letter re. cxy to malcolm turnbull mp, page-17

Article from Property Simple website (http://www.propertysimple.com.au/pages/default.asp?ID=13):

15-Dec-2008
Australian call for more clean coal development - International Mining
Cougar Energy is calling on the Queensland Government to actively encourage a diversity policy in the development of clean coal technologies. Dr Len Walker, Managing Director Cougar Energy, said there is a real risk the Queensland Government could bow to pressure from large mining companies which could see the delay in or, in a worst case scenario, a curtailment of legitimate clean coal technologies in the state.

“We’ve already had one clean coal technology company pull out of Queensland,” said Dr Walker. “It would be unconscionable if certain petroleum interests were favoured by the government over local companies which have been developing cleaner coal technologies in Queensland since the 1990s.

“Cougar is fully committed to Queensland and has the right underground coal gasification (UCG) technology available right now to deliver enormous energy benefits from coal with a reduced CO2 impact on the earth’s atmosphere,” Walker said.

Cougar’s first commercial UCG energy project at Kingaroy will supply sufficient energy to power 400,000 Queensland homes for the next 30 years, plus create 50 new local jobs. A second project at Wandoan has ten times the energy potential of Kingaroy and is expected to play a crucial power generation role in Queensland for the next 30 years.

“Cleaner coal technologies will be critical for Australia as we move towards a carbon-constrained future,” Walker said. “UCG is proven technology - Cougar Energy management has more than 25 years experience in UCG and completed a successful trial in Chinchilla in Queensland 8 years ago.

“Some suggest UCG cannot exist with other technologies - in Cougar Energy’s opinion, this is categorically incorrect. UCG can easily co-exist with other forms of mining because it produces 25% less CO2 emissions than other forms of conventional coal-fired power generation and requires less than 5% of the surface area required for the extraction of coal seam gas or CSG.

“Any moves to delay UCG technology development will be detrimental to Queensland. The future energy needs of Queensland must be the priority with competing commercial and technology interests co-existing for the broader benefit of Queensland businesses and households,” Walker said.