KOLKATA | Dec 06, 2016: Townsville in Australia will be the regional headquarters for Adani’s $16.5 billion Carmichael coal mine project while Mackay-Bowen region will be the head quarter for its rail and port operations. Rockhampton and Townsville were shortlisted as Fly in Fly out (FIFO) hub for the project.
In a statement, chief executive of Adani Australia, Jeyakumar Janakaraj said that Adani had originally proposed to base all of its project offices in Brisbane. However, it has now determined that a shift to the regional Queensland centres allows the company to more directly harness the skills and enthusiasm of the local industries, local communities and workforce.
In a statement the company said that Gautam Adani on Monday, provided the Australian Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, and Senator Canavan with private briefing of the new project details.
“Adani owns and operates a bulk coal-loading facility at AbbottBSE -0.52 % Point near Bowen. We will construct a new rail line from Carmichael to feed into the rail link to Abbott Point, so it makes sense to base our rail and port operations headquarters at Bowen,” Janakaraj said.
The statement mentioned that mining support services, equipment and maintenance services would also be sourced from Mackay.
“The Mackay-Bowen region is recognised by the coal industry around the world for its industry support services, and rightly so,” Janakaraj said. “This is a vital role for Adani – this project will not get off the ground or continue to operate without these services.”
Other project services centres are Emerald, Moranbah, Collinsville, Charters Towers, Clermont, Rockhampton and Townsville.
“Townsville will also provide port services for incoming materials. This is a major project and our requirements will extend outside the mining sector,” he said.
Tuesday’s announcement marked the start of the pre-construction stage of the project. “There will be approximately 500-600 jobs during this stage,” Janakaraj said.
“Our mining contractors, and the rail and port construction contractors, will be the major employers during the construction and operational stages.
“This is a significant commitment by Adani to regional Queensland where the Carmichael mine and associated projects will generate 10,000 jobs directly and indirectly and each of the regional centres will benefit from the Carmichael projects.
“The Carmichael mine is primarily aimed at bringing electricity to 100 million people in India, to improve their quality of life and indeed provide them with better health, education and employment opportunities.
Janakraj said: “The group has a very balanced approach to renewable energy. With a current solar energy portfolio of 1,400MW and a target of 12,000MW by 2022, Adani is clearly in line to realise our vision of becoming the largest renewable generator globally.”
(Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/)