bowen independent newspaper ~ blimey!

hihi team... check out this article that was published 14th Aug 2009 in the Bowen Indepedent Newspaper (thanks be to a mate in Qld for giving me the heads up on this!)...

New mine to benefit the region
By EVE REITMAJER

A NEW mine north of Bowen would provide employment for the
town and is another potential user for the proposed Abbot Point multicargo facility.
The region's councillors and development agencies were given
a tour of the Mt Carlton mine site, which is at Strathbogie Station, between Gumlu and Collinsville, earlier this week.
Perth-based mining company Conquest is hoping to get the green light from financiers by November to push ahead with the mine, which is expected to produce 25,000 tonnes
of precious metals concentrate per year, exported to China and other Asian ports.
The Mt Carlton deposit is estimated to have about 850,000 ounces of gold, 21 million ounces of silver and 38,500 ounces of copper, and a life expectancy up to eight years,
with further exploration proposed. Conquest's joint venture project with Gold Fields Australasia aims to bring the mine into production by April next year.
Conquest chief operating officer Jeff Innes conducted the tour. "Conquest aims to work with the community and will look at every opportunity to engage local businesses,"
Mr Innes said. "The mine will employ over 150 people with a preference to source workers from the Whitsunday and
Townsville regions."
Whitsundays Mayor Mike Brunker said it had been good to
get out and have a look at what Conquest had in mind and the time frames involved. "It's good news for Bowen, obviously
as one of the closest townships to the mine, with the plans
for a bus in, bus out shift operation, it is more beneficial to Bowen," Cr Brunker said. "We also spoke about the need for road infrastructure. "That had been a concern for us
and the landholder."
Cr Brunker said there had also been talk about using the proposed multi-cargo export facility at Abbot Point which would provide further economic benefits for the Whitsunday region. "At this stage they would be shipping it out of Townsville, but depending on time frames, would want to ship it out of Abbot Point because it's closer," Cr Brunker
said.
Enterprise Whitsundays, who was also on the tour, said it would be working to maximise local business and was developing a project to take advantage of all opportunities
in the region including the Conquest Mining proposal. "The project aims to assess our region's business capabilities and maximise opportunities where possible with major projects," EW CEO Rebecca Andrews said. "We will be working with Conquest to assess their needs and how our community can capitalise on these opportunities."