518 China seeks to farm vast tracts of land in northern Australia

China seeks to farm vast tracts of land in northern Australia

(1) China seeks to buy vast tracts of farmland in northern Australia
(2) China asks to colonise a part of Western Australia - to grow food
(instead of buying it from us)
(3) Australian Agricultural Co. also bids to farm irrigated zone in
northern australia
(4) China is seeking less scrutiny of its purchases of Australian farms
(5) China plan 'ridiculous'
(6) Sell the farm to buy a future as China's food bowl
(7) to (9) Bob Hawke behind push to sell of Australia; Trade minister
denies conflict of interest
(10) China cancels thermal coal contracts

(1) China seeks to buy vast tracts of farmland in northern Australia

http://www.theage.com.au/national/china-eyes-wide-open-spaces-20120531-1zksy.html

China eyes wide open spaces

Lauren Quaintance

June 1, 2012

CHINA would invest billions of dollars to transform vast tracts of
undeveloped land in northern Australia for farming, under a plan
confirmed yesterday by the federal government.

But opponents said an "Asia food bowl" would come at the expense of
giving Australians access to affordable, good-quality food.

Trade and Competitiveness Minister Craig Emerson confirmed that the
government was undertaking a joint study with Beijing to examine the
policy changes needed for a massive investment by Chinese agricultural
interests.

Dr Emerson has denied that this means there are plans to "buy up the
farm" and use imported labour to produce food for the voracious Chinese
market, with its 1.3 billion citizens. "It is designed to lift
Australian food production for world markets," he said.

The revelation, in advance of an official report expected midyear, has
caused some consternation in Canberra, where foreign ownership of
Australian farmland is a hot-button issue.

Nationals senator Barnaby Joyce, who recently pushed for tougher
restrictions on foreign ownership of land in a move that was seen as
breaking ranks with the Liberals, said that the report would raise
hackles in urban as well as regional areas across Australia.

"There is a strong concern in the Australian public about ownership of
their farmland and it has a deeper philosophical vein to it than many
other things," he said. "It is not only a concern for regional people -
it is reflected very, very strongly in urban constituencies."

While the move by the Chinese was "astute", he said it exposed the lack
of planning for our own food security since Australia was now a net
importer of food and the resulting inflation had an impact on food prices.

"It's not that you'll run out of food, it's the form of food that you'll
be able to buy, and that is happening right now. How often do you see
people who in the past bought the roast, now buy mince? Why? Because
they can't afford the roast, but that was once a staple."

The question of selling Australian land to a foreign state-owned
enterprise could also have troubling implications, according to Senator
Joyce.

"It is held by an organ of the government, and governments, especially
strong ones like the Chinese, don't go broke - therefore they can hold
[the land] in perpetuity," he said.

Joyce denied his views were xenophobic. "Look at any other country and
see what their controls of [foreign] investment are like and then
compare it to ours and you'll see you can't buy [land] in China, you
can't buy it in Japan, you can't buy it in South Korea, you're
struggling to buy in the United States and there are vastly greater
controls with buying it in New Zealand."

Liberal senator Bill Heffernan said Australians were either "too bloody
tired or too bloody lazy" to develop the land to ensure our own future.
"I think it's time that all Australians sat up and took notice," he said.

While northern Australia has millions of hectares of underutilised land
- as well as abundant water and good proximity to Asia - obstacles to
development have included poor transport links and a difficult climate.

Until now, the Chinese have focused on opening up farmland in South
America and Africa to meet the demands of the burgeoning Chinese middle
class. They are expected to continue to focus on wheat and rice
production on the mainland while looking for new sources to meet their
increasing needs for beef, sheep, sugar and dairy.

It is the consumption of meat, in particular, that tells the story of
the food needs of the world's most populous nation.

More than a quarter of all meat produced worldwide is now eaten in
China. In 1978, China's annual consumption of meat was 8 million tonnes
- it is now 71 million tonnes and more than twice that of the United States.

(2) China asks to colonise a part of Western Australia - to grow food
(instead of buying it from us)

http://cairnsnews.wordpress.com/2012/04/29/china-officially-asks-to-colonise-a-part-of-western-australia-for-money-of-course/

Posted by cairnsnews, April 29, 2012

China officially asks to colonise a part of Western Australia-for money
of course

April has been a month of policy disasters for Australian agriculture
defining its now bleak future

Delivering a mortal blow to the dairy industry, our disingenuous ALP
government, aided and abetted by traitorous so-called primary producer
organizations such as the National Farmers Federation has not said boo
about the largest ever shipment of Australian dairy cows and heifers
shipped to China in the past eight months.

