Australian govt gives nod to rail corridor project: GVK

Infrastructure major GVK today said it has got the approval of the Australian government for its proposed 500-km long rail corridor from the Galilee Basin to the port of Abbot Point in the Queensland province.

GVK said the Queensland Government's decision, announced in their Parliament earlier today, highlights GVK's advanced status and its commitment to 'Opening Up the Galilee Basin'. With this the USD 10 billion Alpha Coal Mine project (mines, railway line and port) in Galilee Basin cleared another hurdle, GVK said in a statement.

GVK Chairman and Managing Director GVK Reddy said the investment in rail corridor will deliver wider benefits as it provides both initial and additional capacity to satisfy both Galilee and Bowen Basin rail capacity requirements in the future.

"This, combined with the continued investment in the Strategic Rail Corridor, underlines the government's commitment to develop rail infrastructure for many decades to come," Reddy said in a statement.

Last week the Queensland government had given environmental clearance to Alpha coal mine project. However, the federal government has raised some objection over the clearance. GVK has maintained that its railway alignment is the most efficient and cost effective option that will benefit the Galilee Basin for several decades to come.

GVK Vice-Chairman G V Sanjay Reddy said this development shows a huge vote of confidence in GVK and most significantly a recognition of the vital role that the company will play in the construction of this rail corridor thereby supporting jobs and also driving sustainable economic growth.

"The GVK Hancock Coal Rail Corridor from the Galilee Basin to the port of Abbot Point would also help to alleviate the capacity crunch on this route, thereby facilitate economic development of the region," Sanjay Reddy said.
It is now looking forward to further cooperation with State and Federal Governments and third party users as it continues to finalise the requisite approvals to enable the construction of the 495 km standard gauge multi-user rail system from the Galilee Basin to the port, the statement said.

The initial capacity and current approvals are for 60 million tonnes per annum (mtpa), however, the rail line is scalable to 120 mtpa on the single line, while the capacity can be expanded further as per the requirement, the statement
added.

Last year, GVK paid USD 1.26 billion to buy the coal assets and related logistics infrastructure in Australia from Hancock through a group company GVK Coal Developers (Singapore).