Press release – 27 April, 2015Gladstone, April 28, 2015 – The lacklustre demand for the Wiggins Island coal port cannot be glossed over by today’s long delayed first shipment and the Queensland government should reject new coal port developments along the Great Barrier Reef, Greenpeace says.The new Wiggins Island Coal Export Terminal (WICET) in Gladstone has been marred by construction delays, cost blowouts, company bankruptcies, and a desperate lack of demand for the new infrastructure.
The first loaded coal ship to depart WICET
– the Toro Orient –
is currently beginning its journey through the Great Barrier Reef to Hong Kong.
“Today’s first coal shipment is a ship to nowhere. It’s taken seven years and around $3bn to build this port and the coal market is looking more depressed than ever. Coal demand has slumped, there’s a glut in supply and prices are still falling. This coal port should never have been built and should be the last along the Great Barrier Reef,” said Greenpeace Australia campaigner Shani Tager.
“The Queensland government must face up to reality and urgently reconsider the coal industry’s push to expand coal ports such as at Abbot Point within the Reef World Heritage Area. They’re an environmental disaster and a bad investment waiting to go wrong.
“Chinese customs data shows a 42% decrease in coal imports to China so far this year. There is simply no need for these coal industry expansions.”
The downturn in coal prices has been disastrous for the companies involved in the Wiggins Island terminal. Three of the eight coal companies have run into difficulties: Bandanna Energy went into administration in 2014, Cockatoo coal recently halted trading for three months, and Glencore will scale down their Australian coal production by 15 million tonnes, or 20%, in 2015.
“This new coal port has been built for mines that haven’t even been built. The coal companies involved in this doomed port have been hemorrhaging cash and will continue to bleed money as they remain stuck in ‘take or pay’ contracts that mean they have to pay for their stake in the port even if they don’t use it,” Tager said.
“Given the low coal price, the experience of WICET raises serious questions about building a destructive new coal terminal at Abbot Point.”
For interviews, contact:
Elsa Evers (+61) 438 204 041 or Shani Tager: (+ 61) 427 914 070