New Hope gains Qld approval for Colton coal mine

PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The Queensland government has granted mining lease approvals for the three tenements making up ASX-listed New Hope Corporation’s proposed A$300-million Colton coal mine.

New Hope MD Shane Stephan on Thursday welcomed the development, saying the approval, which was provided after a thorough review of the potential impact of the project, demonstrated that the environmental credentials of the project stacked up.

The opencut coal mine could produce some 500 000 t/y of coking coal over a ten-year mine life, with expansion opportunities in place to extend the mine life to more than 25 years. The project will include a coal handling and preparation plant, workshops, offices and a haul road.

Coal from the mine will be transported 270 km by rail to Wiggins Island Coal Export Terminal at Gladstone.

Natural Resources and Mines Minister Dr Anthony Lynham on Thursday said that up to 120 new long-term jobs could be created by the proposed mine.

“New Hope has the major approvals it requires to move ahead with this project and create up to 120 direct full-time construction jobs and up to 120 ongoing production jobs for the Fraser Coast region,” Lynham said.

“Importantly, that workforce will be sourced locally and the project will provide business opportunities and inject revenue into the local economy from locally-purchased goods and services.”

The Minister said that the project had been through a rigorous assessment process, including public objections and Land Court hearings.

“The mine has strict conditions governing water releases to protect the Mary river catchment, and to limit noise and dust.”

“The company now has to provide a plan of operations and financial assurance to the Department of Environment and Heritage Protection for work to start on site,” he said.

Stephan said on Thursday that while the mining lease approval was good news both for the company and the surrounding communities, a future investment decision on the project was yet to be taken.

“We are now in a position to study options around development, timing and methodology with a view to obtaining final investment approval from the board.”