Organisers have decided to shift the venue for next year to the Royal Pines Resort on Queensland's Gold Coast.

The new venue allowed for an expanded exhibition area, a larger conference auditorium and banqueting facilities for the Australian Longwall Industry Achievement Awards.

This Awards event is a new initiative to be held in conjunction with the 2003 conference and will take place on March 13 at the Royal Pines Resort.

"The awards dinner will formally recognise the achievements of Australia's leading longwall miners," said conference organisers. "An independent panel of industry leaders will consider and judge the nominations, recognising key areas of excellence in a range of categories."

Confirmed international speakers to date include Uli Paschedag, DBT Germany on "Automated High-Production Longwall Mining of Medium and Thin Seams - Latest Technology and Case Studies" and Robert Hermansen, Managing Director, Store Norske Spitsbergen Grubecompani, Norway.

For more details diana.lauzi@informa.com.au

See Events for further details.