2016-04-07
Following allegations of electricity price gouging by the Adani company in India, the Greens re-iterated their call for the state Labor and federal Liberal government to revoke their approvals of the Carmichael mine.
"The Adani company is named in an unfolding investigation of power companies for allegedly inflating the price of imported coal, passing on higher costs to ordinary Indian households," Senator Larissa Waters, Australian Greens Deputy Leader, said.
"If proved, these allegations would completely discredit the hypocritical rhetoric about "lifting poor Indians out of energy poverty" being spouted by big coal companies like Adani, and by Liberals like Malcolm Turnbull and Tony Abbott.
"Big coal companies only care about their profits, and if the Liberal government cared about global poverty it wouldn't be slashing the foreign aid budget.
"The solution to energy poverty in India is localised renewable energy as it's cheaper than coal, doesn't kill people through air pollution, and because many Indians are not connected to an electricity grid.
"The latest allegations follow evidence of environmental destruction by the Adani company in India, allegations of tax avoidance and a lack of transparency surrounding its corporate structure.
"Both the Liberal federal Government and the Labor state Government must revoke their approval of this climate disaster for a company with a poor environmental and corporate history," Senator Waters said.