A Supreme Court writ has been served on Queensland Mines Minister Stirling Hinchliffe and a directions hearing has been set down for January 20, 2012, in the Brisbane Supreme Court.

Prominent businessman Graham Turner and local residents are also concerned that a mineral development licence to mine a further 9202ha of privately owned land, the Bremer View coal project, would destroy the koala’s habitat.

OGL announced in October that it was aiming to secure haulage capacity for the mine, with preferred operator QR National submitting a conceptual operating plan to rail system owner Queensland Rail setting out plans to rail up to 600,000 tonnes of coal a year for 15 years.

The plan is the first step in securing haulage capacity which will support OGL’s phase 1 plan to produce 1Mtpa run of mine coal by 2013.

Mining lease ML 4712 was recently renewed which will allow mining to recommence at Ebenezer mine.

OGL and QR National must now satisfy Queensland Rail on a number of conditions before executing an access agreement.

OGL chairman Jack Tan said: “This potential rail access availability is a significant component of OGL’s plan for the re-commencement and development of the Ebenezer mine by the end of 2012. It has taken the infrastructure requirements one step closer to enable OGL to meet the proposed delivery of first coal by 2013.”