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generation and changes in consumption COAL mining sector,” the spokeswoman told the
patterns (for example, the emergence of Sydney Morning Herald.
prosumers) are parts of this changing energy NSW takes Whitehaven Coal The diversion was first flagged by the Lock
landscape, Hitachi said. the Gate Alliance two years ago. After a string
The growth of electric vehicles and to court over water use of investigations and prosecutions across
expansion of the world’s data centers has Whitehaven Coal’s five mines the alliance
ramped up electricity demand. At the same The New South Wales Government’s Natural has written to the NRAR arguing that the
time, advances in digitisation require the Resources Access Regulator (NRAR) is company should be deemed not a “fit and
adoption of new business models. prosecuting Whitehaven Coal in the Land and proper person” to hold mining titles under the
The power grid market is worth around Environment Court for taking water between Mining Act.
$100bn in 2020. Markets related to digital 2016 and 2019 without an access licence for its
utilities, such as predictive maintenance, Maules Creek mine.
distributed power supply and asset The regulator said the action followed the
optimisation are expected to grow strongly. failure of the company to divert clean water HYDRO
Toshiaki Higashihara, President & CEO of from major streams on the site and instead
Hitachi, said, “While COVID-19 has stalled used the water in its mining operations, Pakistan, China signs
various activities, we are pleased to be able to breaking the terms of the Water Management
launch the new company as planned. Through Act 2000 agreement to build 700MW
this merger and acquisition, we have been able Grant Barnes, the chief regulatory officer,
to acquire excellent assets that will help make said the miner is alleged to have failed to Azad Pattan HPP
Hitachi a truly global company.” divert clean water from major streams on the
Claudio Facchin, CEO, Hitachi ABB Power Maules Creek site, capturing the water for its Pakistan and China have signed an agreement
Grids, said, “Both Hitachi and ABB Power own use. for the construction of Azad Pattan
Grids have a rich legacy in technology and The maximum penalty for each of the two Hydropower Project.
innovation that goes back over a century. alleged breaches is $2,002,000. Prime Minister Imran Khan said the
Combining world-class power solutions A spokeswoman for Whitehaven said China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC)
with Hitachi’s leading open digital platforms NRAR had commenced investigating in 2018. project will prove to be a milestone in the
presents us with new market opportunities “Whitehaven has previously publicly country’s development and prosperity.
and enables us to deliver greater customer addressed aspects of NRAR’s investigation, He said China is emerging as an economic
value across the world.” including noting the complexity of the water power on the world’s map “and we can learn a
HITACHI management system in NSW and the fact that lot from our neighbour”.
some of the alleged non-compliances concern “The CPEC is the future of Pakistan,” he
practices widely observed in the NSW coal reiterated.

P14 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 27 08•July•2020