Yesterday green groups called for the Queensland government to strip Adani of its water licence to take 12.5 billion litres of water from the Suttor River because it had not paid $18.5 million owed for it by the July 1 due date.

The company had actually asked the Queensland government for a 12-month extension on the payment and its request was granted.

An Adani spokeswoman said the Carmichael project had endured a number of legal challenges, all unsuccessful.

However, she said, that had resulted in delays, which was why the company had to request an extension to its water licence payment.

"This request was granted by the Minister for Natural Resources, Mines and Energy in June 2018, noting that water cannot be taken from the Suttor River system until t...