Lachlan Baker Photography
Clean Identity Crisis
XRN017, XRN001 and GWU005 lead loaded coal train JU106 from the Wambo coal loader to PWCS Kooragang in the Port of Newcastle, seen at Branxton at 0820 on Saturday the 1st of July 2023.
There are three possible names you could call this business - four to the untrained eye/uninitiated - East Coast Rail, Magnetic Rail, One Rail Australia and Genesee & Wyoming Australia. This East Coast coal haulage business in the NSW Hunter Valley and Goonyella Coal System in Queensland was formerly part of the GWA business which became One Rail Australia in February 2020, most locomotives still carry the GWA branding. Out of 42 standard gauge locomotives, only four have ORA logos, though numerous wagons received ORA logos.
With Aurizon (now Australia's largest rail operator) signing an agreement to purchase the ORA business (for its large non-coal bulk haulage business in South Australia and the Northern Territory) in October 2021 they offered a concession to the ACCC to dispose of the East Coast coal haulage business as to not dilute competition in coal haulage in the above areas, as Aurizon are the largest coal haulers in those areas and the country as a whole. The ACCC was satisfied by this court-enforceable undertaking and gave approval for the sale on the 14th of July 2022, and the sale was completed on the 29th of July 2022. Aurizon retained ownership of the coal-haulage business as a subsidiary it referred to as 'East Coast Rail' until the 17th of February 2023 when it was sold to the newly established Magnetic Rail Group, again with ACCC approval.
The ORA/ECR/MRG business is the smallest of the three Hunter Valley coal operators (though SSR and QUBE have dabbled in that market at certain times - with SSR still having a sizeable Blue Mountains coal operation), the others being Pacific National and Aurizon, they operate out of several mostly Glencore owned coal mines as far as Ulan, west of Muswellbrook. They do not run north of Muswellbrook.
Wikipedia refers to the business as Magnetic Rail Group, the website still says One Rail Australia (1Rail) and is still maintained, the locos still sign GWA or ORA, and others still call it ECR. You will not find a logo for Magnetic Rail Group or ECR online - I get the feeling corporate branding is not high on their agenda.
The XRN class have been tossed around like a hot potato in their short 11-13 year history. First owned by Xtrata, then Glencore, then GWA/ORA, then Aurizon, and now MRG. The GWU class were ordered by GWA and were initially used in SA/NT before they purchased Glencore's coal haulage business in 2016, and all units (at the time being only 001-009, they now number up to 11 in MRG ownership) were transferred to the Hunter Valley.
Clean Identity Crisis
XRN017, XRN001 and GWU005 lead loaded coal train JU106 from the Wambo coal loader to PWCS Kooragang in the Port of Newcastle, seen at Branxton at 0820 on Saturday the 1st of July 2023.
There are three possible names you could call this business - four to the untrained eye/uninitiated - East Coast Rail, Magnetic Rail, One Rail Australia and Genesee & Wyoming Australia. This East Coast coal haulage business in the NSW Hunter Valley and Goonyella Coal System in Queensland was formerly part of the GWA business which became One Rail Australia in February 2020, most locomotives still carry the GWA branding. Out of 42 standard gauge locomotives, only four have ORA logos, though numerous wagons received ORA logos.
With Aurizon (now Australia's largest rail operator) signing an agreement to purchase the ORA business (for its large non-coal bulk haulage business in South Australia and the Northern Territory) in October 2021 they offered a concession to the ACCC to dispose of the East Coast coal haulage business as to not dilute competition in coal haulage in the above areas, as Aurizon are the largest coal haulers in those areas and the country as a whole. The ACCC was satisfied by this court-enforceable undertaking and gave approval for the sale on the 14th of July 2022, and the sale was completed on the 29th of July 2022. Aurizon retained ownership of the coal-haulage business as a subsidiary it referred to as 'East Coast Rail' until the 17th of February 2023 when it was sold to the newly established Magnetic Rail Group, again with ACCC approval.
The ORA/ECR/MRG business is the smallest of the three Hunter Valley coal operators (though SSR and QUBE have dabbled in that market at certain times - with SSR still having a sizeable Blue Mountains coal operation), the others being Pacific National and Aurizon, they operate out of several mostly Glencore owned coal mines as far as Ulan, west of Muswellbrook. They do not run north of Muswellbrook.
Wikipedia refers to the business as Magnetic Rail Group, the website still says One Rail Australia (1Rail) and is still maintained, the locos still sign GWA or ORA, and others still call it ECR. You will not find a logo for Magnetic Rail Group or ECR online - I get the feeling corporate branding is not high on their agenda.
The XRN class have been tossed around like a hot potato in their short 11-13 year history. First owned by Xtrata, then Glencore, then GWA/ORA, then Aurizon, and now MRG. The GWU class were ordered by GWA and were initially used in SA/NT before they purchased Glencore's coal haulage business in 2016, and all units (at the time being only 001-009, they now number up to 11 in MRG ownership) were transferred to the Hunter Valley.