Hillery Group awarded $15m Bowen Rail Company contract

A family-owned Bowen business will deliver $15 million worth of rail infrastructure for the Carmichael mine and rail project.

A family-run Bowen company has been awarded a $15 million contract expected to create more than 100 jobs during construction.

Bowen Rail Company engaged Hillery Group to build a new rail yard for the Carmichael mine and rail project contract.

The rail yard will be an important part of the business’ long-term operating plan but is not required for the company to begin rail operations later this year.

Director Trista Brohier said partnering with Hillery was another example of how Bowen Rail Company was delivering on its promises of jobs and work packages for the Whitsunday region.

Bowen company Hillery Group has been awarded a contract to build a new $15m rail yard as part of the Carmichael mine and rail project. Picture: Contributed

“We’re pleased that we can now share with the Bowen community how our commitments on jobs and contracts for the Whitsundays are coming to life,” she said.

“Partnering with Hillery is a perfect example of this and we couldn’t have picked a better local company to do the job considering their strong technical expertise and knowledge of the region.”

Hillery Group is a family-owned business in Bowen, established more than 30 years ago, with more than 100 employees.

It specialises in civil construction and plant hire, as well as operating four local quarries and supplying these materials across regional Queensland.

Bowen Raily Company’s next-generation locomotives are the most technologically advanced rail fleet in Australia, meaning the local workforce is able to work more efficiently, safely, and with a smaller environmental footprint. Picture: Contributed

Hillery Group CEO Luke Hillery said the project was a big win for his business and the community.

“We’re really proud to have been given the opportunity to deliver this critical piece of infrastructure for Bowen Rail,” he said.

“We see the value that this business will bring to our region for the long term, and it’s great to be one of the first cabs off the rank to win a big contract of this nature.

“It’s not often we see contracts to build rail yards in Bowen, so we were excited at the opportunity to partner with the Bowen Rail team.”

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Bowen Rail Company launched in August 2020 and will begin rail operations in the 2021 calendar year. Picture: Contributed

Ms Brohier said clearing and earthworks were now well progressed in the rail yard’s delivery, with other exciting announcements for Bowen Rail shortly to come.

“We launched the Bowen Rail company in August last year, and we have been enthusiastically working behind the scenes since then to establish our business for operations,” Ms Brohier said.

“We’ve been busy setting up our systems, team and infrastructure, and we’re looking forward to sharing our ongoing progress with our fellow community members as we work towards running trains with our first customer’s coal product from the Carmichael mine later this year.”

Bowen company Hillery Group has been awarded a contract to build a new $15m rail yard as part of the Carmichael mine and rail project. Picture: Contributed

Railway bridge works and rail line earthworks are nearing completion, and track laying is under way putting the project on track to export its first coal to market in the 2021 calendar year as planned.

Bravus have also recently reached the coal seams at the Carmichael mine, which once complete, will be a 10 million tonne a year mine.