'Lying awake at 3am': job uncertainty taking a toll on Myuna Colliery workers

Negotiations between Centennial Coal and Origin Energy for a new coal supply contract for Eraring Power Station are at a stalemate with neither company prepared to give ground.

That is despite the efforts of state and federal governments over the past week to find a solution to the impasse.

Origin Energy has offered a new three-year contract but it is refusing to pay more than the current contract price, which it estimates is about $50 million a year above market prices.

Centennial says its asking price reflects the fact that it needs to break even over the next three years.

The company has warned that unless Origin accepts its asking price, it will be forced to shutter the colliery resulting in the loss of 300 direct and 1300 indirect jobs across Lake Macquarie and the broader Hunter.

That call could be made in the next fortnight.

Luke Baker, who has worked at Myuna for 11 years, said the uncertainty was taking a toll on himself and his colleagues.

"We go underground knowing the risks every day. What's hard now isn't the work, it's the uncertainty. You can't plan your life when you just don't know what's happening.

"Blokes who've given decades to this place are lying awake at 3am doing the maths. Origin needs to sort this out now."

Origin's reliance on locally sourced coal has steadily declined since the installation of a rail unloader loop in 2013.

In recent years it has sourced about 80 per cent of the power station's coal from Hunter Valley mines.

It has insisted that it will not pay for what it considers to be overpriced coal from Myuna.

"The cost of operating Myuna is a matter for Centennial and its parent company, Banpu, a company of substantial size and profitability. Origin and NSW households and businesses cannot be expected to wear those costs," it said previously.

A Centennial spokesman said on Monday that the company was actively working with Origin and relevant stakeholders to deliver a commercially sustainable outcome that would enable Myuna to continue to deliver conveyor coal to Origin's Eraring Power Station, whilst securing the employment of 300 direct workers at the mine.

Northern Mining and NSW Energy District President Robin Williams said it was critical that both parties strived to save the jobs of Myuna's workers.

"We are keenly aware of the clock ticking on our members' jobs and the distress that is causing," he said.

"A practical agreement is achievable and necessary to ensure that the transition is planned, predictable and fair. That is what we are continuing to push both parties to deliver."

The Net Zero Economy Authority (NZEA) is working towards implementing a program to support an estimated 2000 workers who will be affected by the closure of Eraring in 2029.

NZEA chief executive David Shankey said he was watching developments between Centennial and Origin closely.

"We have been in this situation before with Eraring and Centennial and they have managed to reach a resolution. We are certainly hoping that happens again," Mr Shankey said.