Coronado’s Curragh mining suspension adds to financial woes

Coal mining across Coronado Global Resources Inc.’s Curragh complex in Australia’s Queensland state was halted after a worker was killed, adding to woes for the company that’s already dealing with slumping prices.

A roof collapse occurred at about 3 p.m. local time Friday at Curragh’s Mammoth Underground Mine. One worker was safely recovered while teams worked through the night to stabilize the site and access a second worker who was unable to be saved, the Queensland government said in a statement late Saturday.

Curragh, which opened in 1983 and spans about 256 square kilometers (63,260 acres), is one of Australia’s largest sources of metallurgical coal used in steelmaking. Mammoth, which began mining coal a year ago, was expected to add to production from the Curragh North and Curragh South open-cut mines.

“As a sign of respect, production activities will be paused in the Curragh North and Curragh South open-cut mines to remember our fallen colleague and to ensure necessary support is provided to those who require it,” Shaun Newberry, Curragh’s vice president of operations, said in a memo to staff.

‘Cross road’

The disruption at Curragh comes at a sensitive time for Coronado. The Mammoth underground project was one of the company’s key growth plans, targeting output of up to 2 million tons of high-grade metallurgical coal a year, even as the miner cuts spending to preserve cash amid weaker prices and higher costs.

Coronado’s balance sheet and liquidity was at “the cross road,” Jefferies analysts said in a report in October, adding that progress at Mammoth “remains critical to recovery.”

Total debt at the company has almost doubled and market value has fallen 80% over the past two years amid a slump in metallurgical, or coking, coal prices. Brisbane-based Coronado has total debt of about A$928.4 million ($621 million), compared with total debt of A$468.1 million at the end of 2023, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Fitch Ratings withdrew its CCC- long-term issuer default rating and CCC+ rating on Coronado’s US dollar senior secured notes in November after the mining company chose to stop participating in the rankings process. Fitch had cut its rating three times from an initial B+ in September 2024. Both Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s have a “negative” outlook on Coronado’s debt.

Miner deaths

The death at Curragh is the third since Coronado bought the complex in 2018. One worker died from a crush injury in November 2021, while a man was killed by a fallen mine truck tire in January 2020, according to data from the Mine Safety Institute of Australia. An earlier fatality occurred in 2010 when a worker died after a vehicle overturned at the site.

Coronado reported the death of a worker on Dec. 18 at its Lower War Eagle mine in West Virginia, an incident that also led to a temporary suspension of its Logan operations.

Prices for seaborne steel-making coal have slid to near a four-year low, prompting shutdowns across Australia’s coal industry. BHP Group said in September it would close its Saraji South mine and curb further coal investment under Queensland’s royalty regime, a move followed by other producers.

(By Jason Gale and Paul-Alain Hunt)