Hail Creek wins Best Large Business award

Rio Tinto Coal Australia's Hail Creek Mine has been named Best Large Business at the Mackay Chamber of Commerce and MAIN (Mackay Area Industry Network) 2010 Best in Business Awards.

Hail Creek Mine general manager operations Andrew Woodley said the award recognised the site's reputation for high performance, community support programmes, safety systems and positive workplace culture, which has established it as an employer of choice in the Bowen Basin.

"I'd like to thank all of the employees who help make Hail Creek Mine an outstanding operation," said Mr Woodley.

"Over the last 12 months Hail Creek Mine has significantly expanded, both in onsite equipment and human resources.

"We have increased our workforce by over 200 people in less than 12 months and achieved an excellent safety record, whilst demonstrating record performance levels."

Hail Creek Mine aims to be recognised as one of the world's premier coal mines, by safely, reliably and innovatively delivering top quality coal products.

"At Hail Creek Mine, we have strived to build a workplace culture based on innovation and continuous improvement," said Mr Woodley.

"We believe that injuries at work are unacceptable and preventable on both a personal and team level."

Hail Creek Mine was recently rewarded for its strong safety performance by winning the Rio Tinto Chief Executive Safety Award, presented each year to two sites across the Group's global portfolio for their safety performance and culture.

Media Enquiries: Matthew Klar 07 3029 1168 / 0457 525 578.

Media release - Hail Creek wins Best Large Business award [PDF: 18 KB]