Mipac was chosen to complete this project thanks to its strong history of performing brownfield control optimisation projects, as well as its prior engagement in numerous successful projects at processing plants as well as train loadout facilities.

In summary, Mipac was engaged to:

Review the current operation of the reclaim system which feeds the train loadout bin, including:

  • Existing documentation and site standard operating practice,
  • Operator interface and navigation of SCADA HMI
  • Historical train loading performance,
  • Interviews and engagements with key parties involved such as production operations personnel, maintenance personnel, process engineer, control engineers, electrical resources and production superintendent,
  • Control system logic code and configuration.

Optimise the train loadout system, including:

  • Revisions and updates to the Functional Description,
  • Updating and configuration of the control logic code,
  • SCADA HMI clean up and improvements
  • Developing site test documentation,
  • Site based commissioning

Project Challenges

Throughout the project, several obstacles were identified that limited the system’s performance. These were identified both through discussions with operations and reviewing the existing controls around the TLO. These obstacles included:

Mipac Senior Process Engineer Hans Liang (first on left, standing beside two other men in front of a branded sign) at the International Coal Preparation Congress (ICPC) on the Gold Coast, where he presented the case study of the Narrabri Coal Loadout Facility Optimisation Project
Mipac Senior Process Engineer Hans Liang (first on left) at the International Coal Preparation Congress (ICPC) on the Gold Coast, where he presented the case study of the Narrabri Coal
Gunnedah, NSW. The Narrabri coal mine is one of five mines operated by Whitehaven Coal in the Gunnedah Basin.

Project Highlights

Various HMI improvements and updates were configured to improve transparency for operators of the controls around the TLO. The new control strategy recommended and implemented consisted of three elements:

  1. Direct reclaim feed rate control
  2. Ratio controller for blend management and compliance
  3. Constraint control during “live feed” scenarios

Project Outcomes

Key project outcomes from commissioning of the controls include:

1

Implemented direct reclaim rate control enabled improved responsiveness of TLO controllers and blend compliance

2

Tighter reclaim rate control enabled higher train loadout speeds

3

Improved stockpile dozer efficiency and integrating control system functionality for compliance with NSW specific safety guidelines (MDG28)

Read the Conference Paper

Mipac Senior Process Engineer Hans Liang presented the Narrabri Coal case study at the International Coal Preparation Congress (ICPC) on the Gold Coast in October 2023. To read the full conference paper, click on the link below.

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