Media Release

Miners "take five" for safety this week

17 August 2006

"Taking five" has a whole new meaning at Solid Energy's Rotowaro Opencast, Huntly East Underground and Regional Distribution Centre sites this week as staff takes part in daily events to raise safety awareness.

"Highlighting ACC's "Take Five Safety NZ Week" nationwide campaign at our sites is a natural complement to our company's strong culture of health and safety," says Craig Smith, General Manager of Solid Energy New Zealand's North Operations.

"Statistically one in 40 New Zealanders was injured last year. That's around 110,000 people or the equivalent population of Tauranga."

"We are convinced that most injuries can be avoided if we all take five seconds or five minutes to think about the risks of what we are doing before we do it. We're running small activities each day to focus specifically on safety. Whether that is at work, with our children, on the road, at home or on the sports field, we want everyone to "take five" and do their bit to make New Zealand a safer place."

Planned activities for the over 180 Solid Energy North Operations employees include individual mineworkers and teams identifying hazards at home and in their opencast and underground workplaces, safety-based quizzes, colouring competitions for staff children, and displays of safety equipment. The week's activities culminate in presentations to staff members who provide the best site safety suggestions.

Similar safety awareness campaigns have been running annually in New Zealand for approximately 10 years. If you would like to know more about safety at home, work or sport, with children or on the road check out www.safetyweek.co.nz

For further information contact:
Vicki Blyth
Communications Director
Solid Energy New Zealand Limited
Phone 03 345 6070
Mobile 021 670 250