Anglo American has reported ‘positive progress’ at the Grosvenor coal operation, where mining has been suspended since an underground fire in June.

Images from purpose-built cameras lowered into strategic points of the mine showed limited damage underground, the company said in its latest quarterly report.

‘Pending regulatory approval, we are working towards re-entry to access critical infrastructure
points and validate the imagery from the cameras,’ it said.

December quarter production across the group’s steelmaking coal mines decreased by 49 per cent compared to the previous year, primarily impacted by the suspension of mining at the Grosvenor longwall operation.

Production from the rest of the portfolio decreased by 35 per cent, dragged down by a planned longwall move at Moranbah and the agreed sale of the company’s interest in the Jellinbah Group.

Related: Anglo wraps up divestment of Jellinbah stake

The quarterly production total of 2.4 million tonnes took the group’s 2024 output to just over 14.5 million tonnes – down from 16 million tonnes in 2023.

The company said there were no planned longwall moves at Moranbah in 2025.

A walk-on, walk-off longwall move at Aquila planned for the third quarter is expected to have minimal production impact.

Anglo American has entered into agreements to sell Moranbah North, Grosvenor, Aquila, Capcoal and Dawson operations in the Bowen Basin to Peabody in a $5 billion-plus transaction expected to close the third quarter of this year.

Indonesia’s PT Bukit Makmur Mandiri Utama (BUMA) has agreed to acquire a majority interest in Dawson mine for almost $700 million in a back-to-back transaction.

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