Rix's Creek North Continuation Project
Bloomfield Collieries Pty Limited (The Bloomfield Group) owns and operates Rix’s Creek Mine (RCM) northwest of Singleton.
RCM was established in 1990 and is a coal mining operation. Mining occurs on either side of the New England Highway in the Rix’s Creek North (RCN) and Rix’s Creek South (RCS) operations.
We are seeking to extend the mine life of Rix’s Creek North. This is called the Rix’s Creek North Continuation Project (the Project).
The Rix's Creek North Continuation Project
About the Project:
The Project is seeking to recover additional coal resources that exist within the mining authorisations held by The Bloomfield Group.
The Project will provide certainty for local jobs and significant economic benefit to Singleton as well as for both NSW and Australia.
The Project is seeking to continue mining operations at RCN from 2035 (current approval) until the end of 2049. Operations are proposed to continue to the west and north, with the Camberwell Pit Mining Area requiring the relocation and upgrade of approximately four kilometres of the New England Highway, located to the north of Singleton.
The highway realignment would commence south of the intersection of McInerney Road at Camberwell and extend south towards Rixs Creek. If approved, Bloomfield will construct the new section of road in close consultation with Transport for NSW.
The existing highway will remain open while we build the new road alignment in order to minimise disruption to day to day traffic. We estimate this part of the Project would generate 60 jobs during construction.
The Project also includes:
- Continuation of mining operations to the north and west of the existing Falbrook Mining Area out to Middle Falbrook and Stony Creek Roads;
- Maintaining the currently approved combined RCN peak raw coal extraction rate of six million tonnes per annum (i.e. the maximum amount of resource extracted per annum will remain the same as currently approved);
- Revisions to the final landform, including changes to the number, location and volumes of the final voids allowing for enhanced future land use (predominantly for cattle grazing);
- Proposed mining operations within the Falbrook Mining Area (previously known as the North Open Cut) to be conducted 24 hours per day, 7 days per week;
- Seeking approval to take overburden from RCN to Rix's Creek South to improve rehabilitation outcomes.
Project Benefits:
The Hunter is the leading regional economy in Australia (NSW Government 2022), to which RCM is an important contributor. The existing social and economic benefits of the RCM would continue as a result of the extended mine life proposed by the Project. The Project would enable the continued annual expenditure of approximately $170M in goods and services and the continued employment of approximately 250 Full Time Equivalent employees, while supporting approximately 520 individual suppliers.
The Project is expected to generate:
- Additional taxation payable to both the State (Payroll tax) and Commonwealth (Company tax) from the additional years of mining;
- Approximately 60 direct jobs during the construction of the New England Highway realignment;
- Royalties from the additional 63.5 Million tonnes of Run of Mine coal being mined;
- A final landform which will contain no high walls;
- An upgraded, modern and more efficient alignment of a section of the New England Highway.
Progress Report
The Bloomfield Group is preparing the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Rix’s Creek North Continuation Project (the project).
As part of this process, we engaged independent technical consultants to assess potential impacts across key areas including noise and air quality.
The proposed mine plan and mining methods have been designed with the clear objective of minimising the number of people and properties that may be impacted by the project.
Modelling has been undertaken to predict how the project may affect neighbouring properties during the day, evening and night.
The modelling showed:
- For many homes, predicted impacts from the project will be similar to current levels.
- For some homes, the modelling indicates an increase in particular impacts for some years of the project, during specific mining operations and weather conditions.
Bloomfield is consulting with near neighbours to discuss the modelling results and, if applicable, the options for mitigation should the project be approved.
Community Consultation
Community engagement is taking several forms and is ongoing as part of the Project’s planning and assessment process.
Regular Updates
If you would like to be kept up to date on progress of the Project during the assessment phase please contact The Bloomfield Group on :
- Phone: 02 4930 2600
- Email: RCNcontinuation@bloomcoll.com.au
- Or click on the link below to fill out your details in the form