Experts and community members will address the Independent Planning Commission in Branxton this week as it considers the Hunter Valley Operations proposal, described as the largest coal mine ever considered under New South Wales planning law.
The proposal, a joint venture between Glencore and Yancoal near Singleton, would extend coal mining at the site for another 18 years, supporting up to 1,500 jobs and extractinng 716 million tonnes of coal from its HVO North and HVO South mines.
Opponents of the project argue the mine would generate pollution far in excess of the state’s annual total and are calling for greater investment in long-term clean energy jobs for the region.
Among those speaking out is Denman resident and former Bayswater Power Station Engineer Trevor Woolley, who pointed to what he described as unusually mild winter conditions as a sign of a changing climate.
“We are in the middle of a record warm winter… we can’t continue as before and keep burning fossil fuels,” he said.
Bulga Milbrodale Progress Association’s John Krey, who led earlier legal challenges against the nearby Mount Thorley Warkworth mine expansion, said the Commission needed to closely examine the evidence given the lasting impact on the community.
Sam Wilkins of the Hunter Jobs Alliance said the federal government’s Energy Industry Jobs Plan currently excludes export coal workers, arguing that a genuine transition plan needs to support workers at operations like HVO.
Climate scientist Professor David Karoly said coal exported from NSW and burned overseas contributed to climate impacts felt locally, including bushfires, flooding and coastal erosion, and said the Commission had an obligation to weigh those impacts in its decision.
Public hearings will be held at Branxton Community Hall on Thursday and Friday this week from 10am, with a third day of online hearings on July 22.
The hearings follow a Court of Appeal decision requiring the Commission to consider the climate impact of exported coal, and come after the NSW Net Zero Commission warned that further coal project approvals would push the state further from its emissions targets.
Public submissions remain open until July 29. If the project is not approved, the operation is expected to close in December 2026, a scenario the mine’s owners and unions say would affect around 1,500 jobs and severely limit the local economy. Glencore says in 2024 the direct economic contribution from the mines was $1 billion.
The public hearings have garnered great interest, with over a thousand submissions to the commission. Of the 1,310 submissions, only 84 were objections.
