Each year, Aurizon, Australia’s largest rail freight operator, transports more than 250 Mt of Australian commodities, connecting miners, primary producers, and industry with international and domestic markets. It provides customers with integrated freight and logistics solutions across an extensive national rail and road network, traversing Australia. The company also owns and operates one of the world’s largest coal rail networks, linking more than 50 mines with three major ports in Queensland. Construction is currently underway on the development of the A$186 million Hexham Train Support Facility (TSF) to service Aurizon’s growing Hunter Valley coal freight business and capacity pressures in the coal supply chain.
Located in the Hunter Valley of NSW, a few kilometres from the Port of Newcastle and the Kooragang and Carrington Coal Terminals, Aurizon is redeveloping approximately 38 hectares of zoned industrial land it owns into a TSF. The TSF will provide for the operational management of Aurizon trains including statutory and routine maintenance inspections. It will enable Aurizon locomotives and wagons to be attached and detached; provisioned with fuel, water and other supplies and to be serviced or temporarily stored. Completion of construction is expected mid-2015. Lycopodium has been appointed the Independent Project Verifier to the Project. The role of the independent verifier, an organisation that is free from project obligation, is to conduct investigation into the validity and preservation of contractual requirements and adherence with required standards and guidelines. Lycopodium was originally engaged by Aurizon to independently assess the design and construction to ensure the site will interface correctly with the Hunter Valley Coal Network.
