Skip to content
  • MyNewMarkets.com
  • Claims Journal
  • Insurance Journal TV
  • Academy of Insurance
  • Carrier Management
Insurance Journal - Property Casualty Industry News

Featured Stories

  • Farmers Data Breach Could Impact 1M+ Customers
  • ‘Big Four’ Reinsurers Maintain Property-Cat Appetite
  • Articles
  • Jobs
  • Markets

Current Magazine

current magazine
  • Read Online
  • Subscribe
  • Login
  • Front Page
    • National
    • International
    • Most Popular
    • Magazine
    • Forums
    • Blogs
    • Videos/Podcasts
    • Newsletters
  • News
    • Most Popular
    • National
    • International
    • East
    • Midwest
    • South Central
    • Southeast
    • West
  • Magazines
  • Research
  • Directories
  • Jobs
  • Features
    • Events
    • Forums
    • Market Directories
    • Quotes
    • Polls
    • Rankings & Awards
    • Insurance Giving Back
  • Subscribe

Australia’s Adani Coal Mine Nears 1st Shipment, Despite Climate Activists’ Campaign

By Sonali Paul | December 27, 2021
Email This Subscribe to Newsletter
  • Article

MELBOURNE – India’s Adani Group is preparing to ship the first coal cargo from Australia’s most controversial mine, after battling a seven-year campaign by climate activists and defying a global push away from fossil fuels.

The Carmichael mine in outback Queensland state is likely to be the last new thermal coal mine to be built in Australia, the world’s biggest coal exporter, but will be a vital source of supply for importers such as power plants in India.

World’s Largest Insurers ‘Failing’ to Address Climate Change, Biodiversity Loss Climate Change Activists Protest at Lloyd’s of London, Dumping a Load of ‘Coal’ Climate Change Could Cut Global GDP by 18% by 2050 – If Nothing Is Done: Swiss Re

“The first shipment of high-quality coal from the Carmichael mine is being assembled at the North Queensland Export Terminal in Bowen ready for export as planned,” a spokeperson for Adani’s Australian subsidiary Bravus Mining & Resources said in a statement.

The statement did not say where the shipment was headed, except that “we have already secured the market for the 10 million tonnes per annum of coal that will be produced at the Carmichael Mine.”

When Adani bought the project in 2010, it envisioned building a 60-million-tonne-a-year mine with a 400-km (250-mile) rail line for around A$16 billion ($11 billion), one of several projects planned in the then untapped Galilee Basin.

It shrank the mine plan in 2018 to 10 million tonnes a year following a sustained “Stop Adani” campaign by green groups, which scared off lenders, insurers and major engineering firms.

“That sharpening of the plan has kept operating costs to a minimum and ensured the project remains within the first quartile of the global cost curve,” Adani’s Australian CEO Lucas Dow told Reuters in emailed comments.

The company has not disclosed the cost of the smaller mine and a 200-km rail line it built tying into an existing railway, but the project has been estimated at A$2 billion ($1.5 billion).

“It is quite a celebration because this is going to be the last true greenfield thermal coal mine in Australia,” said Lloyd Hain, managing director of consulting firm AME Group.

Climate activists, concerned about carbon emissions and potential damage to Australia’s Great Barrier Reef – both from global warming and dredging at Abbot Point port – brought several cases challenging government approvals for the mine.

Their campaign turned into a lightning rod at Australia’s last election in 2019, in a jobs versus the environment fight which saw the coal-supporting conservative coalition government re-elected when it was expected to lose.

While activists succeeded in delaying the project for seven years and even leading Adani to change its local name to Bravus, they are not claiming victory.

“It’s a shame that the mine’s still going to go ahead. But just because the mine’s open doesn’t mean all the coal in the ground is going to come out. We will continue to campaign to keep as much in the ground as possible,” said Andy Paine, who chained himself to Adani’s rail line several weeks ago.

All About the Port

The coal will be exported from a terminal at Abbot Point, which Adani bought for $2 billion in 2011 and renamed North Queensland Export Terminal.

Analysts said it made sense for Adani to dig the mine to help it make back the massive investment on the coal terminal, which has run nearly half empty since Adani acquired it.

“It’s about maximizing your cash flow returns on the railway line and maximizing your profits on Abbot Point,” said Tim Buckley, a director at the Institute of Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).

