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

Featured Stories

  • State Farm Still Wants a 30% Rate Increase in California
  • 2024 P/C Combined Ratio Best in More Than a Decade
  • 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.

EPA to Rollback Limits on ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Drinking Water
Despite Backlash From Trump, DEI Hasn’t Disappeared at US Companies
Q1 Shows ‘Clear’ Signs of Commercial P/C Softening, Says CIAB
State Farm VP Apologizes to Homeowner While Allstate Gets Grilled at Senate Hearing

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
Thames Water Tops List of Firms Facing Criminal Probes Over Pollution
Climeworks Is Cutting 22% of Staff as US Climate Backlash Hits Carbon Removal
Aircraft Lessor SMBC’s Proceeds From Russian Jet Insurance Settlements Hit $1.4B
Viewpoint: Loss Control Services Are Underused Tools to Reduce Identity Security Risk
More News Features

Read This Next

  • Australia's Adani Coal Mine Nears 1st Shipment, Despite Climate Activists' Campaign
  • Brett Favre's Defamation Suit Against State Auditor Can Move Forward, Court Says
  • No NOAA Large-Disaster Data to Hurt Insurers' Grasp of Secondary Perils, Says AM Best
  • Did Florida House 'Sneak' Attorney Fee Wording Into Phosphate Mine Bill?
  • Lloyd's Promotes Chief of Markets Tiernan to CEO, Succeeding Neal

Insurance Jobs

  • Sitecore Engineer - Texas, TX
  • Healthcare Delivery Financial/Actuarial Senior Associate - Arlington, VA
  • Experienced Outside Property Claim Representative - Raleigh, NC
  • Senior Director, Health & Benefits, Client Service Team - Cleveland, OH
  • Product Manager/ Sr. Product Manager - Hybrid: Wilkes-Barre, PA; Philadelphia, PA; Rosemont, IL; Parsippany, NJ; Manhattan, NY; or Alpharetta, GA
MyNewMarkets
  • 5 Ways to Prepare for Healthcare Liability Changes in 2025
  • What's Next For Workers' Comp?
  • Soft D&O Market May Come to an End as Risk Complexities Rise
  • Exclusions: Active Assailant Coverage - Oh My!
  • 10 Things to Know About Insuring Boats & Marinas
Claims Journal
  • Report Shows Cargo Theft Risk at All-Time Highs as Memorial Day Weekend Nears
  • Department of Labor Keying in on Workplaces with Highest Injury Rates
  • Court Says Google, AI Firm Must Face Mother's Lawsuit Over Suicide of Son
  • State Farm Still Wants a 30% Rate Increase in California
  • No NOAA Large-Disaster Data Could Hurt Insurer Grasp of Secondary Perils, Says AM Best
Academy of Insurance education
  • May 22 Commercial Property: Five Bombs and How to Defuse Them
  • June 5 E&O and Hard Markets: How Trying to Keep a Client Might Cause Trouble
  • June 12 Rating AI Tools: Balancing Functionality and Security
  • June 19 Can You Hear Me? Yes, I Am Listening!

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