expects significant increase in profit

Sydney - Wednesday - Nov 15: (RWE Australian Business News) -
Austral Coal Ltd (ASX code: AUO) had made significant progress under the
management of Centennial Coal Company Ltd (ASX code: CEY) but much
remained to be done, chairman Dr Paul J Moy told the AGM today.
Centennial took over management control of Austral's Tahmoor
coking coal mine shortly after achieving control of the company in April
2005, and immediate steps were taken to rectify the mine's
underperformance and secure its long-term future.
"Since year-end, Tahmoor has completed a longwall changeover and
returned to longwall production, a little later than planned, after the
mine experienced unexpected variable conditions in the final stages of
the LW23," Dr Moy said.
"This not only impacted production, but has also led to an
increase in costs and will result in some sales slipping into the 2008
financial year," he noted.
"As a result of the progress made to date, the directors remain
confident in achieving Tahmoor's stated growth objectives and anticipate
a significant increase in profitability for the current year when
compared with 2006," the chairman said.