Opponents of plans to start a coal industry in Papua New Guinea are planning to protest today's AGM of Australian miner, Mayur Resources, in Brisbane.
Mayur wants to mine coal on PNG's south coast and transport it to Lae where it plans to build a coal-fired power station.
Such a move would make PNG the first Pacific nation to have a coal industry, and comes amid strong regional opposition to Australia's involvement in such an industry.
Photo: Minerals West Coast
Mayur has previously dismissed concerns that have raised about the pollution generated by mining and coal fired power stations.
But a member of the Nogat Coal campaign, Samantha Kuman, said PNG does not need coal-fired power.
"It is more expensive and more polluting than the many renewable energy sources - hydro, solar and biomass - that we already have an abundance of here."
Kuman claimed Mayur's actions were just another example of an Australian company pushing for a project without enough consultation and consent from local PNG communities.
But earlier this year Mayur's Managing Director, Paul Mulder, said they were offering PNG a brighter, sustainable future, that would reduce the use of heavy oil and diesel, while the plant would include biofuels in its mix of energy sources.
"And it also provides PNG with a fail-safe, because, the question I ask is, what happens if there is another major earthquake?
"What happens if there's a three or four year drought like what has happened in recent years? That's why other countries have energy mixes," he said.
