Work resumes at Griffin Coal

Indian-owned miner Griffin Coal has resumed operations at Collie, two days after its main contractor walked off the job, but there is uncertainty about how many people will be employed at the mine.

A Griffin spokesman said the company started transporting coal last night, with mining operations resuming today, using its own plant and equipment.

There had been speculation operations at Collie would be seriously disrupted after Carna Civil & Mining walked off the site, taking its equipment with it.

However the spokesman said there was sufficient equipment still on the site for operations to resume.

Griffin is currently going through the paperwork process to re-engage 222 production workers and 80 maintenance staff at the mine.

These workers had transferred to Carna when the contractor took over the mine’s operations in March, but with an agreement for Griffin to re-engage them if circumstances changed.

Carna also employed about 50 employees directly and it is unclear what will happen to those positions.

The Griffin spokesman said the company was looking at the scope of its operations and the potential for productivity improvements.

CFMEU mining division secretary Gary Wood acknowledged room for cuts but said the mine needed at least 235 or 240 production workers.

“The biggest issue at the moment is to ensure Griffin has a regular cash flow to ensure that mining operations are not impeded,” Mr Wood said.

Carna’s decision to walk off the site followed a series of disputes with Griffin, which is owned by heavily-indebted Indian company Lanco Infratech.

Griffin’s main customer is the privately-owned Bluewaters power station.