The $A180 million facility will support its coal operations and increase the efficiency of its services in the Goonyella, Blackwater and Newlands rail systems.

The 5km-long facility will enable the provisioning and maintenance of Pacific National trains. This includes their refuelling, routine train inspections and wagon and locomotive maintenance work.

“Nebo is the first facility of its design in Australia and includes some of the most innovative design and maintenance techniques seen within the rail industry today, with capacity to support up to 25 coal trains, with eight bays for locomotives and two main tracks for wagon maintenance,” said Pacific National Coal general manager operations Queensland Geoff Featherstone.

Pacific National Coal hauls coal to the Dalrymple Bay Coal Terminal, the Port of Gladstone and the Port of Abbott Point. It has contracts with Xstrata, Rio Tinto, Macarthur Coal, Anglo American, Middlemount, Bowen Central Coal and BHP Mitsui Coal. The latter contract starts on January 1.

Planning for the Nebo facility began in 2010 and included consultation with key stakeholders to ensure minimisation of potential environmental, noise and land impacts.

The design and construction was carried out under an alliance between Pacific National Coal and Abigroup Contractors, BG&E and QR National.

The facility was designed to link to QR National’s rail network. A connection agreement has been negotiated with QR National to ensure the efficient integration of the facility with the existing network.

Pacific National Coal director David Irwin said the completion of the train maintenance and provisioning facility at Nebo was a significant milestone for the company.

“With Queensland coal exports expected to grow strongly, Pacific National’s investment is critical to delivering the most efficient, effective and sustainable coal haulage services,” he said.