Shafted: Mine approval reversed within hours
A decision to approve a significant NSW mine extension was published and then revoked within hours on Friday in a massive bureaucratic bungle by the state’s Independent Planning Commission.
NSW
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EXCLUSIVE: A decision to approve a significant NSW mine extension was published and then revoked within hours on Friday in a massive bureaucratic bungle by the state’s Independent Planning Commission.
The bosses of Rix’s Creek coalmine near Singleton have been seeking a 21-year extension of operations and told 300 workers their jobs were secure on Friday — before the planning body revealed two hours later the approval was a mistake.
It is understood the IPC realised it had not considered all public submissions when it published its approval and in fact, the official deadline for public submissions had not even lapsed.
Planning Minister Rob Stokes — who is already under attack in an ad campaign by the Minerals Council over the IPC — was on Friday night furious about the error and called for an immediate review of the IPC’s process.
The mistake will spark a fresh crisis of confidence in the state’s planning system and comes as the bosses of two major mining companies are publicly warning of sovereign risk in NSW.
Yancoal chief Reinhold Schmidt told The Saturday Telegraph if he had $200 million to spend on a greenfield investment, he would put it in the bank before investing it in NSW because planning decisions were being made by unelected “chardonnay economists” in the IPC.
His warning shot was echoed by the boss of Whitehaven Coal — one of Australia’s major coal producers — who said foreign investment was being undermined and urged the state government to address “dysfunction in the system”.
“We have already seen millions of dollars in future investment and jobs squandered,” Whitehaven chief Paul Flynn said in a statement to The Saturday Telegraph. “For a sector firmly oriented towards growth markets in Asia, we simply can’t afford to be undermining foreign investor confidence in NSW in this way.”
Yesterday’s embarrassing bungle is a massive blow to the government which is already under pressure over the delays of the IPC which last month rejected the Bylong Valley coal mine partly on grounds of the emissions its coal will create when it is burnt overseas.
The Rix’s Creek mine extension has been in the planning system for six years. It is understood the IPC posted its approval to its website and informed key stakeholders of the decision before realising there were a further two public submissions it had not considered and that the deadline for submissions in fact had not yet closed.
The commission then informed stakeholders the decision was not valid and “no determination has yet been made”. It issued a revised deadline for comment which is noon next Friday.
Mr Stokes said last night: “I have made very clear to the IPC that my priority is to clear the decks of proposals that have been stuck in the system for too long. It may only be a further weeks’ delay, but after six years of uncertainty this will seem like an eternity to the Upper Hunter community and (mine owner) The Bloomfield Group.”
Mr Stokes said five mining applications had been finalised in recent months and he expected “that turns into six determinations within the next few days”.
The government will now need to move into damage control to reassure a mining industry losing faith in the state. Minerals Council boss Stephen Galilee said: “This shambolic turn of events must surely be the final proof that the NSW government needs to urgently act to take back control of its planning system.”
In an extensive interview with The Saturday Telegraph, Yancoal boss Mr Schmidt pointed the finger squarely at the IPC which he said was an “unelected body driving outcomes of massive detriment to the state”. “There is quite clearly a sovereign risk issue here in NSW,” Mr Schmidt said.
“If I had $200 million to invest in a new greenfield asset, I’d probably spend it in Colombia first, followed by Western Australia, South Africa and then Queensland. When it comes to NSW I’d chuck it in the bank because it makes more money.”
Trent Goddard, 34, who works at Yancoal’s Mount Thorley Warkworth mine said recent attacks on coal mining were “unjust”.
“The majority of the time these attacks come from sources outside of our local areas and people who simply don’t understand or recognise the benefits (of) mining.”
IPC chair Mary O’Kane said last night she welcomed the review into operations.
“Since taking up as Chair last year, I have been conscious of the need for significant change in the way the Commission operates,” she said.
“Indeed, we have been on a process of continuous improvement since I started but the events of today illustrate we still have more to do.
“The Minister has made it clear to me that he wants planning decisions made as quickly as possible. I hear what the Minister says. The Commission will work hard to speed up its determinations.
“I will also continue to emphasise that our determinations must be robust, and our processes must be open, transparent and procedurally fair.”
TOWERING AMBITIONS FOR PYRMONT
EXCLUSIVE: Pyrmont will be transformed under an ambitious government plan to declare the peninsula open for business, paving the way for greater development and more jobs on the fringe of the CBD.
The Berejiklian government has seized on a Greater Sydney Commission review of the area and will immediately move to amend restrictive planning controls to better support development proposals in the area.
A feasibility study into building a metro station in the region will be fast-tracked to support a bigger population and increased economic activity.
The move comes just two months after the state government’s own Planning Department controversially recommended against building a six-star Ritz-Carlton hotel in Pyrmont, sparking backlash from tourism and business groups.
The changes announced today by the state government will enhance the chances of success for similar developments in the future.
“We are, for the first time, treating Pyrmont and the Western Harbour precinct as the gateway to the CBD,” Premier Gladys Berejiklian said.
She labelled Pyrmont the “next frontier” for the CBD, saying she was sending a clear message it is “open for business and ready to be taken to the next level”.
The remarks will enrage greenies who fought against the Ritz-Carlton proposal and have argued against tall towers in the area.
The Ritz-Carlton is currently being looked at by the Independent Planning Commission and will be assessed in accordance with the current rules.
The move to fast-track a metro station is critical to the government’s announcement as it will help offset the density problems that opponents to development in the region have raised.
Planning Minister Rob Stokes said it was possible to strike the right balance.
“We can support larger-scale development and maintain the unique heritage nature of Pyrmont — it’s not an either/or choice,” Mr Stokes said.
“However, we must plan for the precinct strategically, rather than on a site-by-site basis, to ensure the long-term liveability and sustainability of the area.”
Mr Stokes said the government would also make sure there was clear co-ordination of big developments in the area.
“This is a prime jobs and tourism precinct on the fringe of the CBD which will become increasingly important as our city grows,” he said.
Mr Stokes asked the Greater Sydney Commission to review the planning framework for the region on August 14.
The commission recommended the government develop a “place strategy” to co-ordinate the new planning framework, which would focus on an economic strategy and efforts to attract industry.
It also said that the region’s vision must be aligned with the Greater Sydney regional plan and the Eastern City District plan.
BUNGLE POINTS TO A SYSTEM IN CRISIS
Comment by Anna Caldwell
The NSW planning system is in crisis.
Friday’s humiliating bungle to approve and then revoke a mining decision within hours comes at the worst possible time for a government already under attack over a lethargic and unreliable planning system.
Planning Minister Rob Stokes was last night seething about the mistake — and why wouldn’t he be?
He is already the subject of a savage Minerals Council ad campaign over the planning commission’s failings.
Remember, the Rix’s Creek debacle is more than just an embarrassing mistake — there are hundreds of people who were waiting for the signal that their jobs were safe and a local community wondering if millions of dollars would continue flowing.
And they’d already been waiting for six years.
The government will also be rattled by dual attacks from mining bosses on the investment risk in NSW.
I can also reveal that at least one major resources company has told the government it has been asked to report to its board on investment risk in the state.
These are no small matters. Mining royalties account for about $1.7 billion on average a year — about the size of the projected budget surpluses for the state.
It is clear the government sees the dangers for it in this space. I expect Mr Stokes, Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Deputy Premier John Barilaro will take steps to try to fix the problems.
Friday’s other news — that they are moving to transform Pyrmont — is a bright spot in the planning story and should be taken as a signal that the government wants to tackle the backlash it is copping.
It knows that an anti-development ethos, or a bad environment for investment, will seriously bite at its base.