Adani group stocks rally up to 13% as Australia gives environmental nod to $7-bn coal project

NEW DELHI: Adani group stocks rallied up to 13 per cent in trade on Thursday after Australia’s environment ministry reissued environment-related clearance to Adani’s $7 billion Carmichael mega coal mine and rail project.

Following the development, shares of Adani Enterprises, the flagship company, surged 12.90 per cent to hit a high of Rs 95.80. The stock was heading for its biggest one-day gain since April 2014. Shares of Adani Power, a group company, rose 4.81 per cent to Rs 29.40. Adani Ports & SEZ, another group company, rose 1.94 per cent to touch a high of Rs 330.50.

There were concerns over the project that it may threaten the Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef system, off the coast of Queensland in northeastern Australia. On August 5, an Australian court had temporarily blocked the progress on the $7.34 billion project in the inland Galilee Basin, following a claim that the Adanis failed to include conditions to protect two vulnerable species – the yakka skink and the ornamental snake.

The Queensland state project has been approved subject to "36 of the strictest conditions in Australian history," Australian environment minister Greg Hunt was quoted by media as saying.