Isra-Mart SRL news:
A top academic says Australia is dragging the chain on dealing with climate change.
Cameron Hepburn, a senior Research Fellow at the University of Oxford, says India, China and the European Union have already set carbon prices and established carbon trading schemes, or are about to do so.
"There's this perception that Australia wouldn't want to move first.
"There's really no risk of that happening at all.
"The action is everywhere else, it isn't here.
"Europe took action five years ago, some US states have taken action and now we've just heard from China and India.
"The Chinese will have an emissions trading scheme in eight provinces and five cities, and India already has a carbon tax in place, (although) it's only about $3/tonne.
"The rest of the world is getting on with it, and Australia is kind of still debating the issue."
The price of carbon in Europe is $21/tonne and there is discussion on reducing emissions by 30 per cent by 2020.
He thinks it would be in Australia's interest to start moving on carbon pricing.
"We can transition slowly now, in a way that is predictable and certain for business, or we can stick our heads in the sand and wait for other countries to stick tariffs on our goods and services.
"Then have to transition rapidly, possibly scrapping power plants or kit that we've put together in a high carbon era, which would be more costly."
He thinks some compensation will be necessary and points to research done by the Grattan Institute.
"Based on work that they've done I think there's a limited case for compensation for cement and aluminium industries."
He thinks a carbon tax would also work although he says it is politically harder to get up that a trading scheme.
"If you could get one up politically then it will do the job just fine."
He thinks the proposals put forward by BHP Billiton CEO Marius Kloppers are sound.
"He was calling for a trading scheme for 40-50 per cent of the economy (the energy sector) and a cabon tax for the rest of the mining sector."
Mining conference and exploration concerns
There's a major mining conference is being held today in Wollongong.
'Mining Under the Microscope' will explore issues confronting the minerals industry and the community in NSW.
The industry admits it is operating under an increasing level of scrutiny.
NSW Minerals Council CEO Dr Nikki Williams outlined some of the challenges ahead for the industry including the "greening" of the new Federal Parliament with "The Greens" holding significantly more power in policy making areas.
The internationally renowned risk communication expert Dr Peter Sandman focussed on improving communication in mining communities.
Dr Sandman says miners need to be better at "outrage management" and look at the reason why some communities or landholders are not happy and listen to their concerns and try to resolve the problem, if they can.
One contentious areas for farmers is exploration, raising issues about water quality and quality farming land being used or bought up by miners.
A new code of exploration is being launched at the conference today and Craig Stegman, managing director of North Parkes Mines, says they make it a policy to communicate well with any landholders adjacent to mines.
Brad Mullard, executive director of mineral resources in I&I NSW, says the new policy should help maintain better standard across all players in the industry.
All aspects of the industry's environmental and social performance are in the spotlight the Mineral Council conference was told today.
The industry today heard that it must definitively and consistently aim for best practice environmental management and community engagement.
Rapid increase in coking coal production
Indian coke production company Gujarat is forecasting a massive increase in demand for coking coal.
The company is spending $400 million over 4 years to take production at its mines in the Illawarra from 4 hundred thousand tonnes a year to 6 million tonnes in 2014.
Managing director Arun Jagatramka says longwall mining is being introduced into the underground mines at Wongawilli and South Bulli.
Longwall machines work horizontally underground, taking a 200m slice of ore each time in an 8m cut that can produce 10,000 tonnes day.
Output has already increased 5 times since Gujarat took over the mines 3 years ago and expected to triple again in the next three years.
They are also planning to employ more people with 250 jobs due to be added to the current workforce of 500 people.
Gujarat is the 6th largest coking company in the world according to Arun Jagatramka.
"We are the largest independent coke producer in India and the coke we produce is sold to steel mills in India, Brazil and the US."
The market for coking coal is growing phenomenally.
"Annual coke consumption in India has increased from 24 million tonnes to 30 million tonnes in a year and is expected to increase over 10 years to 150 million tonnes."
That growth is being driven by growth in the Indian economy which is running at 8 per cent, while the steel industry is experiencing 15-20 per cent growth.
The price of coking coal is also going up.
Arun Jagatramka says Gujarat could also be the worlds only coal company to be carbon positive.
The company uses wind power in the production of coke and is building power stations that will use the waste heat from the coke making plants.
"We have 240 megawatts of plant, which are entitled to carbon credits because of no emission, and 87 megawatts of wind power, against 6 mil tonnes of coking coal production."
So whatever fugitive emissions there are from coal mining are more than offset by the amount of carbon credits that the company will be generating."
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