To top off this farmer coup-de-grace, former Prime Minister Bob Hawke is
acting as gigolo for a Chinese conglomerate offering to buy 15,000
hectares of prime farming country east of Kunnunurra in Western Australia.

The Shanghai Zhongfu group wants to grow its own irrigated sugar cane in
the $311m second-stage expansion of the Ord irrigation project.

Another 13 companies and individual farmers are competing against the
Chinese after submitting final expressions of interest to the West
Australian government to farm all or part of the new area.

Should the Chinese offer be accepted this massive expansion of the sugar
industry in Northern Australia will spell disaster for Queensland cane
growers.

Zhongfu, trading as Kimberley Agricultural Investments, is also in
discussion with the WA, NT and federal governments and traditional
owners the Miriuwung Gajerrong Corporation to develop a further 15,000
ha of prime black soil downs country on the NT side of the Kimberley border.

A sweetener in Hawkes bid is to build is to build a $100m sugar mill in
the Ord region.

Hawkes company also proposes to establish a super, 500,000 head a year
abattoir in the east Kimberley to supply the beef export market to China.

This venture could also wipe out a proposal to build a large abattoir in
the Cloncurry district of Noerth West Queensland.

This venture will also spell disaster for Australias largest
pastoralist, the Australian Agriculture Company which has plans to start
building an abattoir at Katherine.

KAI says it needs 30-40,000 ha of sugar crops to support a financially
viable sugar mill and biofuel production.

In return for such a large investment the company is demanding all
environmental and native title approvals be handed to it on a plate
within two years.

Cairnsnews has copies of the WA Governments generic farm purchase
contracts which are tailored towards a significant indigenous
partnership arrangement for any purchaser in the Kimberley region.

It will be of interest to individual farmers bidding for land if these
arrangements are included in any Chinese deal.

WA Farmers Federation president Dale Park said his organization was
unlikely to oppose the Chinese bid.

EXODUS OF WORLD-BEST DAIRY BREEDING STOCK TO CHINA

In 2008 nearly 50,000 dairy cattle were exported overseas from
Australian producers, but in the first eight months of this financial
year 36,450 cows worth a staggering $44m have gone to China.

By the end of June exports will top 55,000 a rather dubious record which
is unsustainable for the future of the dairy industry.

The export heifers, mostly from Victoria, are fetching up to $1600 per
head, about 30 per cent more than the domestic market can afford.

The milk war between Coles and Woolworths has had a detrimental effect
on the industry and coupled with de-regulation it has forced many
farmers to the wall.

Australia, New Zealand and Uruguay are the only three countries licensed
to export dairy cattle to China.

(3) Australian Agricultural Co. also bids to farm irrigated zone in
northern australia

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-06-01/aaco-bids-for-ord-2-development/4045796

AACo bids for Ord 2 development

Updated June 01, 2012 01:18:30

David Farley is boss of the Australian Agricultural Company, which is
bidding for the vast Ord 2 development zone in the Kimberley and its
400,000 megalitres of water from the Argyle dam.

Ticky Fullerton

Source: The Business | Duration: 6min 55sec

Topics: agribusiness, dams-and-reservoirs, federal-government,
agricultural-crops, irrigation, water-management, water-supply,
australia, argyle-6239, china

Transcript

TICKY FULLERTON, PRESENTER: It's been amazingly low key, but the most
exciting and potentially costly tender in Australia's far north is
underway.

At stake, a big bite of the food bowl, the vast Ord Two development zone
in the Kimberley, with 400,000 megalitres of water from the giant Argyle
Dam.

Land in the dry tropics can grow food out of season for Asia and could
produce cotton, sugar - you name it actually.

It's tense - as the Australian Government duchesses Chinese interests
one of the final bidders is Australian agricultural company AA Co,
founded in 1824 and backed by a very Australian consortium of super funds.

Well I spoke to the AA Co boss David Farley a little earlier.

David Farley, thanks for joining us.

DAVID FARLEY, CEO, AA CO: Pleasure, Ticky.

