Making tracks into history: Developing the Carmichael Rail Network
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rom the first sleeper laid to the first train run, the development of the Carmichael Rail Network has been a historic achievement for Bravus Mining & Resources (formerly Adani Australia). The development of the project was the first greenfield railway on Australia’s east coast in more than a decade. It was also a significant undertaking for the company and the region, as together they built their next-generation rail business Bowen Rail Company (BRC)- from the ground up, in just two short years. While it may provide a 200km rail link between the resource-rich Galilee Basin and the North Queensland Export Terminal (NQXT), in reality, the Carmichael Rail Network (CRN) is Queensland coal’s latest link to the world. Building a new rail line When it kicked off in 2019, the task of building the CRN became one of Queensland’s most significant projects. The rail line was the critical link between
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BBMC Yearbook 2022
the Carmichael Mine, 160kms northwest of Clermont, and the existing infrastructure connecting to NQXT, Australia’s northernmost coal terminal. The development of the approximately 200km of narrow-gauge line involved the laying of some 319,000 Rockhampton-made concrete sleepers and 26,417 tonnes of Australian-made steel rail. The construction task required the installation of 25 bridge crossings (23 over waterways, two passing loops) and 460 culverts. Bravus worked with local landowners and Traditional Owners on the railway route and were committed to minimising their environmental footprint, successfully rehabilitating operational areas postconstruction.