Premier officially re-opens Isaac Plains

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has officially reopened the Isaac Plains coal mine after the mine was brought back to life by new owners, Stanmore Coal.

Stanmore bought the mine for AUS$1 last year, taking formal ownership in November. Since then, Stanmore has restarted production operations, shipping its first coal earlier this month to Asian steelmakers and creating 150 direct jobs in the process.

“We have gone against the tide in the coal sector to create value for our investors and the central Queensland community,” said Stanmore’s Managing Director. Nick Jorss. “We believe we’ve picked the right point in the cycle to shift from explorer to exporter with operating costs reduced by 35%.”

Isaac Plains is located outside of the Moranbah. It will produce 1.1 million tpy of metallurgical coal, transporting the coal on the Goonyella Rail Line to Dalrymple Bay Coal Terminal for export to Asian steel mills.

As well as the mine, Stanmore also owns the adjacent Isaac Plains East deposit, which it bought from Peabody in July 2015. The company recently updated its JORC-compliant coal resources and reserves at Isaac Plains and Isaac Plains East to 76.9 million t and 15.7 million t, respectively.

In her remarks at the opening, Premier Palaszczuk said the Isaac Plains success demonstrated that investors still had confidence in Queensland its its resources sector. “We have new faces, like Stanmore Coal, and new investors who are calling the bottom of the market, stepping up and creating jobs.”

“Our government supports the sustainable development of our resources for the jobs and economic development this offers,” added Queensland Minister for Natural Resources and Mines, Dr Anthony Lynham. “We will keep working hard to support companies like Stanmore Coal turn their plans into reality.”

Lynham pointed to the 50% exploration expenditure discount, ongoing royalties freeze and low payroll taxes as measures the Queensland government had take to support “the green shoots” in the mining sector. He also highlighted the role of the Coordinator-General in cutting red tape for support business “as has happened here at Isaac Plains.”

The company’s Isaac Plains East expansion has also been declared a ‘prescribed project’. “This will help Stanmore extend the life of their existing open-cut operation to more than 10 yrs, with further possible expansion to an underground operation,” added Dr Lynham.

Edited by Jonathan Rowland.

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcoal.com/mining/18052016/premier-officially-re-opens-isaac-plains-2016-801/