Concerns for the Gloucester Community Ahead of Coal Mine Closure

Dozens of Gloucester locals are facing unemployment, with Yancoal's open-cut Stratford mine — located approximately 30 kilometres from the town in the lower Mid North Coast region of NSW — scheduled to cease operations later this year.

Yancoal has attributed the closure to the depletion of the mine's reserves. 

Club Gloucester Secretary Manager Anthony Hughes said the shutdown will have a ripple effect throughout the community. 

“We don’t see a lot of the mine workers day to day as they are shift workers, but that doesn’t mean it won’t hurt,” Anthony said. 

“The concern is the knock-on effect, as there will be less money being circulated throughout the town for those small business owners who come and see us regularly.” 

Anthony said the town would continue to roll with the punches as it has faced similar challenges before. 

“The Rocky Hill coal project, which is pretty close to town, got knocked on the head. We were also drilling for gas at one stage, that got knocked on the head as well.  

“The dairy industry here has changed a lot, and we once had a timber industry too. So just with the loss over years, we have had to continue fighting as a town.

“Thankfully I think the tourism side of things is picking up. The Christmas break was a very busy period for Gloucester.” 

In December 2023, the national energy regulator issued a report projecting the potential elimination of coal power from the country's energy grid by 2038 — five years ahead of previous forecasts.

Released by the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), the report highlights escalating maintenance expenses and intensified competition from wind and solar energy as factors that may prompt the earlier-than-expected closure of coal-fired power stations. 

Despite this, AEMO emphasises the critical need for urgent and substantial investments in renewable energy to address potential power shortfalls.

Yancoal, in response to the shifting landscape, has confirmed that 68 full-time employees will remain at their Stratford mine until the end of this year, coinciding with the cessation of operations. 

Plans for "different employment levels" are anticipated during the subsequent site closure and rehabilitation phases.

ClubsNSW will continue to check in with Gloucester clubs throughout the year and beyond to monitor the situation.