Queensland Sues Mining Giant to Recover $66 Million Green Energy Grant

After describing a proposed green energy plan as a “pipedream,” the Queensland LNP government has now filed legal action to recover funds paid to mining giant Fortescue for a project approved by the former Labor government.

The state government has lodged a case with the Supreme Court of Queensland to recoup $65.97 million in green grants from Fortescue Metals Group under the premise the company did not follow through with commitments tied to its mothballed electrolyser factory in Gladstone in central Queensland.

The electrolyser facility was intended as an integral component of the state’s previous green energy focus.

It was slated to produce hydrogen with an energy output equivalent to two large power stations annually with thousands of jobs promised.

In April 2024, Fortescue founder and Executive Chair Andrew “Twiggy” Forest praised the former Labor government’s “vision and early support,” pledging a “massive new manufacturing industry.”

But the project appears to have stalled with federal Nationals Party leader Matthew Canavan claiming only a handful of staff remain on-site, with around 90 workers laid off in 2025.

In a statement provided to The Courier Mail, Queensland Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie said the government attempted negotiations with Fortescue for months, but could not reach an agreement and has since commenced legal proceedings over what he termed a “pipedream.”

A Fortescue spokesperson told The Epoch Times it had made a considerable contribution to the defunct project.

“Fortescue has invested $228 million in the Gladstone facility, reflecting a significant commitment to the site,” they said.

“Fortescue remains committed to ensuring its investment and the $66 million contribution from the Queensland government is well utilised into the future.”

During a Senate debate on July 24, 2025, Senator Canavan said the project had “officially sounded a death knell.”

“The Labor Party were up in Gladstone, saying, ‘It’s okay that we’re going to shut down your coal industry, because you’re going to have all these hydrogen jobs,'” he said.

“That … turned out to be a completely false promise.

“I don’t know what we’re going to do with this shed in the future. It would possibly make an excellent site for a Bunnings.”

At the time, Canavan called for an inquiry into how much money had been sunk into the project overall, claiming at least $90 million in taxpayer funds had gone into the precinct, alongside the construction of transmission towers and a $983 million water pipeline from Rockhampton to Gladstone.

The Epoch Times contacted the Queensland government and Labor’s shadow energy spokesman Lance McCallum for comment.