TICKY FULLERTON: Now, you're building an abattoir, but far bigger stakes
at the moment is this tender for Ord Two up in the Kimberley. Just in
your view, how important is this decision for the Australian economy?

DAVID FARLEY: I think, Ticky, if goes beyond the Australian economy, it
goes right down to the Australian security and what we're doing with our
land assets in the north of Australia and in particular what we're doing
with those land assets to meet the demand that'll be coming out of
South-East Asia and China between now and 2050.

TICKY FULLERTON: What do you mean by that? I mean, presumably you're
talking about overseas interests winning this contract. If a Chinese
consortium did win this, what do you mean by national security?

DAVID FARLEY: Um, there's no need for a Chinese investor to win this at
all. Australia's more than capable of developing this asset itself. We
have the skills base, we've got the intellect and more importantly we've
got the capital base within the country, within our pension and our
superannuation plans, to take this project on and deliver it to market.

The big thing that we need to be cognisant of and in our recent global
history is that if you disrupt food chains into countries, you soon
disrupt social stability and government stability.

We've seen that happen in the Middle East with the spike in the food
prices. We've got sitting right to our north one of the strongest
growing economies in the globe today being Indonesia. The disruption or
the banning of the live trade 12 months ago, the consequences are still
flowing on.

There is still concern there especially around the security of
Australia's reaction in its ability to manage any breaches of the
security chains that we've put in place. And it's important that our
country, Australia, responds properly and responsibly in getting our
assets ready for production.

And I don't think we need external investment for these assets at the
moment. We're more than capable of meeting the capital demand and the
skills demand to put them into production.

TICKY FULLERTON: What you're saying though is that if we lock up
something as big as the Kimberley to one overseas player, then that
could actually cause something of a trading incident, a diplomatic incident.

DAVID FARLEY: We'll need dexterity with our ability to meet the demand
on Australia, to meet the global calling of food. And therefore, we want
to make sure that these assets are treated equitably right from the
beginning and then more importantly we can arrange the distribution not
only to the best market, but to the most important need at the same time.

And we're talking of assets now that have got incredible life to them.
These aren't like gas fields or coal mines. These will not - if they're
managed properly, they'll last for a long, long period of time. And what
we've got to make sure now, with this unique and iconic asset in the
north is that we put it in the right hand of stewardship.

TICKY FULLERTON: Your biggest competition looks to be a Chinese
consortium with an association with Bob Hawke, former Labor prime
minister. Now we hear from The Fin that the Trade Minister has been
chatting away with the Chinese commerce minister for about six months on
opening up the Top End. How do you feel this will weigh into their
deliberations about the bid?

DAVID FARLEY: Well, we've had - The Australian's reported Bob Hawke's
relationship with the - one of the proponents for the bid. We've read
today that our Trade Minister Emerson has been promoting the product -
the development itself in China. Obviously there's an influence there.

I'm surprised though that we're not being as equally excited and as
equally promoting it within the country itself. Again, I'll reiterate:
we have the capital, we have the skills and we have the intellect to be
able to do this ourselves as Australia.

TICKY FULLERTON: Now Craig Emerson has said, and I quote, "There is no
proposal for 'buying up the farm', importing overseas labour and
dedicating the production to Chinese consumption." You don't sound as
though you believe him.

DAVID FARLEY: Um, I can only go on what's been published in the
newspapers. I haven't been in close contact with Craig at all on this
issue. But any proposal at all would have to run of course the national
interest, would have to be run through FIRB itself and then ultimately
that that decision'll be made by Wayne Swan, our Treasurer with the
ultimate responsibility.

But as that process goes on, I think Australia should take a chance to
(inaudible) itself up into a more current and contemporary position of
foreign ownership and foreign operations of agricultural land in
Australia. We've got a very outdated document and policy on the
management of agricultural land, and more importantly, the transferring
of value.

There's opportunities that we could lose taxation benefits by not making
sure that the transactions are structured properly. Food will play, in
the next two decades, a bigger role in stability in society than what
energy does and what minerals do.

TICKY FULLERTON: David Farley, can I ask you finally about your
abattoir? It's quite a brave move. It's the first time an Australian
abattoir's been built in a long while and it goes against the whole
structure of the industry, which seems in Australia to be geared towards
live export.

