The 74-wagon train was loaded with what Ports Minister Paul McLeay labelled as “sacrificial coal” from Peabody’s Wilpinjong mine, to form the base of the coal stockpiles.

The train run also tested the rail loop, dump station, conveyor system and stackers for the first time.

“Several thousand tonnes of coal was successfully loaded for the first time onto the conveyor system during the day,” McLeay announced.

“I congratulate NCIG project director Rob Yeates and his team as the system passed its initial test with flying colours.”

The testing process will continue in the coming weeks with first export coal arriving in March.

Yeates said NCIG was confident the hard work of the past four years would be rewarded as the project was delivered on schedule.

“The commissioning process will continue throughout 2010 to our maximum capacity for stage one of 30 million tonnes a year,” he said.

McLeay also took time to praise the expected economic benefits from the coal industry investment.

“The first operation stage of the terminal will boost exports by more than $3 billion a year and generate up to 5000 jobs across the state,” he said.

“The NCIG terminal has provided a significant economic boost for the Hunter region and New South Wales in the past two years, with $700 million in tenders awarded to local firms.

“This means more jobs for Hunter people. Over 4600 people have been inducted to the construction site, with over 800 working at any one time.”

Fears were raised last year that late dredging work would delay the first-stage completion of the terminal, and in November consortium members Centennial Coal and Whitehaven Coal were expecting it to be ready to load Panamax vessels by April.

Whitehaven is counting on the terminal being commissioned by this time to offload the first coal production from the continuous miners at its North Narrabri mine in New South Wales’s Gunnedah Basin.

NCIG’s second-stage expansion of the terminal will lift capacity to 66Mtpa, with the feasibility study completed last year, and the consortium has earmarked land for a separate 90Mtpa terminal, Terminal 4.

NCIG also consists of BHP Billiton, Donaldson Coal, Peabody and more recently Yancoal Australia following its acquisition of Felix Resources.