Late last year, Stuart Bocking became the inaugural Chief Executive Officer of Coal Australia and the message he has for @ The Coalface readers is simple. Coal is here to stay.

“It’s great to be on board as the CEO of Coal Australia. This is a terrific organisation and something I am really pleased to be a part of,” said Stuart.

“The work that Nick Jorss and others have done so far is just extraordinary and is already bringing the coal mining industry together and building a strong collective voice for coal. I’m delighted to help drive and continue the work that has already started.

“This is a great sector that for too long has been the subject of a lot of uneducated and misplaced rhetoric about the end of coal mining and the demise of coal as a commodity.

“Coal Australia has come along at just the right time to able to reset that narrative and let people know that coal isn’t going anywhere.”

Stuart comes into the role with a long history of advocating for the sector.  After a lengthy career in the media, he spent six years working as a senior advisor to the NSW government, specifically dealing with the resources portfolio. More recently, his work as a lawyer has seen him deal with resources projects in the planning and approval space.

“I understand the challenges that coal mining projects face and a lot of that is due to this false narrative that the coal industry has had its day and is on its way out.

“The figures from the International Energy Agency for last year show that global coal consumption was at its highest point.

“The reality is that every single day more than half of our energy is delivered by coal fired power. Then we have the enormous demand for our export coal from countries like Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and further afield, not to mention the critical role that our coking coal plays in the manufacturing of steel.

“Coal is still a commodity where there is enormous demand both domestically and overseas and we need people to understand that is simply a fact.

“What is also fact is that Australian coal compared to many other types of coal around the word is among the best, the cleanest, the most energy efficient. Our coal mining companies are also working hard to reduce their emissions.

“We should be proud of the fact that we have a competitive advantage based on the quality of our product and that it is in high demand. Why would we want to shoot ourselves in the foot and not service that market?”

For a grassroots organisation, Coal Australia’s traction has been impressive. More than 40,000 people have signed on as ‘Friends of Coal’ since it launched last year.

“We’ve been able to activate communities with a series of town hall meetings across Queensland and NSW, helping to energise local communities and highlight the importance of coal mining not just for the communities where we mine coal, but for every community in Australia. We will continue to hold these activations and spread that message.”

The impact of Coal Australia was also seen last year during the Queensland state election with swings in voting across the state. Stuart said their focus now turns to the upcoming Federal Election.

“We want to make it very clear to politicians that coal mining is absolutely critical and we will be urging politicians from across the political aisles to demonstrate their support for coal mining and acknowledge its importance to the prosperity of our nation.

“We’re looking for meaningful outcomes for the sector. Reminding people that this is a vibrant industry with a fantastic future and they should be proud of it.

“Our contract with the people who sign up is very simple. You support coal, you support coal mining communities and Coal Australia will support you.”

Join the coal community and help forge Australia’s future at www.coalaustralia.com