He said even though the Carmichael mine will become unprofitable as coal prices fall, Adani might have an incentive to expand it to 20 million tonnes a year to keep the port filled, when other mines supplying the terminal stop producing.

($1 = 1.3816 Australian dollars) (Reporting by Sonali Paul; editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)

Copyright 2025 Reuters. Click for restrictions.

Topics Australia

Was this article valuable?

Thank you! Please tell us what we can do to improve this article.

Thank you! % of people found this article valuable. Please tell us what you liked about it.

Here are more articles you may enjoy.

TransUnion: Aggressive Shopping Continues for Home, Auto Coverage
Sompo to Acquire Aspen for $3.5 Billion to Expand Global Access
States Rethink Practice of Setting Speed Limits Based on How Fast Drivers Travel
Arthur J. Gallagher Completes $13.5 Billion Acquisition of AssuredPartners

Written By Sonali Paul

More From Author

Interested in Mining?

Get automatic alerts for this topic.

Email This Subscribe to Newsletter
  • Categories: International & Reinsurance NewsTopics: Adani Carmichael coal mine, Climate Change, Coal divestment, environmental social and governance (ESG) criteria, global warming, greenhouse gas emissions
  • Have a hot lead? Email us at newsdesk@insurancejournal.com
More News
Hurricane Remnants Threaten Swiss Alps With Floods, Landslides
South Korea Agency Fines SK Telecom $97 Million Over Major Data Leak
Anthropic Thwarts Hacker Attempts to Misuse Claude AI for Cybercrime
Viewpoint: Why Reinsurance Industry Often Struggles to Manage Market Cycles
More News Features

Read This Next

  • Australia's Adani Coal Mine Nears 1st Shipment, Despite Climate Activists' Campaign
  • BHP, Vale Offer $1.4B Settlement in UK Lawsuit Over Brazil Mining-Dam Disaster: FT
  • Court Says Immunity Shields Former New York AG From Malicious Prosecution Claims
  • Sompo to Acquire Aspen for $3.5 Billion to Expand Global Access
  • When Luck Runs Out: Where $100B Hurricanes Might Happen

Insurance Jobs

  • Insurance Account Executive/Manager Wanted Flexible Hours, Potential Equity - Dix Hills/Deer Park, NY
  • Sales Agent - Encino, California
  • Large Loss Property Adjuster – Field Estimating Little Rock, AR - Little Rock, AR
  • Early Career Trial Attorney (Remote – New York) - New York, NY
  • Inside Auto Claims Sr. Consultant - Florida, FL
MyNewMarkets
  • When Insurance Isn't the Optimal Risk Management Approach
  • Reputation Risk Can Overshadow Ransom in Cyberattacks, Aon Says
  • Tackling Cyber Risks: The Vital Role of Brokers in Third-Party Data Protection
  • DIY Home Inspections Are Taking Over, Firms Say
  • Six Things to Know About Umbrella Insurance
Claims Journal
  • FTC Sues LA Fitness for Making it Exceedingly Hard to Cancel Gym Memberships
  • EU Carmakers Warn Combustion Engine Ban Is No Longer Feasible
  • Peloton Must Face Shareholder Lawsuit Over Post-Pandemic Outlook
  • Most Losses in Destructive Eaton Fire Tied to Conflagration Hazard, Report Shows
  • 20 Years Later, Hurricane Katrina's Impact Echoes in Models, Mitigation and Reforms
Academy of Insurance education
  • August 7 EPLI Basics
  • August 14 Managing and Insuring Reputational Risk
  • August 19 How To Write: Flood
  • August 21 Workers' Comp Crash Course

Insurance News

  • News by Region
  • News by Topic
  • Yesterday

Site Search

Features

  • Insurance Markets Directory
  • Forums
  • A.M. Best Company Ratings
  • Industry Events
  • Agencies For Sale
  • Newswire
  • Insurance Jobs
  • Rankings & Awards

Connect with us

  • Email Newsletters
  • Magazine Subscriptions
  • For Your Website
  • RSS Feeds
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Do Not Sell My Info

Insurance Journal

  • Submit News
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Reprints
  • Link to Us
  • Contact Us

Wells Media Group Network

  • Insurance Journal
  • MyNewMarkets.com
  • Claims Journal
  • Insurance Journal TV
  • Academy of Insurance
  • Carrier Management
© 2025 by Wells Media Group, Inc. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Site Map