Our ongoing emissions projects at Buchanan complex continue to help reduce Coronado’s carbon footprint.
Since 1992, we have focused on capturing high-percentage methane (CH4) from our Buchanan gas wells and gob wells, primarily from the Pocahontas 3 seam geologic horizon. The higher-concentration methane is gathered by the wells, the mine also maintains 7 exhaust ventilation shafts to move fresh air into the mine for the safety of miners and channel the return gaseous air out of the mine. These ventilation shafts move 2.7 million cubic feet of air / minute and emit lower concentrations of methane in a mixture called Ventilation Air Methane (VAM).
Methane emissions from our Buchanan complex accounted for 63% of Coronado’s total carbon impact in 2019. To address this issue, in 2022 we formed a partnership with NextEra Energy and began operating our first VAM oxidising system, called Regenerative Thermal Oxidiser (RTO). We further strengthened this project and in April of 2024 a second RTO unit was brought online.
Since the first RTO being commissioned in July 2022, 434 ktCO2e has been eliminated from the Buchanan complex via the VAM projects. We have accomplished the first stage of our objective, to reduce the carbon footprint of the Buchanan complex: cutting Buchanan’s emissions by approximately 60% by 2030.
At our Curragh complex, we continue to evaluate incidental coal mine waste gas and potential beneficial use cases that will lead to reduction from a predominant operational GHG emissions source.
With the approval and commencement of the Mammoth project in late 2024, a gas-drainage pilot project has begun to optimise gas drainage as part of the underground operations. Methane will be pre-drained in advance of mining, allowing for its capture, flaring and potential beneficial use – resulting in GHG emissions reduction for the complex.
This pilot project will also inform and support future initiatives involving pre-drainage in the open-cut operations. This project will be carried out in partnership with industry experts and aims to advance pre-drainage practices in the open-cut mining sector.
Use cases are being actively explored, including electricity generation and dual-fuel diesel substitution technology, to identify the most effective and viable applications for coal mine waste gas.