Friday, August 17, 2018

AN OPEN LETTER TO ALL CONCERNED

PLEASE SHOW YOUR SUPPORT FOR INDUSTRY AND FUTURE JOB PROSPECTS
 
We are asking for all Australian residents who are concerned for their future job prospects to please take the time to look and see what has been happening in regional Queensland for the past few years!

If you have not seen this document before, please take the time to read it.
Stopping the Australian Coal Export Boom - Funding proposal for the Australian anti-coal movement
 
Part of the movement is THE BATTLE OF GALILEE.
By building a high profile public campaign to disrupt and delay the Galilee Basin coal mines, the anti coal activists have significantly increased investor uncertainty while undermining political support for the projects.

The anti coal movement are operating under various names but the one thing that they all have in common is that they have made Adani their main target. This does not mean that they won’t try and stop other projects. They just use this most heard of name to get public attention through the media.

We constantly hear anti coal groups say “No taxpayer money for Adani!”

This in turn has resulted in less Government support for the projects. We saw this during the Qld election campaign when the premier agreed to veto the NAIF LOAN for the Northern Galilee Basin Rail (NGBR) project, yet, before that she was fully supportive of the loan for the Rail.
 
We also saw the federal Opposition leader Mr Shorten of being accused of being two-faced about the project, saying one thing to mining unions who want the promised jobs. And another thing to Green groups and southern city dwellers who are trying to stop the $16.5 billion mine.

A Queensland Federal Labor MP told the ABC that he was not comfortable with Mr Shorten's new position on Adani because it would be interpreted by regional voters as being "anti-coal".

Our coal port at Abbot Point is located not far from the World Heritage listed Great Barrier Reef, the anti coal activists have used this opportunity for alliance building with scientists and the tourism and fishing industries, by spreading alarmism about the affects that the port will have on the Great Barrier Reef and the nearby Caley Valley Wetlands.  All of which have been proven to be simply that - Alarmism with no facts!

They have also used the reef as an emotional lever with the general public by making claims of ‘dredging on the reef’ and ‘dumping on the reef’. Which ofcourse is not true!!  The reef is nowhere near  where any dredging will take place.
 
Ofcourse, the biggest threat they say is that burning the coal will cook the Reef. More alarmism, with no facts! The facts are, that the coal would be burned in India in Adani's new high tech power plants which are currently burning low grade coal. Our coal being of a higher grade would actually lower co2 emissions, hence, helping the climate and the Reef!
 
Coal is one of our biggest export earners.  Without the royalties and employment from coal, where would Australia be right now? The anti coal activists want to transition to 100% Renewables to supposedly save the planet. Yet, to do some simple google searches, you can see that other countries around the world are still digging up coal and burning it in their new high tech power stations. Australia and some of our politicians have been caught up in this anti coal stance.  No doubt the politicians see it as a way to gain Green votes at the next election. We see it , as letting us all down! We see it as killing our economy. We see it as killing industry and jobs!
 
 
If you are worried about the lack of support for these projects and future job prospects, please join the residents of North Queensland by fighting back against this anti coal campaign.

If you would like to help us, please join our facebook groups. Links below:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/WeSupporttheGalileeBasinCoalProjects/ 
https://www.facebook.com/groups/AbbotPointExpansionSupporters/ 

If you would like more information regarding the Abbot Point and Galilee Basin Coal Projects please support our facts pages below:
https://www.facebook.com/AbbotPointAction
https://www.facebook.com/AbbotPointandGalileeBasinProjectsMythsandFacts/
https://www.facebook.com/AbbotPointExpansionFactsPage



Below:  excerpts taken from the "Stopping the Australian Coal Export Boom" document!! Does any of it ring a bell?? 










 Whether you love coal or hate it, the fact is, it will be around for along time yet.  Until, a better , cleaner , cheaper form of energy is found to compete with coal, we will continue to use it to give energy to countries who are crying out just to be able to flick a switch!!

It is also vital that we keep coal going in this country as it is one of our biggest export earners. Without it, Australia would be in dire straights!!  

