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In a major boost for regional Queensland, the alignment for the proposed Surat Basin rail has been selected to cater for both freight and coal traffic.
Surat Basin Rail CEO Graham Dooley has announced that the 210-kilometre railway linking the Surat Basin and the Port of Gladstone would be an open access coal and freight line.
“In July, the Surat Basin Rail Joint Venture made the significant commitment to adopt a preferred alignment for the proposed railway that will be also suitable for general freight, such as agricultural produce,” Mr Dooley said.
“Coal will still be our number one customer however other types of freight will be welcome to use the railway…Our project team will progress the combined coal and freight alignment, with the potential at some time in the future for a dual gauge track to accommodate interstate trains, subject to Government requests.”
He said the railway will be designed for the use initially by diesel trains, with provision made for electric trains in the future.
The development of the Surat Basin rail is expected to provide a significant boost for Queensland’s economy and its $20-billion-a-year coal export industry.
“By linking the existing western railway system at Wandoan and the port of Gladstone, the Surat Basin Rail would enable about four billion tonnes of untapped coal in the Surat Basin to become a viable economic resource for the state,” Mr Dooley said.
“For the first time, local communities such as Wandoan, Chinchilla and Miles also would have an efficient link to the port of Gladstone for domestic and export sales of their freight.”
The alignment was selected following technical investigations and extensive consultation with local communities, industry, government and special interest groups since 2007. Consultation with stakeholders about the environmental and social impacts of the rail project will continue as part of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) scheme.
“The EIS will be released publicly for stakeholder feedback later this year,” he said.
“In the meantime, the second project newsletter will be distributed this week to local communities in the project area to provide an update on the railway’s alignment and EIS process.”
The Surat Basin Railway Joint Venture comprises the Australian Transport and Energy Corridor Pty Ltd (ATEC), Industry Funds Management (IFM), Anglo Coal, Xstrata Coal and QR.
The Surat Basin rail is expected to be operational by 2012.
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