KEPCO Australia will use local contractors and suppliers for its Bylong Coal Project “wherever practical”, chief operating officer Bill Vatovec told Mudgee Chamber of Commerce members at a breakfast meeting on Wednesday.
Mr Vatovec said KEPCO placed a strong emphasis on using local goods and services where practical and would encourage local participation.
Mr Vatovec said the project would have generate net direct and indirect spending in the region of $600 million over the life of the project, with an annual spend of $60 million.
Employment during the construction period will average 360 people, with a peak of 800.
An average of 290 people will be employed during mine operations, rising to 470 in the peak period.
Mr Vatovec said KEPCO plans to establish a workers’ accommodation facility at Bylong during the construction stage of the project due to transient nature of the construction workforce, the distance of the project from Mudgee, and the need to prevent a “boom and bust” in the Mudgee housing market and create a shortage of rooms for the tourist industry.
However, during the operational phase, the permanent workforce would be encouraged to live within an hour of the mine.
Mr Vatovec stressed that the Bylong Coal Project would be part of a balanced local economy which includes agriculture and tourism as well as mining.
“We are very optimistic about the project,” he said.
“We believe the project will not only mitigate risk to the environment but enhance economic development in the state and region.”
Mt Vatovec said the mine would extend over less than 2 per cent of the Bylong Valley floor and would not be visible from the Bylong Valley Way.
Call for tenders for contracts for the Bylong Coal Project will be advertised in local media.
Source: Robyn Murray, Mudgee Guardian, 18 September 2015
Link: http://www.mudgeeguardian.com.au/story/3356952/kepco-to-use-local-companies-where-practical/
