Anglo American has secured the mining lease for the expansion of the Lake Lindsay metallurgical coal mine in Central Queensland (QLD), Australia.

The mining lease from the QLD government marks the final hurdle for the coal mine expansion.

It allows Anglo American to expand the mine’s operational life and create 500 jobs at the site.

The existing Lake Lindsay mine is located within Anglo American’s Capcoal Mining Complex in the Bowen Basin, 21km south, south-west of the township of Middlemount.

QLD Resources Minister Scott Stewart said: “The granting of this mining lease shows Queensland’s resources industry continues to go from strength to strength.

“It shows there is confidence from major mining companies that are investing in the future of Queensland’s resources industry into the future."

Stewart adds: “Steel-making coal is one of our state’s biggest export earners, worth nearly A$60bn in the 12 months to May this year.

“We need steel for construction, domestic appliances, automotive and mechanical equipment, and also for turbines to generate renewable energy on wind farms.”

The Lake Lindsay mine extension project involves extending the existing open-cut mine into a new mining area.

Once fully operational, the expanded mine is expected to produce 5.6 million tonnes of steel-making coal.

Last month, Anglo American entered a memorandum of understanding with Mitsubishi Materials to build a responsible copper value chain.

The duo will join forces to create a copper product line to cope with rising demand for metals with “strong provenance credentials”.