DAVID FARLEY: Well it's not so much a brave move; it's a move of
necessity. The north of Australia is ideal breeding country, and at the
moment our redundant assets in the north, being the aged cows, have to
face long journeys south.

Sometimes they're on the trucks for four days travelling down to the
southern abattoirs. A long journey comes at a great expense.

And now it just makes sense for us to be able to put a commercial option
for our redundant cows and our non-conforming cattle, our heavier cattle
that can't make the Indonesian markets, give them an opportunity that we
don't burden them down with freight costs, and more importantly, we
address the issues of the clean energy policies that are there and try
and minimise our exposure to the carbon tax.

TICKY FULLERTON: David Farley, thank you very much for joining us.

DAVID FARLEY: Thanks, Ticky.

TICKY FULLERTON, PRESENTER: And Trade Minister Craig Emerson is out of
the country at the moment, but we're hoping to catch up with him for an
interview later next week.

(4) China is seeking less scrutiny of its purchases of Australian farms

http://www.weeklytimesnow.com.au/article/2012/05/30/488441_national-news.html

China seeks free path to farmland buy-up

Leslie White | May 30, 2012

THE Chinese Government is seeking less scrutiny of its Australian farm
raids.

Sources say the Chinese are pushing the issue as part of a planned free
trade agreement with Australia.

The two countries have been negotiating an FTA for years.

But it's understood Chinese negotiators want preferential treatment of
Chinese farm buys as part of the deal. This could see purchases of less
than $1 billion face no scrutiny.

It could see scrutiny reduced on Chinese Government purchases as China
aims to be treated the same way the US is on foreign investments.

Liberals MP Sharman Stone said trade agreements should be "reciprocal".

"What sort of investment options is Australia being offered for Chinese
land, resources and assets?" Dr Stone asked.

"We're on the taking end of offers. Australia never had deals anywhere
as good as the best in the free trade arena. New Zealand already enjoyed
freer access and cleaned up a lot of markets potentially ripe for
Australia."

It was a concern to see "fair access to a market being manipulated", Dr
Stone said.

Liberal Senator Bill Heffernan said Australia should not "be held to
ransom by countries who have a non-market currency and the capacity to
manipulate the system with a non-market currency".

"Australia is not equipped with current regulations and the tax system
to deal with the huge tax avoidance occurring with foreign investors in
Australia," Senator Heffernan said.

"Add to that the huge concessions made to encourage what was corporate
foreign capital, which is now sovereign (foreign government) capital,
and you can completely bypass the tax system.

"These are all problems Australia is not equipped to deal with and we
need legislation reviewed."

A legal source familiar with negotiations with the Chinese said it was
"absolutely" plausible China would try to get better access to buy farms
here.

But another source involved in trade said he hadn't heard of the Chinese
seeking less scrutiny of farm buys in the FTA negotiations.

Trade Minister Craig Emerson did not comment.

(5) China plan 'ridiculous'

http://qcl.farmonline.com.au/news/nationalrural/livestock/cattle/china-plan-ridiculous/2576459.aspx

BRAD COOPER

01 Jun, 2012 08:24 AM

EXTREME weather, poor soil and a lack of infrastructure would severely
curtail any chance of converting northern Australia into China's food
bowl, say Northern Territory cattle producers.

The Northern Territory Cattlemen's Association executive officer, Luke
Bowen, branded it a "ridiculous" notion yesterday.

Mr Bowen responded to details of a plan revealed by the Australian
government to lure billions in Chinese investment dollars to open up
farm land across northern Western Australia, Queensland and the Northern
Territory to help feed China's population - 1.3 billion and growing.

News of the joint study with China comes just weeks after Australia
signed a free trade agreement with Malaysia, worth an estimated $1
billion in Australian agricultural exports. Talks continue to complete
trade agreements with South Korea, Japan, China and Indonesia.

China, according to Meat and Livestock Australia's Asian regional
manager, Aaron Iori, is regarded as the next golden opportunity for
Australian chilled beef exports, especially for premium cuts as China's
top income earners far outnumber the total population of Australia.
Consumption of beef in China was currently 4 kilograms per capita - a
low base with room for growth as the newly affluent seek to increase
their protein intake beyond the staples of pork and chicken.

