英語学習

英語ニュース教材：Insolvent WA coal miner insists it has years, if not decades of life left（Intermediate レベル）

 

Contents

🎧 Audio

📖 Script

A coal mining company in Western Australia is trying to improve its financial situation. The company, which is currently insolvent, believes it still has a valuable future. Insolvency means the company doesn’t have enough money to pay its debts. To solve this, they are planning to increase their operations and produce more coal. This is their last effort to become profitable again. The company hopes to do this before the government stops giving them financial support.

The company’s receivers, who are in charge of managing its finances, are working hard to make the business successful. They are optimistic that the company can continue for many years, or even decades. However, they need to act quickly because the financial help from taxpayers will not last forever. The receivers are focused on improving efficiency and reducing costs to make the business more sustainable. They are also exploring new markets to sell their coal.

This situation is significant because it involves taxpayer money and the future of energy production in the region. Coal is an important resource, but it also has environmental impacts. The company needs to balance its economic goals with environmental responsibilities. This means they must consider how their operations affect the environment and local communities.

The success of this plan is important for the local economy. If the company can become profitable again, it will save jobs and support local businesses. However, if it fails, there could be negative impacts on the community, such as job losses and reduced economic activity.

📝 Vocabulary

  • Insolvent: not having enough money to pay debts
    例文: “The company became insolvent after years of financial difficulties.”
    Collocations／日本語の意味を見る
    • insolvent company
    • declare insolvent
    • financially insolvent
    支払い不能
  • Receiver: a person appointed to manage the financial affairs of a company in financial trouble
    例文: “The receivers are trying to save the company from bankruptcy.”
    Collocations／日本語の意味を見る
    • appoint a receiver
    • receiver management
    • official receiver
    管財人
  • Ramp up: to increase or cause to increase
    例文: “The factory ramped up production to meet the holiday demand.”
    Collocations／日本語の意味を見る
    • ramp up production
    • ramp up efforts
    • ramp up operations
    増加させる
  • Taxpayer: a person who pays taxes to the government
    例文: “Taxpayer money is used to fund public services.”
    Collocations／日本語の意味を見る
    • taxpayer money
    • taxpayer support
    • taxpayer burden
    納税者
  • Sustainable: able to be maintained at a certain rate or level
    例文: “The company is working towards a more sustainable business model.”
    Collocations／日本語の意味を見る
    • sustainable development
    • sustainable practices
    • sustainable future
    持続可能な

✏️ Grammar Point

Future tense with “will” – “The company will save jobs and support local businesses.”

文法の日本語補足を見る
未来の出来事を表すときに使われる

💡 使用場面

未来の予定や予測について話すときに使われます。ビジネスでの会話では、将来の計画を説明する際に役立ちます。

📝 使用例文

“例: In a business meeting, you might say: ‘If we cut costs now, we can increase our profit margin next quarter.’”
“`”

❓ Listening Questions

  1. True/False: The coal mining company in Western Australia is already profitable.
  2. MCQ: What is the company trying to do to solve its financial problems?
    a) Close down the operations
    b) Increase coal production
    c) Sell the company
    d) Hire more employees
  3. MCQ: Why is it important for the company to become profitable again?
    a) To expand internationally
    b) To save jobs and support local businesses
    c) To build a new factory
    d) To receive more government support
🔑 Listening Answersを見る
  1. False
  2. b) Increase coal production
  3. b) To save jobs and support local businesses

📚 Reading Questions

  1. Who is managing the finances of the insolvent company?
  2. Why does the company need to act quickly?
  3. What does “sustainable” mean in the context of the company’s operations?
🔑 Reading Answersを見る
  1. The receivers are managing the finances.
  2. The company needs to act quickly because financial support from taxpayers will not last forever.
  3. Sustainable means able to be maintained at a certain rate or level.

🇯🇵 日本語での経済ニュース解説

オーストラリア西部の石炭鉱山会社は、経済的な困難に直面しています。この会社は現在支払い不能の状態にあり、事業を存続させるために生産を増加させています。納税者からの支援が続く間に、効率を改善しコストを削減することで再び利益を上げることを目指しています。この取り組みが成功すれば、地域経済の活性化につながりますが、失敗すれば地域社会に悪影響を及ぼす可能性があります。将来的には環境への配慮も必要です。

Source: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-10-17/insolvent-wa-griffin-coal-ramps-up-operations/105901120

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