THE decision by Centennial Coal to close its Angus Place Colliery caught Bathurst MP Paul Toole by surprise.
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“This has come out of the blue,” he said. “It comes as a real shock to those families involved in the Angus Place operation.
“It is a shock to the workers, the government and the community.”
Mr Toole is calling for Centennial Coal to be “mindful” of all the people who will be affected by this decision.
“I just hope that Centennial Coal is aware of what this decision will do to the families.
“Centennial Coal sent out a media release yesterday. They will be meeting with their members this morning (Wednesday) and will give me an update on the situation this afternoon.”
From a State Government viewpoint, Mr Toole said they will be strongly investing in the Lithgow community to support the loss of jobs.
“Two weeks ago we also announced another 55 jobs in the Office of State Revenue,” he said. “I believe this will in some way help with cushioning the blow to the jobs in Lithgow.
“We also have several options in the pipeline that have the potential to bring further jobs to the area.”
Mr Toole said the decision was a commercial one made by Centennial Coal.
“The company has clarified its position for the closure, based on the poor export price of coal,” he said.
“They say their Angus Place Colliery has been placed under what they describe as ‘care and maintenance” and claim that if the export price of coal was to increase, they would reopen the mine.”