{"id":142314,"date":"2016-04-19T13:31:03","date_gmt":"2016-04-19T03:31:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=142314"},"modified":"2020-06-27T15:44:46","modified_gmt":"2020-06-27T05:44:46","slug":"landholders-briefed-by-solicitor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2016\/04\/19\/landholders-briefed-by-solicitor\/","title":{"rendered":"Landholders Briefed By Solicitor"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Moreton Resources' interests in the Kingaroy area ... a Mineral Development Licence (MDL 385), an application for a Mineral Exploration Permit (EPM 25992), and Cockatoo Coal's former tenement (EPC 882)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

April 19, 2016<\/strong><\/p>\n

About 20 people met with a solicitor yesterday in Kingaroy to discuss their options in regards to Moreton Resources’ proposed open cut coal mine.<\/p>\n

Kingaroy Concerned Citizens Group member Damien O’Sullivan said the group included about eight landholders who had been contacted by Moreton to discuss selling their properties.<\/p>\n

Mr O’Sullivan is one of the owners who has received such a letter.<\/p>\n

He said his neighbours in Moreton’s MDL 385 area (Cougar Energy’s original holding) had also received letters.<\/p>\n

Mr O’Sullivan said the solicitor, Mr Glen Martin from Shine Lawyers in Toowoomba, had helped landholders previously during the Cougar Energy project.<\/p>\n

“The meeting was to give people an idea about the legal responsibilities of the company,” he said.<\/p>\n

“A lot of people are overwhelmed by how complex the whole process of dealing with mining companies is.”<\/p>\n

Mr O’Sullivan said about 15 landholders that he knew about had been contacted by Moreton Resources.<\/p>\n

He said those he had spoken to were “not real interested” in selling.<\/p>\n

“Some of the people concerned are long-term residents who are more than happy to stay where they are,” he said.<\/p>\n

“They see the mine as a speculative thing.”<\/p>\n

Mr O’Sullivan said he also believed the mine probably wouldn’t go ahead but he wanted to be prepared “just in case”.<\/p>\n

“Moreton Resources has got no market for its coal,” he said.<\/p>\n

“If you haven’t got a market, no one’s going to lend you money to build a mine.<\/p>\n

“This all appears to be a strategy to improve the share price and then sell it off to someone else.”<\/p>\n

He said the mine proposal was “very unsettling” for landholders, even if they didn’t believe it was going to happen, because they did not know whether they should invest in upgrades on their properties.<\/p>\n

“It’s causing a lot of anxiety,” Mr O’Sullivan said.<\/p>\n

He said at least landholders now had a “contact” where they could seek independent legal advice if they required it.<\/p>\n

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