QRC chief executive Michael Roche said the state’s mining industry is mourning the loss of Talbot, who he considered an industry stalwart and visionary.
“Ken had already made his mark in the mining industry when he created Macarthur Coal back in 1995 and he opened a new coal export niche for Queensland – PCI coal used in steelmaking,” Roche said.
“The company was mining coal at Coppabella by 1998 and later at Moorvale in 2003. He pioneered investment links with China, bringing CITIC in as an investor in the company’s projects in 1997.
“Ken created wealth for many people, including many Queenslanders, through his drive and special insights about long-term trends in the resources sector.
“He was generous to a fault: to family, friends and acquaintances. That generosity got him into hot water with the law and he was looking forward to clearing his name in an upcoming court case.
“Ken’s legacy is not an unresolved court case. It is about his unquestioned contribution to the Queensland and Australian resources sectors.
“More recently Ken was taking his drive and insights into resource projects in Australia and overseas.
“Tragically, his interest in getting projects going in developing Africa has seemingly led to his untimely death and that of several other Australians from Perth-based company Sundance Resources.”
From his time as a QRC board member from 2001 to 2007, Roche said Talbot brought a big picture view and helped ensure the resource industry’s contribution was better understood by ordinary citizens.
Talbot Group chairman Don Nissen extended sympathies to Talbot’s family plus the families of the other passengers and crew on board.
“I am proud to say I have known Ken, my friend and work colleague, for more than a decade.
“He will be greatly missed by those whose lives he touched.
“Ken was very much a larger than life character; enthusiastic, buoyant, sincere and humane.
“He was a great Queenslander and Australian, but most importantly he was a devoted family man.
“Ken was definitely a self-made entrepreneur. The proud son of a truck driver and with a state school education, he often described himself as a simple coal miner.
“He possessed that special quality of making people feel important and welcome, no matter from which walk of life they came.
“He was an inspiration and a true gentleman to all those who knew him, whether it be through his family’s activities, business or his philanthropic pursuits.
“Ken will be remembered by those that knew him as a businessman with outstanding acumen and vision, and as one of the most generous, creative and successful people to call Queensland home. He will be greatly missed.”
Nissen also thanked everyone involved in the search operation which recently concluded.
“The efforts of Sundance Resources and the governments of Australia, Cameroon, the Congo Republic and Gabon have been greatly appreciated by the Talbot family and staff.”