We don't have another export earner that could replace coal, not now or in the future.  Just think about this - the anti coal activist organizations want to kill the coal industry and keep all coal in the ground so we would have to go to so-called renewable energy.  We don't export wind or solar out of the country, so, how can that industry carry on from coal with export earnings??  There would be millions of export dollars lost and thousands and thousands of jobs lost.

Don't let the anti coal activist organizations win with their deceitful lies.  They have no answers for the future.  











Tuesday, July 17, 2018

Adani Carmichael Coal Mine jobs - Facts versus Myths



The #StopAdani movement and their brainwashed followers and a very far left leaning media, continually lie about how many jobs are on offer with this project. They continually share disinformation from a previous court case where Adani's witness revealed that there would be 1464 jobs for the entire project over it's lifetime.

Let's debunk that and share the FACTS.

The witness - JEROME GREGORY FAHRER - was giving evidence on the "Carmichael Coal Mine and Rail Project" ONLY!


The question in court to Adani's expert witness was for the Carmichael Coal Mine and Rail Project, which covers the mine and part of the rail - approx 189kilometres of it. 

However, the jobs figures quoted are not for the rail, port, construction or additional phases. They were only for phase 1 of the Carmichael Coal Mine and Rail Project.

                                                Excerpt from the affidavit giving a recommendation for what Jerome would need to report on (phase 1 only)

There is also the "North Galilee Basin Rail Project" which covers the rest of the rail to Abbot Point, then there is the "Abbot Point Growth Gateway Project" and "Abbot Point Expansion" which covers what will happen at Abbot Point. Ofcourse there is the supply chain employment too that goes with the three projects. You know, the indirect jobs!! 


It is these indirect jobs where most of the employment will come from. A really good example of direct and indirect jobs is the Tourism jobs for the Great Barrier Reef. The figure changes constantly, but, last time we checked, it was 69,000. Now, there is not 69,000 direct jobs. This number is direct and indirect, such as a shop selling Surf gear etc.


 Same for mining, indirect jobs are those that are on the supply chain.

Some call it an Employment Multiplier -

What is An Employment Multiplier?

An employment multiplier is one of the measures used to determine the impact a particular industry will have upon an area when it arrives or departs. In its simplest terms, the employment multiplier measures the amount of direct, indirect and induced jobs created (or lost) in the area. Direct jobs are related to the specific industry, while indirect jobs are those that support the industry. Induced jobs are those that are a result of direct/indirect employee’s spending money in the community. Generally, industries with a higher multiplier are more desirable.


Coal mining has an employment multiplier of 4.4 – meaning that for every mining job, 4.4 other jobs are created. Oil and gas extraction have a multiplier of 6.9. As one can see, these industries can be viewed as a boon to communities.

Below - information about the projects and a transcript of Jerome Fahrer's Affidavit.


Project 1 (2 phases) -   Carmichael Coal Mine and Rail Project

Description:-  

Open-cut and underground coal mine with a yield of 60 million tonnes per annum and a 189-kilometre railway line. 

Key features:-
  • six open-cut pits and five underground mines
  • five mine infrastructure areas
  • coal handling and processing plant
  • heavy industrial area
  • water-supply infrastructure
  • 189-kilometre rail line
  • off-site infrastructure, including workers' accommodation village and airport.
Jobs Mine:
  • Up to 1075 (construction)
  • Up to 3800 (operational)
Railway line:
  • Up to 1400 (construction)
  • Up to 120 (operational)




Project 2 - North Galilee Basin Rail Project

Description:-

Approximately 310 kilometre standard gauge, greenfield rail line in Central Queensland, connecting the northern Galilee Basin to the Port of Abbot Point.

