Gujarat NRE Group has received the go-ahead from the NSW Planning Assessment Commission for its $122-million upgrade of infrastructure at NRE-1 mine in Russel Vale, Australia.
In a statement issued here on Tuesday, the company's Executive Chairman, Mr Arun Kumar Jagatramka, said the approval would give added security to the current 350 personnel working at the mine and also provide short-term employment for additional workers during the construction of the surface facility upgrades. “It is great news for the company, its workers and the Illawarra community,” Mr Jagatramka added.
The approval would enable Gujarat NRE to continue extraction of up to one million tonnes of coking coal per annum from the Bulli and Wongawilli seams for the next three years, coal transport by truck to the Port Kembla Coal Terminal, and upgrades to the surface facilities and infrastructure.
The NSW PAC gave approval after the Department of Planning and Infrastructure provided briefings covering issues such as subsidence, impacts on water resources, noise, air quality, traffic and incident reporting. The NSW PAC also considered the Department of Planning's Assessment Report, including agency and public submissions.
Gujarat NRE is aiming to put on public exhibition further details of its $250-million expansion plans for the Russell Vale mine by the end of this year.