WorkSafe investigates shovel fire at Kalgoorlie Super Pit
WorkSafe WA is investigating after a fire engulfed the driver's cab of a heavy-duty mining shovel at one of Australia's biggest gold mines.
The incident occurred last Wednesday during the night shift while the 750-tonne Komatsu PC8000 shovel was working in the Oroya Brownhill section of Kalgoorlie's Super Pit, about 600 kilometres east of Perth.
The Super Pit's owner, gold miner Northern Star Resources, confirmed no one was injured in the incident.
The cause of the fire has not been disclosed at this stage.
A Komatsu PC8000 shovel operating at Kalgoorlie's Super Pit gold mine. (Supplied: Northern Star Resources/Dianne Newell)
'No disruption' to mine
In a statement to the ABC, Northern Star said the mine operator Kalgoorlie Consolidated Gold Mines (KCGM) immediately activated its emergency response team, which extinguished the fire.
A Northern Star spokesperson said there has been no material interruption to Super Pit operations.
"KCGM has initiated contingency plans to cover for the damaged excavator, which in any event was due to be retired in November 2026 and replaced by a new excavator," they said.
"In line with our normal processes, the KCGM team is carrying out a thorough assessment of the incident so that we can apply learnings, strengthen our processes and continue safe and reliable operations."
WorkSafe WA said it was aware of the incident and was investigating the circumstances surrounding the fire.
The Super Pit gold mine has been operating since 1989. (ABC Goldfields: Jarrod Lucas)
According to Northern Star, the PC8000 is one of the biggest mechanical shovels in the world and has an estimated replacement cost of $18 million.
Its fuel tank has a capacity of 13,900 litres of diesel, and one full bucket of material is equal to 68.5 tonnes.
The damaged machine is one of four PC8000 shovels in the open pit fleet at the Super Pit, which also includes 45 Caterpillar 793F trucks with a 226-tonne payload and five newer 793NG trucks.
New shovel on the way
The fire comes just weeks after Northern Star put a retired PC8000 shovel on display at the Super Pit's public lookout, which attracts thousands of locals and tourists every year.
The company has ruled out returning that shovel to service.
Mining equipment supplier Liebherr delivered a new 600-tonne R9600 excavator to the Super Pit in July, with a second shovel due to arrive in October.
A decommissioned PC8000 shovel was put on display at the Super Pit public lookout in August. (ABC Goldfields: Jarrod Lucas)
The Super Pit employs more than 1,200 workers, and has had about 600 contractors on site during the past three years to complete a $1.7 billion expansion of the Fimiston Mill, which is now being commissioned.
After a two-year ramp-up of the new mill, the Super Pit is forecast to grow production from 480,429 ounces in the 2025-26 financial year to 900,000 ounces a year from 2028-29.
If it hits that mark, it would reclaim the title of Australia's biggest producing gold mine from Boddington in WA's South West.
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