Key features:-

A 100 metre-wide rail corridor (to be refined from a one kilometre-wide investigation corridor) containing rail infrastructure scalable to 100 million tonnes per annum capacity, including:
  • passing loops
  • road and rolling stock maintenance facilities
  • water supply pipeline
  • track and signalling maintenance facilities
  • staff accommodation and training facilities.
Jobs:
  • Up to 2017 (construction)
  • Up to 369 (operational)



Project 3 (2 parts) - Part 1 Abbot Point Growth Gateway Project

Description:-

The Abbot Point Growth Gateway Project involves dredging 1.1 million cubic metres in situ of seabed, which will then be placed on vacant industrial land, next to the existing coal terminal. This project will allow for the construction of a second trestle at the Port of Abbot Point, increasing the port's capacity from 50 to 120 million tonnes per annum.

The Project is expected to generate significant economic activity during the construction phase. However, it should be noted that the works associated with the construction phase are highly capital intensive.  As such, while employment generated by the Project will be significant, it is not as significant as what might occur in another heavy and civil engineering construction project!

Part 2 Abbot Point Coal Terminal 0 Project

Description:-

Adani Australia‘s T0 terminal at Abbot Point Port would be located adjacent to the existing T1 terminal and within the port’s current limits.
The project would involve the onshore construction of rail in-loading facilities, coal handling and stockpiles. Conveyors would connect these facilities to two new ship loading berths, approximately 3km offshore.

Jobs: for 2 parts

  • 1705 (construction)
  • 428 (operational)

   
Below is a link to the affidavit from the court hearing where the disinformation of jobs (1464) were created. The far left media and environmentalists cherry picked those figures, without looking at the facts that Jerome was ONLY quoting figures for phase 1 of 1 Project only. As seen above, there are more projects involved, and, the jobs created will be huge.

Affidavit

And, just to prove that there are a massive amount of jobs, associated with coal mining. Please refer to the pictures below, showing other coal mines and only their direct employment. Remember, to multiply that figure by 4.4 to get an indication of the indirect jobs. Most of these mines are small, some are quite huge, but, not as big as Adani's! Just another indication that the #SopAdani movement have no idea about coal or the jobs associated with them.


 Source: - Coal Mining Central Queensland

Some links below to other coal mining ventures in Qld. Check out how many jobs are associated with them as well!! Don't forget to multiply them by 4.4 for the indirect jobs amount!

Red Hill Mining Lease Project

 14 million tonnes per annum of coal, and , a permanent workforce of 1500! Indirect jobs would be - 6600! 

Kevin's Corner Project
 
 



So, the next time you see someone quoting only 1464 jobs , please direct them to the above information. The problem with the #StopAdani movement is that , they never let the facts get in the way of a good story. And, believe me, their story telling is getting more intense and ridiculous by the minute. All they have really is lies and disinformation. The facts will show them up for the liars they are!

#GoAdani








Wednesday, April 4, 2018

Adani's Galilee Basin Projects - The Facts


So who is Adani?

 

Adani is a globally integrated infrastructure and energy business covering ports and logistics, power generation, including cleaner thermal and renewable energy generation, power transmission & agribusiness as well as resources, spanning India, Asia and now Australia.

Adani's Carmichael mine remains public enemy No.1 for environmental groups who are using the "Battle for the Galilee" as their strategy to end any new coal mines in Australia.  Their plans were laid out in full detail in a leaked document orchestrated by Greenpeace Australia.  Below is a link to this document.

Stopping the Australian Coal Export Boom


After eight years of delays and uncertainty , Adani Australia's chief executive Jeyakumar Janakaraj – known in the industry as "JJ" – late last year set a March 31 deadline for the company to find the remaining funds for the $6.7 billion first stage of the mega-mine, which would be one of the largest open-cut coal mines in Australia.

Since Janakaraj announced the March deadline – to coincide with the end of the Indian financial year – the company has been hit with a number of setbacks on the project.  These setbacks are ofcourse all because of the environmental groups using continual delaying tactics which were stated quite clearly in the above Greenpeace document.

 

The Journey So Far.......

Adani entered the Australian market in 2010, with the intent to open Queensland’s Galilee Basin, unlocking the coal resources within it. 

A unique aspect of the mine’s development is the ‘pit-to-plug’ strategy, insulating the coal from fluctuations in the global market, as well as capitalising on Adani’s infrastructure strengths and capabilities to build a multi-user rail line to the site. 

