About four kilometres of the New England Highway will be moved and upgraded if a mining extension is approved at Singleton.
The Bloomfield Group is preparing a scoping report for the Rix’s Creek North mine in a bid to get the go-ahead to extend the mine’s life by an additional 14-years to 2049.
As part of the extension north and west of the existing Falbrook Mining Area and out to Middle Falbrook, a section of the highway will be moved and upgraded.
Bloomfield says they would keep the existing highway open while they build a new alignment so there will be no disruption to traffic.
It’s estimated that part of the project alone will create up to 60 jobs.
Brett Lewis, CEO of The Bloomfield Group, says the continuation project at Rix’s Creek North, located north of Singleton, will provide certainty for local jobs and significant economic benefit for both NSW and Australia.
“Extending the life of the Rix’s Creek North operation will provide stability for local workers, many of whom have been working with us for their whole careers. We want to continue to be an employer of choice for our local community and continuing operations at Rix’s Creek North will help us do that.
“This will also mean continued support for the local businesses who are part of our supply chain along with the community organisations we support via The Bloomfield Group Foundation.
“Beyond our local community, NSW State royalties from another 63.5 million Run of Mine tonnes of coal will be paid into the NSW economy along with payments via other state and federal taxes.”
The scoping report being developed for the NSW Department of Planning and Environment (NSW DPE) includes early specialist planning covering environmental, social and economic areas. The NSW DPE will issue Secretary’s Environmental Assessment Requirements (SEARs) for the project to identify the type and detail of technical and environmental assessments, and the level of consultation required to be undertaken. The Project is expected to also require an approval under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act).