Qld Government's coal mine handout makes mockery of "low emissions" fund

Queensland Conservation Council slams the Queensland Government’s decision to deliver the first funding under the Low Emissions Investment Partnership to build a new gas fired power station at an existing coal mine.

The decision would see the Queensland Government pay coal miner Stanmore to build infrastructure to burn super pollutant methane to bring down the company’s energy costs at their South Walker mine site near Nebo in central Queensland.

Around a third of global heating to date is caused by methane. Methane traps more than 80 times more heat than carbon dioxide over twenty years in the atmosphere.

The Queensland Conservation Council is calling for strong regulation on methane measurement, reporting and reduction, not subsidies for more fossil fuel infrastructure.

Queensland Conservation Council Energy Strategist, Clare Silcock, said:

This announcement makes a mockery of the name Low Emissions Investment Partnership fund. Building new fossil fuel infrastructure is not climate action.

Just today, the Federal Government announced their intention to improve monitoring and measuring of methane emissions from coal mines. Meanwhile, the Queensland Government is handing out subsidies to build more fossil fuel infrastructure.

We have no confidence that this will actually deliver emissions reductions we desperately need.

The Government has lauded the fact that this money comes from the increased coal royalties collected as mining companies make super profits off the back of high coal power prices.

This decision is just passing back these profits to coal companies rather than investing them in actual emissions reductions and renewable energy.

The South Walker Coal mine will be able to reduce their reliance on grid electricity, thanks to Government subsidies, but the Government has still refused to support those households who can’t access solar panels, like renters.

The Queensland Government needs to stand up for real emissions reduction and clean energy to bring down power prices, not handouts for polluting coal companies.