Adani Group approves massive Carmichael coal mine in Australia

By Joshua S. Hill
7 June 2017 (CleanTechnica) – The long-proposed and highly unpopular Adani Carmichael coal mine in Australia’s northeast has been given the go-ahead by the Adani Group’s board.
The US$16 billion project was given the final go-ahead by the Adani Group’s board late Tuesday after months of delays and speculation that left the project in doubt. Most recently, the local state Queensland Government had held up the process amid uncertainty over royalties, not to mention significant resistance from campaigners. Now, after nearly seven years, Adani has the approval both from the State and its own board to proceed, and pre-construction work may begin as early as next month.
“We have been challenged by activists in the courts, in inner city streets, and even outside banks that have not even been approached to finance the project,” said Chairman Gautam Adani in a statement. “We are still facing activists. But we are committed to this project. We are committed to regional Queensland and we are committed to addressing energy poverty in India.”
The State of Queensland approved the mining leases for the AU$21.7 billion project earlier this month, in a move that the state’s politicians hopes will create thousands of new jobs. Specifically, Adani has estimated that the mine, rail, and port project could together generate more than 5,000 jobs at the peak of construction, and more than 4,500 jobs at the peak of operations. […]A report published earlier this year by the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) concluded, among other things, that shifting energy policy and pricing in India are likely to see the Carmichael mine quickly become a stranded asset. Put this alongside news we reported back in February that Indian coal imports declined in January, and the growing reliance upon renewable energy deployment over fossil fuels, and the absurdity of the Carmichael mine quickly becomes more and more apparent. [more]

Adani Group Approves Massive Australian Carmichael Coal Mine

By Cecilia Jamasmie
6 June 2017(Mining.com) – Indian conglomerate Adani Group has decided to go ahead with its $12 billion (A$16bn) Carmichael coal mine and rail project in Queensland, Australia, one of the world’s largest thermal coal mines approved in recent years.The decision comes only days after the conglomerate agreed to pay the state hefty royalties on the coal produced there and follows years of opposition to the project by organizations ranging from the United Nations to green groups and locals.“We have been challenged by activists in the courts, in the inner city streets, and even outside banks that have not even been approached to finance the project,” said Gautam Adani, founder of Adani Group.  “We are still facing activists. But we are committed to the project,” he said.As of last year, the Indian conglomerate had spent more than $120 million in legal fees and cutting its way through the environmental snags that delayed the first phase of the mine.Opponents have long expressed their concern on the potential harm the development could cause to the Great Barrier Reef, as well as vulnerable species including a lizard known as the yakka skink.They also fear the new mine will open the door to more companies to start projects in Queensland’s coal-rich Galilee basin.But according to official estimations, the Carmichael mine will contribute $2.97bn each year to Queensland’s economy and has the potential to create 6,400 new jobs: around 2,500 construction positions and 3,900 operational posts.”The majority of coal mined will go directly to Adani-owned coal fired generation and hence establishes a new market for Australian coal,” noted Greg Evans, Executive Director – Coal, Minerals Council of Australia in a statement welcoming the news.”Those activists need to reflect on how they sought to stop jobs for regional Queensland families and other Australians and also how they wanted to deny economic and social advancement of millions of Indian people seeking the very modest benefit of accessible electricity,” Evans said. [more]

Adani to go ahead with polemic Carmichael coal mine after all