Today Anglo American Chief Executive Cynthia Carroll officially opened the new module of the Coal Handing Processing Plant (CHPP) at Anglo Coal Australia’s (ACA) Capcoal operations in Queensland’s Bowen Basin, to celebrate the completion of the under budget $AU850 million Lake Lindsay growth project.

“The new CHPP will operate at a capacity of 700 tonnes per hour, and will complement the existing processing facility at Capcoal, giving a combined sales output of over nine million tonnes,” Ms Carroll said.

“It’s a key component of the Lake Lindsay project, which will enable Anglo’s Capcoal operations to continue to deliver high-quality metallurgical coal to its valued customers, world-leading steel manufacturers in all parts of the world including Asia, India, South America and Europe.”

Construction started on the Lake Lindsay growth project in 2006, with a scope of works including the CHPP and a new overland conveyor to accommodate a major expansion of open cut mining within ACA’s Capcoal complex.

“Approximately 75 million tonnes of saleable reserves are contained within the Lake Lindsay mining area, and this addition will extend the mine’s life span by 20 years,” Ms Carroll said.

“When peak mining activities are reached in 2010, Lake Lindsay’s saleable production will be five million tonnes per annum (Mtpa), consisting of 2.3Mt of hard coking coal, 1.7Mt of PCI specification coal and 1.0Mt of thermal coal.

“The delivery of this project is evidence of Anglo’s long-term commitment to the Bowen Basin and our strategy to further develop high-quality world-class assets,” Ms Carroll said.

While at site, Ms Carroll took the opportunity to congratulate the 83 CHPP employees for their ongoing commitment to safety on the job.

“We are also celebrating a significant safety milestone today, with the CHPP team having achieved 7.5 years Lost Time Injury (LTI)-free,” Ms Carroll said.

“Safety is the paramount Anglo value and globally we are taking steps across the group to ensure we continue to improve our safety performance.

“The achievement of the team here at the Capcoal CHPP helps Anglo move closer to our ultimate goal of Zero Harm,” she said. 

For further information:

Aldo Pennini
Tel: 0407 592 260

Jacqui Strambi
Tel: 0439 774 526

Notes to Editors:

Anglo American plc, one of the world’s largest mining groups. With its subsidiaries, joint ventures and associates, it is a global leader in platinum group metals and diamonds, with significant interests in coal, base and ferrous metals, as well as an industrial minerals business. The Group is geographically diverse, with operations in Africa, Europe, South and North America, Australia and Asia.

www.angloamerican.com