The mine
Because the coal seams are very close to the surface, the open cut style of mining is used. The open cut pit is about 2 km x 3.5 km in size, and 150 - 160 metres deep.
The dredger
Four huge bucket-wheel excavators ('dredgers') are used to dig up and remove the overburden and mine the coal. Three of these dredgers are 50 metres high and about 190 metres long - too long to fit on the playing surface of the MCG! The dredgers can each dig 60,000 tonnes per day!
At any one time, one dredger is digging coal, one is removing overburden or digging coal, one is being serviced to prevent breakdowns, and one is sitting as a spare. This system ensures there is always at least one dredger at work and the mine is never 'caught short'.
Once mined, the coal is taken along a conveyor belt to a giant bunker where it is blended (low grade coal is mixed with high grade coal to get the right balance). The bunker only holds 75,000 tonnes of coal - less than one day's supply. From the bunker the blended coal is taken to the power station along a series of conveyor belts.
