south africa puts csg on hold, permits ucg, page-3

Not sure about that, Dex. I don't think blanket banning fraccing is a 'responsible technical decision' any more than shutting down Cougar was. Fraccing is no worse and no better than UCG. Both processes are safe if done properly and potentially environmentally damaging if not - something we could say about practically every industrial process.

So I think this is actually just the reverse of what happened in Qld. Here we have another potential conflict between UCG and CSG brewing, only this time the government concerned has a vested interest in UCG (via Eskom) instead of CSG.

So UCG continues and CSG gets pariah status. Well, that's good news for UCG, it'll get a chance to prove itself, and if it passes the test we'll have a viable technology with or without Queensland.

Right outcome for Cougar. Wrong thought process to get there, IMO!