Mining company Glencore has withdrawn its plans for a major coal project in central Queensland.
In a statement, the company said it would remove itself from the approvals process and put the Valeria project under review due to "increased global uncertainty".
The proposal was for an open-cut metallurgical and thermal coal mine 27 kilometres north-west of Emerald, with construction initially planned to begin in 2024.
It would have created 1,400 construction jobs and 1,250 operational jobs.
"This decision has been made in the current context of increased global uncertainty and is consistent with Glencore's commitment to a responsibly managed decline of our global coal business and our ambition of being a net zero total emissions business by 2050," a Glencore spokesperson said.
"We will continue to progress various brownfield coal extensions at existing mines in Australia, but note that within the next four years our Liddell, Newlands and Integra mines will close and undergo appropriate rehabilitation."
Glencore had previously estimated the mine would produce up to 20 million tonnes per annum of run-of-mine coal, with the mine to operate for 37 years.
In November, federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek announced she would reassess 18 major coal and gas proposals, including the Valeria project, following a legal application by a Queensland conservation group.
In June, the Queensland Government also decided to increase coal royalties, introducing three new progressive tiers for prices above $175 a tonne.
The increase has been the subject of vocal opposition from the mining industry.
The Glencore spokesperson said the "abrupt" decision had "damaged investor confidence, increased uncertainty and raised a red flag with key trading partners".
"Governments are already benefiting from higher royalty and corporate tax revenue from the Australian coal sector," the spokesperson said.
Local mayor disappointed
Central Highlands Regional Council mayor Kerry Hayes said Glencore had let the council know the project would not be proceeding.
"Obviously it's disappointing … [because of] the magnitude of the mine and obviously the benefits to the Central Highlands and the broader region,” Mr Hayes said.
"As their statement clearly says, there is some uncertainty and despite the fact that thermal coal prices are quite high in terms of the opportunity for Glencore to capitalise on that, the reality is this is a long-term project, it requires significant investment.
"I guess the board makes a decision in respect to whether they want to keep pursuing that.
"Obviously from a self-interested perspective [I] would love to see it go ahead."
'A great sign', environmentalist says
Meanwhile, an environmentalist has welcomed the decision.
Director for Environmental Advocacy in Central Queensland Coral Rowston said it was a great sign that large companies such as Glencore were aware of the importance of getting to net zero emissions by 2050.
"We know that the world is going to move away from coal at some stage and this was a huge mine," Dr Rowston said.
"Every new coal mine is just going to add to our carbon dioxide emissions and our methane emissions, and we will start losing some of our natural wonders.
"We are hoping this is a really good sign that opening new mines is going to be really, really challenging if we are going to meet Australia's and Queensland's emissions targets."
