FEBRUARY 10, 2016: INDIA’S Minister of State for Power, Coal and New & Renewable Energy Piyush Goyal thanked me for supporting Adani’s Carmichael Mine, Rail and Port Project during a chance meeting in the halls of parliament this morning.I had a brief chat with Minister Piyush Goyal and he stated in no uncertain terms that India was very keen to see the Carmichael Coal Project up and running.I assured him of my absolute commitment to seeing that happen too, and he thanked me for my support on this front.The Carmichael Coal Project promises jobs for Central and North Queensland, as well as prosperity for Indians being lifted out of energy poverty.Minister Goyal’s comments to me fly in the face of the claims by the extreme green movement that Minister Piyush Goyal wants to end coal imports to India.Mr Christensen said that Minister Goyal had made India’s position clear at the opening of the UN COP21 climate talks in Paris in November.Minister Goyal stated at that time that fossil fuel was imperative to meet India’s development needs.He said that other countries needed to accept the fact that India would burn coal to bring electricity to millions.The extreme greens like to talk up India’s desire to develop solar, but Minister Goyal said that solar energy alone would not meet India’s development needs.The Minister stated that his country needed a base load for its ambitious power plans, and he said that if they didn’t have that base load, they wouldn’t have any renewable energy.