# Proof that Coal is a Dying Industry



## Warrigal (Jul 31, 2015)

Coal mines are now more liability than asset. A mine in Queensland has been sold for $1. This mine a few years ago was valued at $600 million.



> *Qld coal mine bought for $1*
> Thursday, 30 July 2015
> 
> A Queensland coal mining company has  bought the recently mothballed Isaac Plains mine in the Bowen Basin  for just $1.Stanmore Coal plans to re-start production at Isaac Plains in  the first half of 2016, more than a year after about 300 jobs were  lost when production was halted.
> ...



Time to disinvest in fossil fuels?


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## Kadee (Jul 31, 2015)

The coal powered power station at Port Augusta , which supplies some power for our area is closing next year with a loss of 300 jobs, Leigh Creek where the coal is mined, will have a loss of many jobs..  SA doesn't really need this type of closures as it now had the highest unemployment in Aus..LC no doubt become a ghost town..
. 
We have unfortunately also lost our car manafacturing plant to overseas with a further loss of 3000 jobs           ( closes next year, however many have already lost their jobs) so now the great Aussie Holden  will be made entirely O/S


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## imp (Jul 31, 2015)

Dame, I foresee you getting some flak on this one!    imp


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## Josiah (Jul 31, 2015)

Indeed it's time to clear the air and start getting our electricity from the sun very directly.


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## Warrigal (Jul 31, 2015)

It's a hot issue over here because coal is a major export, or rather, has been a major export. We have one massive new open cut mine being developed in Queensland by an Indian Consortium and the infrastructure work is threatening the Great Barrier Reef. Another even bigger one has just been given the go ahead in NSW. This time it's the Chinese backing it and it is right on the edge of one of our most fertile agricultural areas.

Our government is backing coal and suppressing renewables but if coal goes out of fashion then we will be stuck with stranded assets in the form of rail and port facilities and have the environmental consequences to deal with long after the miners have shut up shop.


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## BobF (Jul 31, 2015)

Some things needed may be some problems for Australians and the US.

The right kind of coal can be most helpful while the wrong kind of coal can be disastrous to market and use.

Real soft coal can be a big problem and certain real hard coals can do the job quite well.   I don't really know the names of these types of coal but in the US we have miles of ready for open pit mining that can be processed prior to use and become really good fuels to use.   I am not sure about some of the buried coals in the eastern areas of Pennsylvania or West Virginia.   I remember from growing up in Ohio that my dad would always check around in the summer for 'hard coal' of about soft ball size pieces for shoveling into our furnace and later for the stoker he had put in.   There was plenty of soft coal that also meant lots of slack to work with and cleanup.

I have recently read that the railroads and ships heading west toward China are really busy.   We could really use that top grade coal, processed and prepared, in our power stations.   These solar things are clever but still insufficient numbers now and some many years yet.   I am thinking our current no coal efforts are juvenile and way too early for such expensive applications being used to replace our present power plants.


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## Warrigal (Jul 31, 2015)

NSW and Queensland coal is anthracite, or black coking coal. It is very high grade and is sought for steel making and power generation. However, both India and China are concerned about air pollution and are gearing up for renewable energy and are cutting down on coal imports. Customers are drying up.


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## Warrigal (Jul 31, 2015)

A economist sums up the situation in Australia. Are there any parallels in America?



> *Closure on coal will be a costly affair*
> 
> Date                July 31, 2015 - 11:45PM
> *Richard Denniss*
> ...


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## Don M. (Jul 31, 2015)

Dame Warrigal said:


> A economist sums up the situation in Australia. Are there any parallels in America?



The coal industry in the U.S. seems to be going through some major upheavals, too.  Many of the fossil fuel powered plants are switching over to natural gas...now that fracking has created somewhat of a Glut in that commodity.  As a result the traditional coal mining areas in places like West Virginia are suffering major job losses among the people in these mining communities.  There is an active movement in Washington to shut down coal fired power plants, with little emphasis being placed on what to replace them with.  If the "environmentalists" had their way, we would probably see our current electricity rates soaring, and be faced with brownouts.  I am 110% in favor of cleaning up the environment, and reducing pollution, BUT it will require a Major and long term investment in alternative energy to get rid of the hundreds of coal plants all over the nation.  Humans have been creating billions of tons of pollutants for well over a century....since the Industrial Revolution...and it is rather optimistic to think that we can completely reverse this process quickly.  

Additionally, as I said above, fracking has given the U.S. a huge potential surplus in Natural Gas...but seems to be introducing its own set of problems with polluting ground water, and even potentially causing in increase in minor earthquakes.  In that regard, energy production seems to have almost as many side effects as prescription drugs.


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## Warrigal (Jul 31, 2015)

Our government favours CSG extraction but the people are pretty firmly and loudly against it because of the water issues. We live on the driest continent and our underground water is very valuable. We don't want to see it messed with so that we can export gas, principally  to America.


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## BobF (Aug 1, 2015)

Why would you export gas to the US.   We have plenty and much more available if Washington would get out of the way.


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## Warrigal (Aug 1, 2015)

Because it is US companies that are seeking to extract the gas. 
In the agreement there is no percentage reserved for our domestic use which suggest that we don't really need to exploit this resource just yet.


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