Anglo American PLC said on Monday it had suspended production at Grosvenor steelmaking coal mine in Queensland, Australia following an underground gas incident over the weekend.

The London-based diversified miner said it will provide steelmaking coal production guidance ‘once more information is available’, and indicated that assessment of the incident may take several months as a result of the likely damage underground.

It suspended production at its Grosvenor, following an underground coal gas ignition incident on Saturday.

Before this incident, Grosvenor was expected to account for around 29% of the total steelmaking coal output for the first half of 2024.

Steelmaking coal business expects to produce 8 million tonnes of product in the first half of 2024, of which Grosvenor will contribute 2.3 million tonnes.

For 2024 as a whole, production guidance for the steelmaking coal business is 15 million tonnes to 17 million tonnes, of which Grosvenor was expected to contribute 3.5 million tonnes, representing lower production in the second half of the year due to a planned longwall move.

Anglo American said all emergency protocols were followed and the workforce was safely evacuated from the mine without injury.

‘The mine team is working with specialist teams from the Queensland Mines Rescue Service and the regulatory authorities to extinguish the underground fire, prior to being able to assess the steps towards a safe re-entry into the mine,’ the company added.

These procedures, it said, are expected to take several months as a result of the likely damage underground.

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