# Dave O’Dwyer

General Manager, New Acland (last confirmed September 2026)

## Career chronology

- **General manager in 2021, at the 2023 Stage 3 restart and in September 2026; exact appointment date and continuation to cutoff unconfirmed.: New Acland Coal** — General Manager, New Acland (last confirmed September 2026). [Truckloads of interest in New Acland Coal roles](<https://industryqld.com.au/truckloads-of-interest-in-new-acland-coal-roles/>) (dated September 2026 site manager identification); [New Acland Mine celebrates first trainload of coal in two years](<https://newhopegroup.com.au/new-acland-mine-celebrates-first-trainload-of-coal-in-two-years/>) (identifies site general manager during 2023 restart); [Environmental groups plan fresh legal action against mine as New Acland ramps up recruitment drive](<https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-01-21/new-acland-coal-mine-explainer/101874880>) (identifies site general manager and response to groundwater concerns)

## Contributions and company outcomes

### New Acland Stage 3 restart [acland_delivery]

2023 · issuer reported · medium materiality

New Hope reported first Stage 3 coal in 2023 and its first shipment in October 2023. O’Dwyer was identified as site general manager; the result was delivered by a wider project team.

**Attribution:** Role overlaps event; causation unproven. Site general manager during the restart; individual contribution not independently isolated.

**Relevance:** Delivery of a multi-year site restart.

[New Acland Mine celebrates first trainload of coal in two years](<https://newhopegroup.com.au/new-acland-mine-celebrates-first-trainload-of-coal-in-two-years/>) (first Stage 3 coal and first trainload)

## Environmental record

### New Acland groundwater dispute [water_dispute]

2023–2025 · documented · medium materiality

Landholders challenged the proposed expansion’s groundwater impacts; in January 2023 O’Dwyer said assessment and safeguards adequately considered these concerns. The Oakey Coal Action Alliance withdrew its water-licence appeal in January 2025; withdrawal does not itself resolve scientific questions about future impacts.

**Attribution:** Individual involvement documented. He publicly explained the operator’s position; no personal wrongdoing was established.

**Relevance:** Community and environmental management context.

[Environmental groups plan fresh legal action against mine as New Acland ramps up recruitment drive](<https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-01-21/new-acland-coal-mine-explainer/101874880>) (farmers concerns and O’Dwyer response); [Oakey Coal Action Alliance ends New Acland mine expansion legal battle](<https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-01-14/new-acland-coal-mine-expansion-legal-battle-ends/104814982>) (appeal withdrawal)

## Suitability for the current role

### Reported experience and role relevance [dave-odwyer_fit]

Career through 2026 · analyst inference · low materiality

Analyst inference: issuer-reported experience is relevant to the stated role. General manager in 2021, at the 2023 Stage 3 restart and in September 2026; exact appointment date and continuation to cutoff unconfirmed.

**Attribution:** Responsibility not applicable. Role fit is an inference from the cited career, not proof of an individual operating result.

**Relevance:** Relevance to the role.

[Truckloads of interest in New Acland Coal roles](<https://industryqld.com.au/truckloads-of-interest-in-new-acland-coal-roles/>) (dated September 2026 site manager identification); [New Acland Mine celebrates first trainload of coal in two years](<https://newhopegroup.com.au/new-acland-mine-celebrates-first-trainload-of-coal-in-two-years/>) (identifies site general manager during 2023 restart); [Environmental groups plan fresh legal action against mine as New Acland ramps up recruitment drive](<https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-01-21/new-acland-coal-mine-explainer/101874880>) (identifies site general manager and response to groundwater concerns)

## Evidence gaps

- Independent verification of qualifications and memberships was not obtained.

- Prior-employer tenure, outcomes and individual responsibility were not comprehensively established.

- Public-source searches do not constitute exhaustive litigation, regulatory, criminal or sanctions screening.

- The site leadership page is undated; exact continuation of this position on 31 October 2026 is not established.

- Underlying expert groundwater assessments and further monitoring outcomes were not independently assessed.

- A single broad person-and-employer web query was reused across multiple topics; dedicated prior-employer and topic-specific searches were not completed.

- The New Acland general manager role was dated to September 2026; independent continuity through 31 October was not obtained.