ACTIVISTS have vowed there will be no let-up in the campaign against the Maules Creek coalmine, despite the operation formally entering production.
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Whitehaven Coal last week railed its first saleable coal from the protest-plagued project, about three months earlier than originally expected.
The milestone, which passed with little fanfare, was described by the company's chief executive officer Paul Flynn as a "significant achievement".
About 300 people, including high-profile environmentalists such as former Wallabies captain David Pocock, have been arrested in protest actions this year.
But the commencement of production has not dulled the determination of anti-coal campaigners to force the project's abandonment.
"The fight to stop Whitehaven's Maules Creek mine is, most definitely, far from over," said Ben Solity of the group Front Line Action on Coal.
"Although Whitehaven managed to scrape together enough coal from their Maules Creek coal project to rail a trainload to Newcastle, 10 people were arrested ... delaying it by over nine hours.
"These actions are testament to the community's commitment to continue fighting this and other new destructive coal projects in the region."
Fuelling the anti-coal movement's hope is that the prevailing economic conditions mean it is a less-than-ideal time to be opening a new coalmine.
In the face of massive global over-supply, coal prices have plummeted since the heady days of 2011, forcing the mothballing of operations all around the world.
Maules Creek landowner and Lock the Gate national co-ordinator Phil Laird said it was apparent that coal was in a "sort of death spiral".
"For them to build one of the last coalmines in Australia on my doorstep is just such a shocking state of affairs," he said.
Mr Laird, with many other Maules Creek residents, had been fighting the mine for about five years.
He said the mine had become a flashpoint for anti-coal sentiment.
"I really think that this mine has brought together such a wide range of people who you would never have thought would come together under any circumstances," he said.
"This mine because of the corruption angles, the political angles, the farming angles really has changed the story of coal in Australia."
Whitehaven Coal expects Maules Creek to produce about 2.5 million tonnes of coal between now and June 30 next year.
While Mr Flynn has ruled out coal prices returning to the highs of 2011, he has expressed confidence 2015 could bring an increase in the order of 10 per cent.
