Yallourn Brown Coal Mine
The Yallourn brown coal mine is located in Yallourn between Moe and Morwell in the Latrobe Valley. It is assigned mining licence MIN5003. EnergyAustralia owns the mine and is the licence holder.
Yallourn is one of three Victorian mines gazetted as ‘Declared Mines’ under the Mineral Resources (Sustainable Development) Act 1990 (‘the Act’).
A declared mine is one that has been identified as having significant and complex environmental, social or economic risks, particularly in relation to mine rehabilitation and closure.
Declared mines are subject to greater regulatory oversight and must meet higher standards regarding rehabilitation planning and implementation as part of the mine closure.
Background
Yallourn’s mine has served the Yallourn power station since the 1920s. Brown coal is extracted via open-cut mining and transported to the nearby power station for use in electricity generation.
In 2021, EnergyAustralia announced plans to close the power station and mine in 2028.
Current status
Rehabilitation
The Act and regulations require EnergyAustralia to prepare and submit a Declared Mine Rehabilitation Plan by 1 October 2025.
EnergyAustralia has published its draft Declared Mine Rehabilitation Plan on the company’s website and is inviting public submissions until 18 August 2025.
To find out how to access a copy of the draft plan and learn more about making a submission, visit EnergyAustralia's have your say page.
Regulatory compliance
Resources Victoria’s Earth Resources Regulator continues to monitor EnergyAustralia’s mining operations to ensure compliance with the regulatory requirements pertaining to Declared Mines. This includes undertaking quarterly audits of mine stability, rehabilitation, environment and fire risk.
In addition to its routine program of targeted audits, inspections, compliance and stability meetings, the regulator investigates all community concerns reported as complaints.
Read more about regulatory compliance.
Enquiries
Enquiries about onsite operations and activities at Yallourn mine should be directed to EnergyAustralia via:
Community concerns and complaints
Emergency incidents, safety concerns, pollution events, evidence of non-compliance and other community concerns and complaints should be directed to the regulator responsible for the area it relates to.
- Use the RRAM online form, email errfeedback@deeca.vic.gov.au or call 1300 366 356 to contact Resources Victoria’s Earth Resources Regulator about activities occurring within the site boundary.
- Contact Environment Protection Authority Victoria’s 24-hour pollution hotline on 1300 372 842 or online via the EPA’s reporting pollution page.
Recent site history
Morwell River diversion
In the long history of coal mining and power production in the Latrobe Valley, the Morwell River has been diverted several times, including to allow for expansions of mine fields at Yallourn, Maryvale and Hazelwood. Diversion methods have ranged from pipes in the 1970s to artificial river courses in the 2000s.
The most recent diversion was commissioned in 2005. A land bridge was constructed through the Yallourn coal mine with the purpose of redirecting the Morwell River’s natural flow away from the mine to allow access to additional coal reserves in the Maryvale mine field.
Major flooding in June 2021 compromised the diversion’s structural integrity, which threatened to impact coal-fired power production at the Yallourn power station.
A water diversion channel – the Morwell River flood diversion – was constructed upstream of the Hazelwood mine site to divert excessive river flows into the Hazelwood mine void. This enabled the completion of critical assessment and repair works to safeguard the Morwell River diversion’s structure.
Page last updated: 24 Jun 2025