The Hon. Chris Auchinvole, MP for West Coast and Tasman, today officially opened CRL Energy's new office in Westport at a ceremony also attended by the Minister, Hon. Rodney Hide. The facility will be offering coal technology and mine geology services for operations in the Buller region. Both Mr Auchinvole and the Minister spoke of the importance of coal and mining to New Zealand .

CRL Energy Chief Executive Rob Whitney says the coal industry is booming in the Buller region with strong international demand for its high quality coking and thermal coals. “There are a significant number of new developments planned in the Buller and other West Coast coalfields. CRL Energy provides services ranging from geological assessments and advice, testing including coal preparation studies on coal washery parameters, spontaneous combustion, methane drainage and rock reactivity, to research on upgrading coal properties and advanced coal conversion technologies. The new laboratory will be our shop front for these services in the Buller.”

Dr Whitney says New Zealand has benefited and will continue to benefit from CRL Energy’s research, “Our work on fluidity of Buller coals in the 1990s provided extensive knowledge of the coal and underpinned Buller coal as a premium coking coal on the world market.

From left, CRL Energy CEO Dr Rob Whitney; The Hon. Chris Auchinvole, MP for West Coast and Tasman; Alan Broome, Chairman of CRL Energy's Board of Directors; and the Hon. Rodney Hide.