But Mr Bowen said: "Contrary to popular belief, we don't have large
tracts of untapped farmland and we work with restrictive
vegetation-management regulations, many of which are supported by the
federal government, that would make any opening up of undeveloped land
and intensifying of current production extremely difficult. There is
also extreme weather, pests and lack of roads and other infrastructure
and facilities that makes this a very challenging environment."

The executive officer of Western Australia's Pastoralists and Graziers
Association, Ian Randles, said the government's natural heritage listing
for the Kimberley region and the Environmental Protection and
Biodiversity Conservation Act would present large hurdles for any
foreign buyers.

Mr Randles said: "There is definitely land up there suitable for a huge
diversity of crops but the federal government's own legislation is so
difficult to work with I'd say that once any potential buyer sees this
they'd run a mile."

(6) Sell the farm to buy a future as China's food bowl

Lauren Quaintance

Sydney Morning Herald June 01, 2012

http://m.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/sell-the-farm-to-buy-a-future-as-chinas-food-bowl-20120531-1zkv0.html

http://theland.farmonline.com.au/news/nationalrural/agribusiness-and-general/political/china-plan-would-cost-aussies-food/2576449.aspx

PLANS to seek billions of dollars in Chinese investment to transform
vast tracts of undeveloped land in northern Australia for farming would
come at the expense of giving Australians access to affordable, good
quality food, opponents say.

The Trade and Competitiveness Minister, Craig Emerson, has confirmed
that the government is undertaking a joint study with China to examine
the policy changes needed to facilitate a massive investment by Chinese
agricultural interests.

Dr Emerson denied this meant plans to ''buy up the farm'' and use
imported labour to produce food for the voracious Chinese market with
its 1.3 billion citizens. "It is designed to lift Australian food
production for world markets," Mr Emerson said.

The Nationals Senator, Barnaby Joyce, who has pushed for tougher
restrictions on foreign ownership of land - a move seen as breaking
ranks with the Liberals - said it was a worry for urban as well as
regional Australians. While the move by the Chinese was "astute",
Senator Joyce said it exposed the lack of planning for our own food
security since Australia was now a net importer of food - and the
resulting inflation had an impact on food prices. "It's not that you'll
run out of food; it's the form of food that you'll be able to buy, and
that is happening right now. How often do you see people now who in the
past bought the roast, now by mince? Why? Because they can't afford the
roast, but that was once a staple."

Selling Australian land to a foreign state-owned enterprise has
troubling implications, according to Joyce. "Therefore it is held by an
organ of the government, and governments , especially strong ones like
the Chinese, don't go broke. Therefore they can hold it in perpetuity".

Joyce denied his views were xenophobic. "Look at any other country and
see what their controls of [foreign] investment are like and then
compare it to ours and you'll see you can't buy [land] in China, you
can't buy it in Japan, you can't buy it in South Korea, you're
struggling to buy in the United States and there are vastly greater
controls with buying it in New Zealand."

The Liberal senator Bill Heffernan said Australians were either "too
bloody tired or too bloody lazy" to develop the land to ensure our own
future. "I think it's time that all Australians sat up and took notice …
we're not just going to lose control of our sovereignty but of our own
destiny. If you let other nations take control of your sovereign assets
it's no different to what would have happened 100 years ago when they
[invaded] with an army."

Senator Heffernan, who chairs a Senate inquiry into Australia's foreign
investment rules, fears it will push up the price of land and distorts
the market.

While northern Australia has millions of hectares of under-utilised land
- and abundant water and good proximity to Asia - obstacles to
development have included poor transport links and a very difficult
climate. Until now China has focused on opening up farmland in South
America and Africa to meet the demands of its burgeoning middle class.

More than a quarter of meat produced worldwide is now eaten in China. In
1978, China's annual consumption of meat was 7.25 million tonnes. It is
now 64.5 million tonnes and more than twice that of the US.

Julia Gillard told a conference on "Australia in the Asian century" this
month that we should be ready to act as Asia's food bowl by building our
food-processing industry and developing irrigation and higher-yield crops.

(7) Bob Hawke behind push to sell of Australia; Trade minister denies
conflict of interest

http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/international/2012-06-01/australian-minister-defends-china-land-deal/953838

Australian Minister defends China land deal

Posted 1 June 2012, 13:51 AEST Eliza Borrello

The Australian Trade Minister Craig Emerson has rejected claims his
support for Chinese investment in northern Australia has been influenced
by the reported business interests of the former Labor Prime Minister
Bob Hawke.

