QCoal is one of Australia’s leading independent coal exploration and mining companies. It is also unique within Queensland as the only user of the Newlands to Abbot Point rail expansion (NAPE). QCoal is also a customer of the Goonyella to Abbot Point rail expansion (GAPE) and a customer of the existing Newlands rail system. As a result it is impacted by regulatory decisions which affect pricing across any of these rail systems.
QCoal recently engaged NineSquared to assist in interpreting the net impact to their firm of potential regulatory decisions which result in varied pricing impacts across systems (benefiting some while penalising others). This piece of advice required an assessment of a variety of complex interrelated pricing contracts and regulatory decisions. The final piece of analysis involved development of a combination of replica regulatory building blocks models (according to the characteristics prescribed in the most recent QCA draft decision) and private infrastructure pricing models. The results assisted QCoal in estimating the holistic longer term impact to their business of a variety of potential regulatory decisions.
