Coal port plans in North Queensland scrapped by State government following lack of investment

It was going to be one of the largest coal ports in the world, but Australia’s Newman State Government has decided to scrap the Abbot Point coal terminal expansion. Before the demise of the project, the Abbot Point terminal was hoped, by the end of the decade, to be a departure point for 400 million tonnes of coal annually.

The $9 billion privately funded T4 to T9 enlargement of Abbot Point coal terminal and $2.3 billion 12-berth cargo facility will now no longer go ahead, following key players pulling out of the development and fears that the expansion was planned to occur too quickly.

Rio Tinto were one of two major players to pull out of negotiations to build new terminals at Abbot Point in recent months. Out of the six original bidders wanting to build the terminals, only two paid the $75 million deposit required, and will now be refunded.

Queensland Deputy Premier and Infrastructure Minister Jeff Seeney denied that the decision signified a slowdown in Queensland’s resources boom.

“I don’t think it’s a case of the boom coming off the boil. I think it’s a case of the previous government getting carried away by the boom,” Seeney said.

“We just don’t believe it’s deliverable. We’re focused on delivering something that is realistic in the shortest possible time. We will be looking to providing access at Abbot Point to everybody who wants access.”

As for the existing Abbot Point coal terminal, last year the former Bligh government in Australia sold this for $1.8 billion to the Adani Group. The terminal is now being expanded to a capacity of 50 million tonnes a year.