Carmichael coal mine

The Carmichael coal mine is a coal mine in Queensland, Australia which produced its first shipment of coal in December 2021.

The mine has drawn criticism for its environmental impacts on the Great Barrier Reef, water usage and carbon emissions. Other contentious issues are its claimed economic benefits, financial viability and use of taxpayer funding.

The mine was initially planned to produce 60 million tonnes of coal per year, however funding difficulties resulted in downsizing the planned mine to produce 10 million tonnes per year. The thermal coal produced by the mine is predicted to consist of 11% ash and have a weighted average value of 5,000–5,500 kcal/kg. The coal is planned to be transported by rail (including the Goonyella railway line) to the ports at Hay Point and Abbot Point.

Construction of the mine started in early 2019 and commercial-scale coal mining began approximately three years later. On 29 December 2021, it was widely reported that the first coal shipment from the Carmichael Mine was ready for export.