The contract covers installing the fifth coal valve in the product stockpile, lengthening a reclaim tunnel and associated reclaim conveyor, extending product stacker rails and undertaking minor upgrades to power and water services.

“We and our joint venture partner, McConnell Dowell, are delighted to have been entrusted with this mandate by Rolleston and to be able to provide a real alternative for EPC contracting in the coal industry,” SNC-Lavalin Group Asia Pacific senior vice-president and regional manager Marius van Tonder said.

The expansion to the open cut mine aims to lift capacity from 9.4 million tonnes per annum to 14.6Mtpa starting in December.