Chinese-owned Australian producer Yancoal will close its Ashton underground coking coal mine in early 2028 due to geotechnical issues and market pressures, the company said on 30 June.
Yancoal is commencing a staged closure of the mine because of significant technical challenges, operational risks and evolving market conditions, a spokesperson told Argus. The company has started an 18-month phased shutdown process, which it plans to complete in early 2028.
Increasing input and regulatory costs will also impact Ashton's financial performance into the future, and combined, these factors are undermining the mine's viability as a sustainable ongoing operation, the spokesperson added.
Ashton, situated in the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales, produced 1.1mn t of run-of-mine (ROM) coal in 2025. Yancoal produced 6.1mn t of coking coal in Australia in 2025.
The closure process involves an initial reduction in planning and development activities, the completion of development mining in early 2027, and the shutdown of longwall mining in early 2028, the spokesperson said.
About 60 mine workers face immediate job losses, the Mining and Energy Union (MEU) said on 30 June. Around 280 workers will lose their jobs because of the mine shutdown, Argus understands.
