Glencore is planning to recommence mining at the Integra underground coal operation in the Upper Hunter Valley of New South Wales for two years.
This move will create up to 275 new jobs. Glencore bought the underground mine in 2015 from Vale.
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Bloomfield separately acquired the open-cut mine, wash plant and rail loop.
The Integra underground mine has been put on care and maintenance since July 2014 and Glencore has continued to explore options to recommence operations against coal market conditions.
Glencore Australian coal operations head Ian Cribb said: “The Integra mine has one longwall block already formed, providing an opportunity to begin mining with minimal delays or additional investment.
“Over the next two years, we also plan to complete and extract coal from a second longwall block that has already been partially developed at the mine.”
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By GlobalDataGlencore expects to generate 1.3 million tonnes of high-fluidity saleable coking coal at Integra in 2017 to meet a particularly requirement identified in the metallurgical coal market.
With several thermal coal mines having either recently closed or reaching the end of their scheduled mine life, production at Integra is not expected to boost Glencore’s total coal sales from Australia.
Glencore will manage the mine and the company is working towards a restarting operations in early 2017.
