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PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The mine life at the Springvale coal mine, in New South Wales, has been extended by 13 years after the state’s Planning Assessment Commission (PAC) approved owner Centennial Coal’s extension plans.
The existing mine produces 4.5-million tonnes a year of run-of-mine coal from the Lithgow seam, but development consent for the Springvale mine is expected to expire this year.
The extension plan will see the mine continue for another 13 years at its current production levels.
In its report, the PAC noted that following the closure of a number of mines and power stations in the region, the Springvale mine was the only local mine supplying coal to the Mt Piper power station, which provided 15% of the state’s electricity. The mine and the power station were also the main employers of the local community.
However, the report noted that with the decline in coal prices, the economic benefits derived from the Springvale mine extension would be constrained.
Despite this, the PAC said that it had carefully weighed the key areas of concerns raised during the public consultation period, including discharge impacts on the region’s water resources, and swamp impacts, against the significance of the resource and the socioeconomic benefits, saying it was satisfied that the project’s benefits outweighed its potential impacts.
The PAC review would go to state and federal governments for approval and final determination.