An early impression of the final concept for the open-cut Kingaroy coal mine (Source: MRV)

June 11, 2020

Moreton Resources, the company which has been planning to develop an open-cut coal mine on the outskirts of Kingaroy, has gone into voluntary administration.

Administrators Deloitte informed the ASX of the move in a statement on Wednesday.

“The administrators will undertake an urgent assessment of the group’s business and financial position to determine the future of the business and its assets, and to ultimately inform a recommendation to creditors,” the statement said.

“The group’s creditors will receive further updates from the administrators in due course.”

ASX shares have been suspended from trading since March 16.

Company secretary Tristan Garthe, who was appointed a Director in October 2019, resigned on May 26.

Opponents of the mine fear the move may not be the end of the saga.

Kingaroy Concerned Citizens Group spokesperson John Dalton said while he was happy the immediate threat was gone, he was concerned because there was nothing stopping another company taking up the Mineral Development License that still looms over the land.

“This company at least won’t be one that will ever mine here, but we’re also mindful the tenement can be acquired by other companies, and that’s why we need strengthened State planning laws,” he said.

“Something needs to be done to prevent other companies doing to us what Moreton has done.

“The sheer volume of public opposition to this mine shows the public expects laws that enshrine common sense in the thoughtful use of our public and natural resources, which in this case is our farmland.”

Lock the Gate Queensland spokesperson Vicki Perrin called on the State Government to make changes to the Regional Planning Interest Act so coal and gas projects could no longer be proposed for prime agricultural land and environmentally significant areas.

“The Kingaroy community should not have to face any more uncertainty and it’s time the Palaszczuk Government stepped up and permanently protected our prime farming and cropping areas,” she said.

“This community, and many others like it, are tired of fighting these inappropriate developments.

“We call on Mines Minister Anthony Lynham to extinguish the remaining MDL and urgently amend regional planning laws so that mining operations are prohibited on prime farming and cropping areas.”

[UPDATED]

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