Australia’s New South Wales (NSW) Government is set to ban open-cut mining at the Drayton South site in the Upper Hunter Valley in an attempt to safeguard the horse studs in the area.

In this regard, the government is planning to amend state mining and planning policies in order to enforce the open-cut mining prohibition on the Drayton South exploration licence.

Go deeper with GlobalData

Data Insights

The gold standard of business intelligence.

Find out more

Related Company Profiles

View all

The project is based on recommendations by the independent Planning Assessment Commission.

“The underground mining proposal developed by Anglo American delivered a coexistence solution to reduce impacts and disruptions to the community.”

NSW planning and housing minister Anthony Roberts said: “The commission has twice refused open-cut mining applications on the Drayton South exploration licence area and determined that open-cut mining is incompatible with the unique combination of existing land uses in the area.

“The NSW government has now taken action to address this incompatibility by proposing that applications for open-cut mining cannot be made over the Drayton South exploration licence.”

Meanwhile, the government has renewed the EL 5460 exploration licence to permit underground mining only at Drayton South.

How well do you really know your competitors?

Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.

Company Profile – free sample

Thank you!

Your download email will arrive shortly

Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample

We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form

By GlobalData
Visit our Privacy Policy for more information about our services, how we may use, process and share your personal data, including information of your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.

Welcoming the government’s decision, Anglo American Metallurgical Coal business CEO David Diamond said: “The underground mining proposal developed by Anglo American delivered a coexistence solution to reduce impacts and disruptions to the community and allows the region to continue to develop and flourish, which the Hunter Valley region has for generations.”

In April, Anglo American signed an agreement to offload an 88.17% interest in Drayton, including Drayton thermal coal and Drayton South projects, to Malabar Coal.