Originally published by Elisha Newell of The Australian
25.02.2026
Queensland’s Natural Resources and Mines Minister Dale Last hailed the state as “open for business” in the wake of another coal mine going broke.
The privately owned Vitrinite, which operates the Vulcan mine and has other projects in the Bowen Basin, appointed KordaMentha as receivers on Tuesday, with Cor Cordis in place as voluntary administrators.
It happened just a week after BHP reported a zero return on its coal operations hit hard by the state’s sky-high royalty regime, and almost a year to the day since the LNP minister talked up Vitrinite’s plans for the Vulcan South mine expected to produce about two million tonnes of coal a year and support 450 jobs at its peak in 2027.
“Our thoughts are with the workers and their families following the decision of privately-owned Vitrinite Group,” a spokeswoman for Mr Last said on Tuesday.
Mr Last maintained that Queensland was “open for business with an unchanged, stable royalty regime, exactly as we promised”.
It is unclear if the Vitrinite woes are directly linked to royalties but the collapse follows widespread warnings from industry leaders and suppliers about the impact of the regime already blamed for the demise of Bowen Coking Coal and about 750 job losses at the South Saraji mine operated by BHP in partnership with Japan’s Mitsubishi.
“Vitrinite owns Tier 1 coking coal assets but has been facing some challenges in ramping up production,” a KordaMentha spokesperson said. “Operations will continue on a business-as-usual basis during the receivership and administration. The receivers will shortly begin a sale and recapitalisation process for the assets.”
Vitrinite acquired the Vulcan mine in 2018 and purchased the Callan coking coal project, formerly a BHP asset known as Picardy, in 2023. The company also has exploration ground near the Clermont thermal coal mine operated by Glencore.
Vitrinite was founded in 2014 by Nick Williams and Ryan Welker, who is Gina Rinehart’s former son-in-law, and achieved a major milestone in 2021 when production started at Vulcan.
The company, which at one time boasted 170 employees, declined to comment on Tuesday.
It is understood workers were told about the appointment of receivers on Tuesday and that coal movements and mining have been restricted since December.
Former Wood Mackenzie vice-president for metals and mining research Robin Griffin said last week’s BHP results were cause for more alarm about the state of the industry in Queensland.
“I’m astonished that these world-class coking coal assets aren’t making a material return for their owners,” he said in a LinkedIn post. “But it is a bellwether of the current environment in Queensland.”
Mr Griffin, now head of research at Commodity Insights, said its data showed a greater than 30 per cent increase in cash costs (excluding royalties) since 2021, much of it related to new regulation.
“It bodes ill for Queensland’s coal sector and, ironically, for future government revenue,” he said.
“It is only my opinion, but I’d hate to see these high-class assets offloaded or closed because they can no longer make a return through the cycle.”
Queensland premier David Crisafulli has refused to budge on a regime introduced by the state’s former Labor government that forces miners to pay among the highest royalty rates anywhere in the world, including 40 per cent when the price for premium hard coking coal is above $300 per tonne.
Vitrinite had been working with the Isaac Regional Council to boost housing stock in the region and on other community initiatives.
In the countdown to the release of the BHP half-year result, coal boss Adam Lancey warned no business could survive for long under the royalty regime.
“Queensland has the highest coal royalties in the world – up to four times higher than in NSW,” he said earlier this month. “With no change, the ongoing risk to employment, investment and opportunities for Queensland remains.”
