Gautam Adani. Photo: Twitter
By SAT News Desk
Melbourne, 6 December: Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszuk has said she had an “ironclad” guarantee from Gautam Adani that there will be no foreign workers brought under the 457 visas for the $ 16.5 billion Carmichael coal mine project. Though there is no written agreement on it. The Queensland Premier announced this after a meeting with the Adani Group boss in Townsville today. Mr. Adani, considered close to the Indian Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi had yesterday met the Australian Prime Minister Malcom Turnbull at a private meeting and briefed him the project details.
ABC reports Queensand Opposition Leader Tim Nicholls said written assurances would be preferable.
“The Premier has said she takes Mr Adani at this word and that’s fine, but I would have thought it would have been better to assure Queenslanders that we had some written commitments that jobs from this project will go to Queenslanders,” he said.
The Adani group today announced five regional towns will provide vital support services for the projects.
In a media release the Chief Executive of Adani Australian, Jeyakumar Janakaraj, said Emerald, Clermont, Moranbah, Collinsville and Charters Towers would be the source of support services including workers for its projects.
“We are particularly focusing on the construction of our planned near-400km rail line to be constructed between the Carmichael mine and our bulk port facility at Abbott Point near Bowen,” Mr Janakaraj said.
“So we need people and services in the region to build that rail link, as well as companies to provide resources.”
The provision of good, services and labour from the regional towns would be supplemented by Rockhampton, Mackay and Townsville.
Mr Janakaraj said Adani had also announced that Townsville would be the site of the Regional Headquarters for the Carmichael coal mine project.
Mr Janakaraj said Townsville would also be home base for the company’s Project Management Office, and provide port services for incoming materials.
The original plan of the company was to have the project offices in Brisbane.
The Australian Conservation Foundation yesterday calling it a dirty deal said, “This coal mine would be a global climate catastrophe. It is dangerous to our planet and the people and places we love. Australians don’t want this mine, we want our reef and a clean, safe future.
Malcom Turnbull has a clear choice. Honour an iron clad election promise or do a dirty deal with Adani to use Australian taxpayers’ money to fund a coal-carting railway line from the Galilee Basin to the Great Barrier Reef coast.”
Meanwhile, in a media statement the Wangan & Jagalingou Traditional Owners Council has announced a fresh court action against the proposed project after expressing anger at Mr. Gautam Adani not meeting them.
