Adani promised Australia billions from its Carmichael mine but it hasn’t paid a cent in tax. How did we get here?

An aerial view of the Carmichael mine. In its first few months of operation, Adani’s mine generated more than $32.5m in revenue. But it recorded an operating loss after costs, leading to zero tax payable. Photograph: Matthew Abbott/Sourced from Parliament of Australia

It was entirely foreseeable, and has resulted in billions of dollars in forgone revenue for Australia.

But just how did policymakers fail to extract a single cent in company tax from Adani’s Carmichael coalmine, even though it opened during the start of a commodity price boom?