Transport operator Asciano Group said that it has secured a contract to haul coal in Queensland that will gain it more than AUD 775 million in revenue over ten years.

Asciano said that it had executed the deal with Anglo American Metallurgical Coal Pty Ltd to haul 16.5 million tonnes per year, beginning on January 1st 2012.

The deal with see Asciano hauling 10.9 million tonnes per year from Anglo American's German Creek facility, which currently is serviced by QRNational. It also will take 5.75 million tonnes per year currently hauled for Anglo American by Pacific National from Moranbah North.

Asciano is a new entrant into the Queensland rail haulage business. It said that it expected to have hauled 14 million tonnes of coal in Queensland by June 30, the end of its first full year of operations in the state.

Asciano said that "The signing of this 10 year agreement will generate additional revenue of over AUD 775 million.”

Mr Mark Rowsthorn MD of Asciano said that “Anglo American has been extremely pleased with our performance since we began servicing their Moranbah North mine in mid 2009. The result is a performance based contract that not only matches the cargo assembly mode of the coal chain, but also provides Anglo American with the ability to mix and match its mine and port haulage requirements. Winning this major contract reflects the fact that we continue to exceed our customers expectations."

(Sourced from AAP)