GVK to meet court conditions for Australian coal project

Indo-Australian joint venture GVK Hancock Tuesday said it would work with regulators and landholders to meet an Australian court's conditions to gain a lease for its $10 billion Alpha coal mine, rail and port project.

The Land Court of Australia's Queensland state Tuesday recommended that the state government approve the mining lease only if strict conditions are met to deal with objections raised under the country's Mineral Resources Act and the Environmental Protection Act.

GVK Hancock is a joint venture between GVK Power & Infrastructure and Australian billionaire Gina Rinehart.

"GVK Hancock will continue working cooperatively with landholders, the local community and governments as the company progresses in its projects to a point where construction can commence," it said in a statement here.

During the case, objections were heard in relation to climate change, economics, surface water, groundwater, land use, public interest and greenhouse gas emissions.

The company had already won state and federal government approval for the project that involved acquiring coal mines for $1.26 billion, and envisages an investment of $10 billion for setting up mines, a 500 km rail project and a 60 million tonnes per annum port project to make up one of the world's largest integrated coal mining operations.

"The projects will enable the company to bring online a new world class high quality, low ash, low sulphur, low gas thermal coal basin with an ability to lower global emissions from coal fire power generation," GVK said.