The Turnbull government is coming under fire for "declaring war on Hunter coal miners" if they proceed with a $1 billion loan to the Adani Carmichael coal mine in Queensland.
Adani has applied for the loan through the $5 billion Northern Australian Infrastructure Fund, which grants concessional loans for the private sector to build infrastructure at the top of Australia.
The mine would become one of the biggest in the world with the potential to produce between 25 and 60 million tonnes per year depending on the plan from which the mine is operated from.
Shadow Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Infrastructure Pat Conroy said the research shows the negative impact the loan would have to the Hunter region.
"It is just straight logic. If demand for a product is falling if you increase supply, by definition the price will fall and that is my main point which has been corroborated by the CEO of Newcastle Port and by the Australian Institute and I have not had anyone dispute that.
"While the coal is a bit lower quality than Newcastle coal in terms of its calorific value and the value of it when you are trying to use it to produce electricity, it still will suppress the coal prices globally.
"When you add on top of that the fact that the Federal government is considering giving a loan to this company, it is bad news for Hunter coal miners and that is why we should be saying to the Government that we should not be giving a leg up to the competition," Mr Conroy said.
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| Pat Conroy. |