Since then, Adani has expanded its investment into Australia with the acquisition of the Abbot Point Coal Terminal in 2011, the purchase of the Abbot Point BulkCoal Operating business in 2016 and the entry of the Adani Renewables business in 2016 with a focus on large-scale renewable energy projects. 

 

Timeline


Mar 2018 - Adani misses coal deadline to start shipping thermal coal -  The company now expects first production to be delayed by up to a year.

And, you may ask, why more delays. Once again, please refer to the Greenpeace document above. It is all clearly stated in there how the environmentalists would delay this project.  For more information on the War on Coal, please read our Facebook post - link below.

War on Coal

There is a lot of misinformation and disinformation spread worldwide about this project. Mainly by Environmental groups and their followers.

Below are myths and the facts that corrects some of the misinformation , disinformation spread about the project.

MYTH
Shipping the coal from North Queensland will put the reef in danger from spills and other forms of damage.

FACT
Every ship travelling through the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority area is under strict guidelines and must be operated by highly experienced Australian pilots. This was introduced in 1991 to significantly reduce the risk of collisions and groundings. This will be the same for any ships travelling on their way through the reef waters.
Source: GBRMPA


MYTH
The government has bent over backwards and removed regulations to get this project over the line.

FACT
Adani has spent many years working to get the Carmichael mine project underway by meeting government regulations. It has already spent $3.3 billion to get to this stage and over $100 million in court costs to date. Since the start of 2015, 22 key Commonwealth, State and local government approvals have been granted for Adani’s mine, rail and port facilities and there have been 29 key milestones reached.
Source. State Government. 


MTYH
Adani cannot be trusted with their environmental responsibilities

FACT
There are about 200 rigorous environmental controls imposed on this project as part of its approval process. Failure to meet these would mean immediate consequences from the State or Federal Government that would jeopardise the project.
Source: State Development Minister Dr Anthony Lynham 


MYTH
Jobs will not be created for Australians or regional Queenslanders.


FACT
Adani has given a written pledge that it will not use 457 Visa holders for any construction or operational jobs.

Source: Adani Group

MYTH
The mine will drain from the water table damaging the environment and farmers.

FACT
Adani has been granted a water licence that will directly address this issue. Similar objections were raised in the Land Court and were cleared. Adani claim that not one directly affected land holder raised any objection in the Land Court.
Source: State Government/ Adani/ Land Court 


MYTH
The economic case does not stack up for the mine

FACT
Adani is an infrastructure company, owning and running the ports, power plants and even the wires which provide power to homes. Given the company knows its own demand requirements the Australian mine will fit into this vertical structure from the ground to the grid. It has also invested $3.3 billion into the project and fought multiple legal battles instead of pursuing similar projects in other countries.
Source: Adani


MYTH
Dredged spoil will damage the Great Barrier Reef

FACT
Adani has reached an agreement with the State Government that spoil will be placed onshore in an area approved by environmental authorities. The company owns and operates the Abbot Point bulk coal loading facility and wants to expand this with a once-off dredging operation because the port is not affected by river run off and silting. This has been approved on stringent conditions the spoil will not touch the reef.
Source: State Government 


MYTH
This project will significantly worsen climate change by contributing to emissions levels around the world.

FACT
Both Australia and India are signatories to the Paris Agreement on climate change and thus have agreed they must meet their required targets for greenhouse gas production. Adani believes use of Queensland coal will in fact assist in this goal because Australian coal is 1.5 times more efficient than coal available in India or Indonesia.
Source: Paris Agreement/ Adani


MYTH
Thousands of tourist jobs are in danger compared to the limited impact the struggling mining industry has on the local economy.

FACT
The Carmichael Mine must obey stringent environmental conditions, ships must be steered by an experienced pilot and India has agreed to reduce its greenhouse emissions in the Paris Agreement. The Great Barrier Reef is understood to support 70,000 jobs both direct and indirectly. The coal industry in Queensland alone is understood to have directly supported 19,072 fulltime employees in 2015-16 with local spending supporting 164,482 indirect jobs.
Source: Queensland Resources Council, State Government