A Brisbane-based company says it plans to restart operations at its southern Queensland coal mine within months after being granted the final approvals for the project.
The Queensland Department of Regional Development, Manufacturing and Water today approved the water licence for New Hope Group's Stage 3 development of its New Acland coal mine near Oakey, about 150 kilometres west of Brisbane.
New Hope Group has been seeking approval to expand the mine's production to up to 7.5 million tonnes per annum for another 12 years, but the project has been caught up in legal challenges for more than a decade.
Mining at the New Acland site stopped on November 26, 2021, when coal reserves were exhausted.
The department has imposed 35 conditions on the licence, including managing the impacts on aquifers and putting in place monitoring programs.
"The department considered matters such as public submissions, potential impacts to existing water users … before granting the associated water licence with strict conditions," a department spokesperson said.
Workers excited to start
The mine's general manager David O'Dwyer said the decision was great news for workers.
"I've informed the team out here," he said.
"They're all really excited. We've been waiting a long time."
Mr O'Dwyer said the company still needed to work through the environmental conditions imposed by the department but hoped operations could restart within months.
"We just need to get around those and understand what they all mean," he said.
"Then we'll be putting processes in place to make sure we can meet every single one of them as we do with our environmental authority as well."
Environmental disappointment
The Oakey Coal Action Alliance's secretary Paul King said he was disappointed with the decision.
The group has opposed the mine's expansion due to the effect it would have on neighbouring farmers.
Mr King said the approval was not unexpected, but there were some interesting conditions attached to the licence that needed to be looked at further.
"It's the final step that New Acland need, but we don't believe that they deserve it," he said.
"We'll see what it says, and we'll take it from there."
Mr King would not rule out future legal challenges against the project.
"As long as there are opportunities to protect the groundwater and farmland in Acland, we'll be taking those opportunities," he said.
But New Hope Group said any future challenges would be between objectors and the state government, which granted the approvals.
The Regional Development Minister Glenn Butcher declined to comment on the matter.