Australian listed QMASTOR has signed a major contract with Hunter Valley Coal Chain Coordinator (HVCCC). The contract is for the provision and support of QMASTOR’s Horizon advanced planning and scheduling software for the Hunter Valley coal chain. The agreement is expected to provide in excess of A$5 million of revenue over five years and will see the Horizon system playing a key role in the planning and scheduling of coal through the Hunter Valley chain. This includes coal movements from approximately 35 producers in the Hunter Valley chain, as well as rail movements from more than 27 load points, which results in the movement and loading of more than 1,000 coal vessels every year from two terminals, with another under construction. A key function of the Horizon system is to help manage the Newcastle coal vessel queue.

The HVCCC is at the heart of the Hunter’s coal industry, it has a pivotal role planning and coordinating the daily operation and long term capacity alignment of the coal chain – which is a necessary requirement to meet the needs and contractual obligations of producers and service providers. To streamline this massive operation QMASTOR will have to use intensive, end to end, planning, scheduling and coordination encompassing some 1,000 km of rail track, over 18,000 annual train deliveries, 35 coal mines, the berthing and loading of more than 1,200 export vessels and the handling of 80 different coal blends for annual exports worth over A$10 billion, with a forecast growth of 50% over the next two to three years.