By Darren Gray and Cole Latimer
The Minerals Council of Australia is confident the Adani coal mine will get the final Queensland approvals needed and be built, and believes that the federal election result was an endorsement of mining.
The influential mining lobby group's chief executive, Tania Constable, has also welcomed the clear, short timeframes laid out by the Queensland state government on Friday for rulings on the future of the coal mine project, and is confident there are no impediments left in front of it.
Adani's Abbot Point coal terminal near Bowen on the Queensland coast would become a gateway for Galilee coal exports.Credit: Glenn Hunt
"We're very confident that the approvals will be done within the next three week timeframe, which means that construction on the project can start. And we're going to get real jobs flowing into regional Queensland, that's really what it means," she said.
The Queensland Labor state government has been under intense pressure over the future of the proposed Adani mine since Saturday's shock federal election result, in which the Coalition was returned to power. Federal Labor's poor showing in Queensland has been widely blamed on the party's lukewarm support for the first stage of the Adani project.
On Friday the Queensland government, which had been accused of playing "political games" over the project by Adani, said key regulators would reach a decision on the project's groundwater management plan by June 13, and on the Black-Throated Finch management plan by May 31. The Black-Throated Finch is a small, endangered bird.
We're very confident that the approvals will be done within the next three week timeframe.
Tania Constable, chief executive of the Minerals Council of Australia
Ms Constable also said that Saturday's election result was a significant moment for the Australian mining industry.
"I think it's a significant signal to Australians and to all political parties that mining is important now and it's going to be important for Australians' future," she said.
"It's a mandate for mining and support from the community for jobs in the mining states," she said.
Ms Constable said Adani's coal mine would generate 1500 direct jobs and about 6750 indirect jobs, which would make an "enormous difference" to regional Queensland.
Queensland Resources Council chief executive Ian Macfarlane said last weekend's election result showed that regional Queenslanders backed coal mining.
"Once you get out in the regions, so once you get north of Noosa, and west of Brisbane...people see mining as a job that they are proud of, and that includes coal mining," he said.
Mr Macfarlane called on the Queensland state government to rule out any increases to coal royalties in the looming state budget.
He said he was "ever optimistic" that the Adani mine would be built, but said that the Queensland government "has still got ways of killing this project off if that's its decision, it's only got to put royalties up".
The New South Wales Minerals Council said the International Energy Agency forecast strong coal demand in South East Asia, expecting it could more than double to 492 million tonnes by 2040.
NSW Minerals Council chief executive Stephen Galilee said Adani's latest development demonstrated Australia can supply this demand.
"The approval of the Adani mine would send the right message to our key export markets, that Australia is open for businesses and ready to meet the growing demand for coal in our region," he said.
"According to the International Energy Agency, these economic trends in our region are expected to underpin strong demand for our export coal well into the future."
Mine Life resources analyst Gavin Wendt said even with this increase demand, the delays to the project had harmed Australia's investment potential.
"This is the sort of action Adani has been waiting to see for some time," Mr Wendt said.
"The delays to it had damaged Australia’s international reputation. It looks like Adani's project will be judged purely on merits. It's reasonable it will pass as they've met all environmental requirements so far," he said.