Macarthur Coal signs new long-term deal with Asciano for transport from its Coppabella and Moorvale mines
February 4, 2010
Queensland coal producer Macarthur has signed a new long-term deal with rail group Asciano for transport from its Coppabella and Moorvale mines.
The ‘take-or-pay’ contract will see 7 million tonnes of coal moved each year. The contract is expected to net Asciano close to $250 million.
Asciano Managing Director Mark Rowsthorn says Macarthur Coal is now clearly the company’s biggest coal haulage customer in Queensland with annualised tonnes in excess of 10 million.
He says the contract is larger than first expected and the enormity of it means more vehicle equipment will need to be purchased.
“We originally planned on securing contracts totalling 30 million tonnes by the end of 2010 and that box has well and truly been ticked and, what’s more, every contract signed to date will deliver returns at or above our internal benchmarks”, Rowsthorn says.
“With our first ten train sets in Queensland contracted, Asciano will now proceed to purchasing further train sets to support its ongoing growth in this extremely important market.”
And Rowsthorn says Asciano will not stop with its push to dominate the Queensland market, eyeing even more contracts as new infrastructure is built in the State.
“The coal haulage opportunities presented by the northern and southern missing link infrastructure projects, as well as the development of the Surat and Galilee basins, are clearly next on our agenda,” he says.