Anglo American has welcomed the positive recommendations made by the NSW Department of Planning and Environment in its report on the Drayton South project which was released today stating the Department considered the project to be in the public interest and should be approved.
Anglo American’s Drayton South Project Director Rick Fairhurst said now the report was finalised, he urged the Planning Assessment Commission (PAC) to progress to the next stage of project approvals with urgency, to provide the 500 employees at Drayton with certainty about their futures.
“The release of the report is a positive step forward for our employees, the local community and the 140 local businesses depending on Drayton South for their livelihoods,” Mr Fairhurst said.
“We are pleased to receive a balanced report which has taken into consideration the compromises we have made to coexist with other industries and ensure we operate the future mine in a responsible way that does not exceed the various environmental and air quality parameters,” he said.
“We have reached a critical stage for the Drayton workforce, having recently moved from a seven day to a five day roster in response to prolonged delays to the project, so approval is urgently needed to ensure the Drayton operation can continue when the current mineable reserves expire next year.
“We look forward to the next PAC review of the project being held in a timely manner, so we can develop the replacement mine as soon as possible while coexisting responsibly alongside other industries,” Mr Fairhurst said.
In the report, the Department stated “the extraction of the Drayton Coal resource would generate substantial economic benefits for the regional and State economy” and the assessment had found that biodiversity, heritage, land, water, economic and social impacts were “unlikely to be significant and would be suitably mitigated and/or offset”.
Mr Fairhurst said the Department had made the assessment on the retracted mine plan submitted in March this year, which incorporated a smaller mining area than was previously presented to the PAC in October 2013.
“Under the new plan, the mine will sit behind the natural landscape and the mine life will reduce to 20 years instead of the previous proposal of 27 years, with total tonnes reducing from 119 million to 97 million over the mine life,” Mr Fairhurst said.
“The further changes to the mine plan were made to protect local jobs and ensure our employees can continue to work and live in the Muswellbrook and surrounding communities, and it is fantastic to see our willingness to compromise recognised.
“Our priority is to secure project approval as soon as possible so we can develop the future mine.”
The Drayton South project will extend the life of the existing Drayton mine which has been a part of the Muswellbrook community for more than 30 years.
Drayton South will deliver $35 million in State Government Royalties each year, spend $70 million a year with local businesses annually and secure 500 local jobs which will provide peace of mind for the Drayton mine workforce.
ENDS
Media contact: Jacqui Strambi: 0439 774 526
Notes to editors:
Anglo American is one of the world’s largest mining companies, is headquartered in the UK and listed on the London and Johannesburg stock exchanges. Our portfolio of mining businesses meets our customers’ changing needs and spans bulk commodities – iron ore and manganese, metallurgical coal and thermal coal; base metals and minerals – copper, nickel, niobium and phosphates; and precious metals and minerals – in which we are a global leader in both platinum and diamonds. At Anglo American, we are committed to working together with our stakeholders – our investors, our partners and our employees – to create sustainable value that makes a real difference, while upholding the highest standards of safety and responsibility across all our businesses and geographies. The company’s mining operations, pipeline of growth projects and exploration activities span southern Africa, South America, Australia, North America, Asia and Europe.
www.angloamerican.com.au