Modi govt to lend $1 billion for Adani Australia coal mine

November 17, 2014

Melbourne, Nov 17: Adani Enterprises (ADEL.NS) won support on Monday from the State Bank of India (SBI) and an Australian state to help it build a $7 billion coal mine, defying a slump in coal prices to 5-1/2 year lows that has stalled rival projects.

The trading and infrastructure conglomerate signed a memorandum of understanding for a loan of up to $1 billion from the SBI for the mine, rail and port project in Queensland, which it aims to build by end-2017.

"The MOU with SBI is a significant milestone in the development of our Carmichael mine," Adani Group Chairman and founder, Gautam Adani, who has close ties with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said in a statement.

Adani was in Brisbane with a business delegation for the G20 summit, which Modi attended over the weekend.

The company also won a commitment from the state government to take short-term, minority stakes in rail and port infrastructure needed to unlock massive coal reserves in the untapped Galilee Basin. Coal from the region must be sent 400 km by rail to Australia's east coast.

Adani aims to reach a final investment decision on the Carmichael project in late 2015.

Australia's federal and Queensland governments are eager to see the mine built following the loss of more than 4,000 coal jobs over the past two years, but analysts and project finance experts believe Adani may have underestimated the challenge of raising funds for the project.

"People have been very sceptical about the financing of this project. As we always said, we'll keep getting this, one by one. The pieces are falling in place," Adani Mining CEO Jeyakumar Janakaraj told Reuters.

Adani, which is also facing a campaign by anti-coal campaigners, is counting on securing A$1.2 billion to A$1.5 billion in funding from South Korea's export credit agencies, as well as a loan from the U.S. Export-Import Bank.

The company's apparent momentum on Carmichael is in stark contrast to rival Indian firm GVK's slow progress on another huge coal mine in the Galilee Basin, the Alpha project, which is co-owned by Australian billionaire Gina Rinehart.

Much bigger coal rivals, like BHP Billiton (BHP.AX) and Glencore (GLEN.L), have shelved coal developments at a time when a third of Australia's coal output is making losses.

Janakaraj dismissed comments by Indian Power and Coal Minister Piyush Goyal that the country may be able to stop importing thermal coal within three years.

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5 facts about 24-year-old Indian student shot dead inside his Audi in Canada

News Network

April 14,2024

New Delhi: A 24-year-old student from India was shot dead inside a car in Canada's South Vancouver, the local police have said. The Vancouver Police in a statement said Chirag Antil, 24, was found dead inside a vehicle in the area after neighbours reported hearing gunshots.

"Officers were called to East 55th Avenue and Main Street around 11 pm on April 12 after residents heard the sound of gunshots. Chirag Antil, 24, was found deceased inside a vehicle in the area. No arrests have been made, and the investigation remains ongoing," the police said.

Chirag Antil's brother Ronit told reporters that Chirag seemed happy when they spoke on the phone in morning. Chirag later took out his Audi to go somewhere. That was when he was shot dead.

The Congress students' wing National Students' Union of India chief Varun Choudhary in a post on X tagging the Ministry of External Affairs requested for assistance to the student's family.

"Urgent attention regarding the murder of Chirag Antil, an Indian student in Vancouver, Canada. We urge the Ministry of External Affairs to closely monitor the progress of the investigation and ensure that justice is swiftly served," Mr Choudhary said.

"Additionally, we request the ministry to extend all necessary support and assistance to the family of the deceased during this difficult time," he said.

Chirag Antil's family is raising money through the crowdfunding platform GoFundMe to repatriate his body to India, local media reported.

Haryana resident Romit Antil, the brother of Chirag Antil, told CityNews that he was a kind-hearted person.

"My brother and I had a great relationship. We used to talk every day, day and night. I spoke to him last before the accident happened. He was kind of happy, he never had any issues or fights with anyone, ever. He was an extremely polite person," Romit Antil told CityNews.

Chirag Antil came to Vancouver in September 2022. He just finished MBA at University Canada West, and recently got his work permit.

Here are 5 facts about Chirag Antil

1.   Chirag Antil was a resident of Sonipat, Haryana.
2.   He was the youngest son of Mahavir Antil, a retired employee of the Sugar Mill Department of the Haryana Government.
3.   Chirag moved to Vancouver in 2022 to pursue higher studies at the University Canada West (UCW), in British Columbia.
4.   After completing his MBA, he started working at a company in Canada after getting a work permit.
5.   Chirag's brother Ronit shared in an interview that his younger sibling was a "kind-hearted" person. "I spoke to him last before the accident happened," he said and added that Chirag sounded "happy".

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