The New South Wales state government has approved a six-year extension to mining approvals for MACH Energy's Mount Pleasant coal mine near Muswellbrook, four months before the existing approvals were due to expire in December. The extension also raises the mine's approved annual extraction rate from 10.5 to 12.5 million tonnes of coal.
NSW government grants Mount Pleasant coal mine six-year extension ahead of December closure deadline
The New South Wales state government has approved a six-year extension to mining approvals for MACH Energy's Mount Pleasant coal mine near Muswellbrook, four months before the existing approvals were due to expire in December. The extension also raises the mine's approved annual extraction rate from 10.5 to 12.5 million tonnes of coal.
MACH Energy applied for the six-year extension in October after a legal challenge from a local environment group blocked a longer expansion. The company had previously secured approval, as a State Significant Development, to extend the mine's life by 22 years to 2048, which would have allowed an additional 247 million tonnes of coal to be mined.
The New South Wales Court of Appeal later ruled that approval invalid after the Denman Aberdeen Muswellbrook Scone Healthy Environment Group (DAMSHEG) challenged it. The court found that the state's Independent Planning Commission had failed to account for the project's environmental and climate impacts, specifically the greenhouse gas effects of exported coal.
MACH Energy was granted special leave to appeal that ruling in the High Court of Australia and the case was heard earlier in 2024. Following the High Court hearing in May, MACH said it was 'actively pursuing all available options to ensure the continuity of this important project.' The company is continuing to seek a longer extension to 2048.
The mine employs more than 500 people. Upper Hunter MP Dave Layzell said the extension was necessary to protect those jobs as the December deadline approached.
- The source does not state which NSW government authority or minister approved the six-year extension.
- The source does not give a date on which the six-year extension was formally granted.
- The source does not state when the High Court is expected to deliver its ruling.
- The source does not state the NSW government's stated rationale for granting the extension while the High Court case is pending.
- The source does not indicate whether MACH Energy or the NSW government responded directly to DAMSHEG's claim that the approval pre-empted the High Court decision.
Read the original at ABC News Australia