Scott Morrison coal power
(Image: AAP/Lukas Coch)

What do you do when nobody wants your coal? Hire some consultants to find something to do with it, of course.

The government is seeking market research on “low emissions uses of coal” as part of a $20 million scheme announced by Energy Minister Angus Taylor and Resources Minister Keith Pitt to “diversify” Australia’s resources export market. 

It raises the question: are there any uses for coal other than burning it? Pitt and Taylor seem determined to pay consultants to find out. 

In tender documents published this week, the government says coal will continue to play an “important role in the world’s energy mix for years to come”. 

“However, changes to the global energy mix are projected, and opportunities also exist to invest in research, development and commercialisation of alternative uses for high-emissions resources, including coal.”

While the rest of the OECD is finding ways to move away from coal, Australia is doubling down on its support for the industry. Taylor says he is confident he has won the backing of state and territory counterparts for a series of reforms that could keep coal and gas plants alive, despite concerns this would funnel billions of dollars into ageing and unreliable coal generators.

Now he’s on the hunt for new markets for Australia’s plentiful coal reserves.

Some politicians are already finding alternative “low emissions” uses for coal. Matt Canavan has been known to rub it on his face for photos. Scott Morrison famously demonstrated the ornamental value of coal when he carried a lump into Parliament to prove a long forgotten point about the industry. And the coal industry itself has plenty of ideas, none of which have gotten off the ground.

Of course there is one obvious use of coal that the government is yet to consider: leaving it in the ground.