The Goonyella railway system is located in
Central Queensland
Central Queensland is an ambiguous geographical division of Queensland ( a state in Australia) that centres on the eastern coast, around the Tropic of Capricorn. Its major regional centre is Rockhampton. The region extends from the Capricorn Coas ...
, Australia. It services the coal mining area of the
Bowen Basin
The Bowen Basin contains the largest coal reserves in Australia. This major coal-producing region contains one of the world's largest deposits of bituminous coal. The Basin contains much of the known Permian coal resources in Queensland includ ...
, carrying coal to the
Hay Point
Hay is grass, legumes, or other herbaceous plants that have been cut and dried to be stored for use as animal fodder, either for large grazing animals raised as livestock, such as cattle, horses, goats, and sheep, or for smaller domesticated ...
and Dalrymple Bay Coal Terminals 20 km southeast of
Mackay Mackay may refer to:
*Clan Mackay, the Scottish clan from which the surname "MacKay" derives
Mackay may also refer to:
Places Australia
* Mackay Region, a local government area
** Mackay, Queensland, a city in the above region
*** Mackay Airpor ...
, as well as products to other destinations by way of connections to the
North Coast Line at Yukan and the
Central Line at Burngrove via the
Gregory coal mine branch. It is also connected to the coal loading terminal at Abbot Point (20 km northwest of
Bowen) by the
GAP line. The line opened on 5 November 1971 and runs for 477 kilometres.
A 200 km extension called the Carmichael Rail Network was built in 2021.
The Goonyella system is
narrow gauge
A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and .
Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...
and electrified using
25 kV 50 Hz
Railway electrification systems using alternating current (AC) at are used worldwide, especially for high-speed rail. It is usually supplied at the standard utility frequency (typically 50 or 60Hz), which simplifies traction substations. The dev ...
.
The line has been duplicated from Hay Point to Wotonga (174 km) and features
CTC signalling over the entire system.
Mines
The Goonyella Coal Chain services 25 mines, carrying coal from
BHP Mitsubishi Alliance, Anglo Coal,
Bravus Mining & Resources, Macarthur Coal, Peabody Energy Australia, Xstrata and ANCI. The system currently operates under a demand-pull model, with rail haulages being designated by the ports, and the shipping stem.
The rail line transports coal from
Carmichael coal mine, Gregory Mine,
Oaky Creek coal mine,
German Creek coal mine,
Foxleigh coal mine,
Norwich Park coal mine, Lake Vermont Mine,
Saraji coal mine,
Peak Downs Mine
Peak Downs Mine is a large open cut coking coal mine in Queensland located 31 km SSE of Moranbah. Peak Downs is one of seven mines in Bowen Basin owned by BHP Mitsubishi Alliance, Australia's largest coal miner and exporter. Productio ...
, Millennium Mine, Poitrel Mine, Moorvale Mine, Burton Downs Mine, Carborough Downs Mine, Issac Plains Mine,
Moranbah North coal mine,
Goonyella Riverside Mine
Goonyella Riverside Mine is a large open cut coking coal mine in the Bowen Basin. It is one of many coal mines in Central Queensland, Australia and is located at Moranbah about 30 km north of the township. The mine produced 12.4 mi ...
,
Hail Creek coal mine, Clermont Mine, Riverside Mine,
North Goonyella coal mine,
South Walker Creek coal mine, and
Blair Athol coal mine.
See also
*
Rail transport in Queensland
The rail network in Queensland, Australia, was the first in the world to adopt narrow gauge for a main line, and now the second largest narrow gauge network in the world, consists of:
*the North Coast Line (NCL) extending from Brisbane to R ...
References
External links
Map of North Queensland Rail Coal Network1925 map of the Queensland railway system
Railway lines in Queensland
3 ft 6 in gauge railways in Australia
Xstrata
Railway lines opened in 1971
Buildings and structures in Central Queensland
1971 establishments in Australia
{{Queensland-rail-transport-stub