Trade Minister Craig Emerson denies his support for a Chinese land
deal is influenced by the former Labor Prime Minister Bob Hawke. [AAP]
There are unconfirmed reports Mr Hawke is representing a Shanghai-based
company wanting to farm all 15,000 hectares of the land being developed
as part of the second stage of the Ord irrigation project in Western
Australia.

The Coalition Senator Barnaby Joyce has used a parliamentary hearing to
claim that has influenced Dr Emerson and says Australia has to look
after its own interests.

"In our national interest we should be getting the biggest footprint of
our own country, developing our own food for sale to the world," he said.

Dr Emerson rejects the claim.

The Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says he welcomes any foreign
investment as long as it is in Australia's interests.

(8) Bob Hawke behind push to sell of Australia; Trade minister denies
conflict of interest

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-06-01/emerson-denies-conflict-of-interest-claims/4047256

Conflict of interest claims in China farmland deal

Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Updated June 01, 2012 15:41:58

Trade Minister Craig Emerson has rejected claims his support for Chinese
investment in northern Australia has been influenced by the reported
business interests of former Labor prime minister Bob Hawke.

The Government wants China to invest in land in northern Australia, as
part of a deal to increase food exports.

There are unconfirmed reports Mr Hawke is representing a Shanghai-based
company wanting to farm all 15,000 hectares of the land being developed
as part of the second stage of the Ord irrigation project in Western
Australia.

The Ord River area is home to some of Australia's most prized
agricultural land and is one of the sites up for consideration, as is
the Atherton Tableland in Queensland.

Nationals Senator Barnaby Joyce used an estimates hearing on Thursday
night to claim that Mr Hawke's interests have influenced Dr Emerson.

But the Trade Minister rejected the claims, labelling them "typical
gutter politics".

Dr Emerson has previously stated the proposal was designed to lift food
production for world markets.

A joint study with the Chinese government into the proposal is expected
to be released within months.

Senator Joyce says he has no problems with boosting Australia's foreign
food exports but he says greater efforts should be made to ensure
Australians own as much farming land as possible.

He says policies are needed to ensure farming land is purchased by
Australians before foreigners.

"In our national interest, we should be getting the biggest footprint on
our own country developing our own food for sale to the world," he said.

"What we're seeing with this is basically mechanisms for another nation
to get their footprint on our land.

"Good luck to them. It's a very smart thing to do and it secures their
food future and they're saying exactly that."

(9) Bob Hawke behind push to sell of Australia; Trade minister denies
conflict of interest

http://australianetworknews.com/stories/201206/3516288.htm

Last Updated: 3 hours 39 minutes ago

The Australian Trade Minister Craig Emerson has rejected claims his
support for Chinese investment in northern Australia has been influenced
by the reported business interests of the former Labor Prime Minister
Bob Hawke.

There are unconfirmed reports Mr Hawke is representing a Shanghai-based
company wanting to farm all 15,000 hectares of the land being developed
as part of the second stage of the Ord irrigation project in Western
Australia.

The Coalition Senator Barnaby Joyce has used a parliamentary hearing to
claim that has influenced Dr Emerson and says Australia has to look
after its own interests.

"In our national interest we should be getting the biggest footprint of
our own country, developing our own food for sale to the world," he said.

Dr Emerson rejects the claim.

The Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says he welcomes any foreign
investment as long as it is in Australia's interests.

(10) China cancels thermal coal contracts

http://www.abc.net.au/rural/news/content/201206/s3515966.htm

By Caitlyn Gribbin

Friday, 01/06/2012

Australian coal producers may be considering closing their mines because
Chinese buyers are defaulting on thermal coal contracts. China, the
biggest user of coal, wants a lower price for the commodity and an
analyst says until that's negotiated, Australian thermal coal exporters
won't be able to sell their product.

James O'Connell from Platts Coal Report says Australian miners will have
to make some tough decisions.

"In the next couple of months there's definitely a possibility that if
there's not a hot summer in China, if coal burn goes down, their
stockpiles are going to kick in, the exports from the United States are
going to hurt Australian producers.

"They're going to be in a position where they might have to consider
closing down mines or at least temporary shut downs. "In Australia,
that's an absolute possibility."