Aurizon’s coal haulage volumes jumped 7% year-on-year in the September quarter, thanks in part to the commencement of its 8.7 million tonnes per annum AGL Macquarie deal in NSW.

The Brisbane-headquartered operator won the AGL contract, which used to belong to competitor Pacific National, late last year, and commenced services in July 2017.

The contract is to haul coal from the Wilpinjong mine and Mangoola mine to AGL’s Bayswater and Liddell power stations, in the NSW Hunter Valley.

The additional volume helped Aurizon deliver 13.3 million tonnes of coal haulage in NSW in the September quarter, up 15% year-on-year. Queensland volumes were up 5% to 41.6 million tonnes.

Combined, the operator hauled 54.9 million tonnes of coal in Queensland and NSW, up 7%.

“September Quarter 2017 volumes of 54.9mt were the highest quarter coal railings since December 2013 (56.2mt) … largely resulting from strong customer demand following Tropical Cyclone Debbie in Goonyella, and commencement of the AGL Macquarie contract in NSW,” the company told the ASX.

Aurizon’s annual guidance remains at 215-225 million tonnes for the 2017/18 financial year.

Elsewhere, a full quarter running of IMEX and K&S volumes, which commenced in September 2016, led to a 6% year-on-year increase in intermodal container volumes, to 105,900 TEUs.

The operator also outlined a 4% drop in other bulk volumes, to 14.2 million tonnes. This decline was due to the closure of the Mt Isa Freighter service at the end of January, and temporary production issues for one of Aurizon’s iron ore customers during the quarter.