A new multi-million-dollar Caterpillar 993 loader will allow New Hope Group to accelerate mining activity at New Acland Mine.
The $6.6 million loader is New Acland Coal’s largest capital expenditure spend in more than a year and was purchased through Hastings Deering Toowoomba.
New Acland Coal General Manager, Dave O’Dwyer said Hastings Deering Toowoomba sourced and built the earthmoving machine.
“The Caterpillar 993 loader weighs more than 135 tonnes is 16.5 metres long and has a bucket capacity of 17.5 cubic metres, which is equivalent to the size of a car,” Mr O’Dwyer said.
“New Acland Coal has a long and proud history of supporting and financially backing the local community via project procurement.
“Over the past two years, we have spent $113.4 million with 599 different local suppliers, including Hastings Deering.
“The deliberate decision to invest in and purchase goods and services supports supplier development, provides opportunities for local employment, and stimulates business growth.”
Hastings Deering’s Nic Hope said the business has been supporting New Acland Coal for more than a decade.
“We worked closely with the New Acland Coal team to spec the machine for its operation,” Mr Hope said.
“We then source the Caterpillar 993 loader, modified the machine at our Toowoomba business centre and then delivered it the mine site for final assembly and commissioning.
“Our team at Toowoomba will also support New Acland Coal and the loader through its complete lifecycle.
“It’s brilliant big local businesses like New Acland Coal choose to support Darling Downs companies, like Hastings Deering Toowoomba. Together, we’re creating jobs and building a stronger Toowoomba.”
The arrival of the Caterpillar 993 loader on site coincides with another major milestone, with New Acland Coal’s 300th full-time employee starting work on site last month.
The achievement comes less than six months after local objector, the Oakey Coal Action Alliance (OCAA), withdrew its Land Court of Queensland appeal.
New Acland Coal is extremely proud to be a leading employer in the region, by offering well-paid, local jobs to hard-working Queenslanders. The full-time-permanent workforce on site has jumped from 100 to 300 in just two years.
There are dozens of new, old faces who have returned to New Acland Coal. Pleasingly, plenty of skilled, hardworking miners have also chosen to join the team, along with a host of new-to-industry workers.
Unlike a lot of other mines in Queensland, New Acland Coal does not engage fly-in, fly-out (FIFO) workers, with more than 90 per cent of the current workforce living within 50 kilometres of the site.
Local workers, contractors and local businesses will benefit to the tune of $1 billion over the life of the New Acland Mine Stage 3 project.