Two significant coal mine expansion projects in New South Wales have been fast-tracked to the state's planning authority, mere days after an independent climate body issued a stark warning that such developments are incompatible with emissions reduction goals.
Planning push defies expert climate advice
The NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI) has referred proposals for the Chain Valley Colliery Consolidation Project on Lake Macquarie's southern shore and the Moolarben coal mine extension near Mudgee to the Independent Planning Commission (IPC). This move came less than a week after the NSW Net Zero Commission's landmark report advised against further coal expansions.
According to the commission's Coal Mining Emissions Spotlight Report, the state's first major analysis on meeting its climate laws, continuing to expand coal mining is fundamentally at odds with legal targets. "Continued extensions or expansions to coal mining in NSW are not consistent with emissions reduction targets in the Climate Change Act or the Paris Agreements temperature goals," states Finding 4 of the report.
"Extraordinary" timing and omitted findings
Environmental advocates have labelled the swift referral process as "extraordinary." Nic Clyde, coordinator for the Lock the Gate Alliance, pointed out that the DPHI spent only four working days considering the commission's report before advancing the projects.
"This finding is not mentioned at all by NSW DPHI in their assessment and referral of both projects to the NSW IPC," Mr Clyde said, referring to the critical Finding 4. He emphasised that NSW is already off track to meet its legislated greenhouse gas targets, and approving the Moolarben extension would exacerbate the problem.
The Moolarben Coal Complex Open Cut 3 extension is projected to add approximately 200,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions to the state's inventory in 2030. Alarmingly, government projections estimate NSW will fall 6.6 million tonnes short of its target that same year. Scope 1 emissions from Moolarben have also surged by 42% over the past four years.
Calls for a pause on a "broken" system
Mr Clyde criticised the existing approval framework, revealing that Moolarben, one of NSW's largest mines, has been operating for four years under a so-called 'Greenhouse Gas Minimisation Plan' containing no actual abatement actions. "The system for assessing and determining new coal expansion in NSW is broken," he asserted.
Lock the Gate is now calling for a moratorium on further coal project assessments until the Net Zero Commission's recommendations are fully implemented. The commission, an independent statutory authority, produced its report as the first in a series guiding NSW toward its targets of a 50% emissions reduction by 2030 and 70% by 2035.
The referred projects have substantial economic backing. The Chain Valley proposal by Great Southern Energy seeks to consolidate existing consents for Chain Valley and Mannering collieries, permit additional extraction, and extend operations to December 31, 2029 to match the Vales Point power station's timeline. A public hearing is scheduled for February 19, 2026, at Caves Beach.
With 37 operating coal mines generating $33.1 billion in export revenue and $3.1 billion in royalties in 2023-24, the tension between economic interests and climate commitments is set to define NSW's energy and planning policy for years to come.
