The government-owned bank pulled the plug on several hundred million dollars worth of financing to the Indian energy company which is building the mine-mouth, 3960-megawatt, coal-fired Sasan Ultra Mega Power station in the heart of the country.

Bucyrus chief executive Tim Sullivan was puzzled by the bank’s decision, which was made on environmental concerns.

He told the Chicago Tribune the power plant met the bank’s environmental criteria and coal mining would take place whether done with Bucyrus equipment or machinery from China or Belarus.

Sullivan told the Journal Sentinel that the Obama administration must fix the situation or nearly 1000 company jobs were on the line.

The newspaper more recently reported an Export-Import Bank official as saying the bank wanted to determine a way forward, perhaps signalling it might reconsider the decision to cancel the financing of the Indian coal power project.

Facing a wave of public and industry criticism over the move against Bucyrus, President Barack Obama will attend a town hall meeting in Milwaukee on Wednesday.

While the Australian government shelved an emissions trading scheme, the Obama government is trying to pass its own Carbon Cap and Trade program.

President Obama was Chicago-based before taking residence in the Whitehouse, and the Chicago Climate Exchange will benefit from America’s ETS, should it be introduced.