Bathurst Resources

A pioneer in its industry, Bathurst was one of the first mining organisations to embrace digital compliance management. 

At the time, it was standard practice to monitor compliance across a myriad of spreadsheets and paper files. This approach wasn’t just time-consuming but also error-prone and inaccurate. A single misplaced digit could escalate into issues that threatened the organisation’s smooth operations or financial viability. 

The manual monitoring was also slow. Reports included data that was already weeks or months out of date, so decision-making amounted to little more than guesswork. Alerts of potential issues nearly always came too late – staff would miss the opportunity to resolve a problem before it impacted the wider organisation. 

For Bathurst, these limitations weren’t acceptable – its standards were too high and the organisation too complex. The company is responsible for the health and well-being of around 600 employees and 150 regular contractors across sites on the West Coast, Canterbury, Southland and Waikato. Bathurst holds over 6200 regulated conditions that it needs to monitor and manage. 

After seeing the full potential of CS-VUE, Bathurst took steps to upskill its team, hired a systems administration manager and leveraged CS-VUE’s expertise to help with data input projects. This investment shows Bathurst’s assurance in the benefits of digitising its compliance management with CS-VUE. 

Powered by the CS-VUE cloud-based platform, Bathurst’s compliance dashboard is customised to the varied site conditions, along with the commitments made in management plans and internal policies. Data is fed into the system and analysed automatically, making it simpler for staff to understand and meet compliance expectations. 

Customised templates also make it simpler to monitor obligations associated with historical Crown liabilities and Bathurst’s internal standard for decommissioning and mine closure management.

Resolving issues faster 

CS-VUE also removes significant administrative burdens, freeing staff to invest more time in value-add tasks and make decisions based on timely, accurate data. This real-time oversight is especially important when things go wrong. A hierarchical alert system flags issues needing attention so condition and obligation managers can take steps faster. 

Automated auditing processes 

Reporting and auditing are essential aspects of compliance and risk minimisation. CS-VUE delivers heightened visibility, while automation increases efficiency. Reports that may have taken weeks to prepare can now be generated in minutes. 

Future-proofing compliance 

The digital system positions Bathurst to ensure that inevitable changes in its operations and the regulatory landscape don’t impact efficiency and growth.

For example, if a key staff member moved roles, there was no assurance that Bathurst would retain its IP. Now housed in CS-VUE, the handover is seamless. 

CS-VUE also simplifies Bathurst’s monitoring of site operations against any new environmental policies and standards, and keeping up to date with Treasury compliance.  

In 2019, the ASX Corporate Governance Council released new Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations. In response, Bathurst established a range of internal policy templates, confident they could be monitored and regularly reviewed in CS-VUE. 

CS-VUE has unlocked unmatched efficiency, transparency and control for Bathurst’s compliance team. It gives directors confidence in compliance and performance, helping minimise governance, environmental and financial risk. 

Despite significant regulatory changes over the past 24 months, Bathurst has reported zero significant compliance events or material impacts.  

Our development team continues to strengthen, streamline and improve compliance alongside the Bathurst compliance team. An ongoing commitment to excellence positively impacts the performance of the organisation as it continues to set mining industry standards in New Zealand, Australia and beyond. 

To learn more about how CS-VUE could significantly improve the control, transparency and oversight of your compliance processes, contact us today. <link> 

Bathurst’s NZ environmental compliance requirements monitored with CS-VUE

• Resource consents granted by the relevant district and regional territorial authorities, after following the processes set out in the Resource Management Act 1991
• Mining licences granted originally under the Coal Mines Act 1979 and now regulated under the Crown Minerals Act 1991 
• Mining permits required to mine Crown coal, issued under the Crown Minerals Act 1991 by the Minister of Energy and Resources 
• Access arrangements or profit à prendre granted by owners of private (i.e. non-Crown-owned) coal 
• Access arrangements granted by relevant landowners and occupiers under the Crown Minerals Act 1991. For Crown-owned land managed by the Department of Conservation, these access arrangements are granted either by the Minister of Conservation or, for significant projects, jointly by the Minister of Conservation and the Minister of Energy and Resources.
• Concession agreements under the Conservation Act 1987 for land outside a permit area, but owned by the Crown and managed by the Department of Conservation
• Wildlife authorities issued under the Wildlife Act 1953 granted by the Minister of Conservation 
• Controls around water and air discharges that result from mining operations

CS-VUE helps Bathurst align with ASX Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations, including:

• Code of Conduct
• Remuneration and Nomination Committee Charter
• Audit and Risk Committee Charter
• Continuous Disclosure Policy
• Share Trading Policy
• Diversity Policy
• Board Charter
• Shareholder Communication Policy
• Policy on Independence of Directors
• Corporate Governance Statement
• Whistleblower Policy
• Health, Safety, Environment and Community Committee Charter
• Constitution
• Anti-corruption and bribery policy
• Emissions Trading Scheme Policy