Progress at Whitehaven Coal’s Maules Creek mine commended

NSW Minerals Council CEO Stephen Galilee has this week paid a visit to Whitehaven Coal’s new Maules Creek open-cut mine near Gunnedah to see first hand the progress that is being made in construction of the greenfields project.

 

The mine is one of the most significant investments currently underway in regional NSW, with construction costs estimated to total $767 million. Construction is on budget and schedule for first coal to be railed in March 2015.

 

Pictured: NSW Minerals Council CEO, Stephen Galilee with Whitehaven CEO Paul Flynn.

 

‘It is extremely pleasing to see construction in full swing and I commend the Whitehaven Coal team and all the contractors doing such great work to keep this project progressing on schedule,” Mr Galilee said on site.

 

“Our coal sector is a cornerstone of our economy and this mine will play a big role in delivering continued economic activity for the region and for NSW for many years to come.”

 

The project is located in the heart of the Gunnedah Basin in northwest NSW, about 18km north-east of Boggabri and only 16km from the main rail line which has a direct link to the Port of Newcastle coal loading and storage terminals. The project is expected to provide more than $13 million in local funding to the Narrabri Shire Council under a voluntary planning agreement, which will see $6 million of that go to road and infrastructure upgrades and another five to the upgrade of the Narrabri airport. 

 

In addition to this investment, other significant positive effects of the project include tens of millions of dollars in royalties to the NSW Government over the life of the mine and the creation of 340 jobs during the current construction phase, increasing to 470 jobs when the mine is operational. 

 

You can find out more on the economic benefits of the Whitehaven Maules creek project on their website.