The Indian energy group Adani has started work at the Carmichael coal mine in Queensland (Australia), which had received final approval from the Environment Department of Queensland in June 2019, and the company expert to export the first coal from the project in 2021. The Carmichael mine is expected to produce 10 Mt/year of thermal coal from six open-cut pits and five underground mines, which would be exported to India and south-east Asia.
Adani has been struggling for a decade to secure approval for its Carmichael coal mine project in Queensland, which is estimated to hold 10 Gt of coal reserves. The project was first approved by a federal court in 2016 but was delayed in December 2017 after a series of legal challenges. The final investment decision (FID) was made in June 2017 and Adani plans to invest AUD16.5bn (US$11.4bn) in the project. It received Commonwealth approval from the federal government of Australia and the Queensland Environment Department approved its management plans for an endangered bird and for groundwater management plans in 2019.