BHP, Anglo, Xstrata Coal ship 10,000 miles on China price hike
BHP Billiton Plc, Anglo American Plc and Xstrata Plc are shipping coal 10,000 miles to China from their Cerrejon mine in Colombia for the first time this year because of surging demand and rising prices in Asia.
Cerrejon, the world’s largest open-pit mine of coal for export, started
sending coal shipments through the Panama Canal to China after prices
became “much better” than those in Europe, Leon Teicher, the venture’s
chief executive officer, said in an interview. Cerrejon may also make
its first sales to India this year, he said.China’s accelerating economic growth is stoking demand for coal to fuel
power plants and steel mills. Prices 45 percent higher than in Europe
make it worthwhile to transport the fuel to ports that are twice as far
as European harbors such as Rotterdam. China’s coal imports tripled last
year to 126.6 million metric tons, according to the China General
Administration of Customs.“There is a transition,” Teicher said in a March 10 interview in Bogota.
“Prices in the Pacific are much higher than they have ever been
relative to Europe.”Thermal coal used by power utilities climbed 22 percent over the 12
month through March 5 to $107.7 in Qinhuangdao, a port in northeastern
China, from $88 a year earlier, according to data from McCloskey Group
Ltd. The price was 45 percent higher than the $74.4 per ton for coal
delivered to northwestern Europe.Chinese Growth
China will be a net importer of coal this year even as its own
production climbs, Teicher said. The Asian nation’s gross domestic
product expanded 10.7 percent last quarter, the fastest since 2007. Last
week, central bank Governor Zhou Xiaochuan said policies aimed at
stimulating the economy must end “sooner or later.”“I don’t believe that China is a bubble,” Teicher said. “China has
arrived.”Production at Cerrejon, located on the northeastern edge of Colombia,
will rise to 31 million to 32 million tons of coal this year, after
falling last year as demand waned in Europe, he said. BHP, Anglo
American and Xstrata each own a third of the mine.Annual output capacity may be expanded to 40 million tons at a cost of
$800 million to $1 billion once “the market will take that expansion,”
Teicher said. “Right now is not yet the time.”Last year, Cerrejon sold most of its coal to Europe, the U.S. and Latin
America.Demand in Asia will help maintain the price of the fuel and may lead to
gains, he said.Source: Bloomberg
Search to find what you want
Loading- BHP, Anglo, Xstrata Coal ship 10,000 miles on China price hike
- China National Coal-to-pit coal performance by 20% in 2010
- China s coal industry sees rise in output, sales
- Chinese coal production in Q1 2010 by 28pct YoY
- China: Net coal imports to rise from January to May
- China shut down 1,000 small coal mines this year
- China shut down 1,000 small coal mines this year
- China net imports of coal expected 170 million tonnes in 2010
- China Coal Energy coal production to 7% in November
- Coal stock at Qinhuangdao port hits record low in October
BHP Billiton Plc, Anglo American Plc and Xstrata Plc are shipping coal 10,000 miles to China from their Cerrejon mine in Colombia for the first time this year because of surging demand and rising prices in Asia. Cerrejon, the world’s largest open-pit mine of coal for export, started sending coal
China National Coal Group, parent of the country’s second-largest coal miner, China Coal Energy Co Ltd, said that it plans to increase its raw coal output this year to 150 million tons, 20% more than the 125 million tons it produced last year, according to the State-owned Asset Supervision and
China’s coal industry realized growth in output and sales during the first seven months of this year, said Wang Xianzheng, president of China National Coal Association. During the first seven months of this year, China produced 1.61 billion tons of coal, 8.9% more than in the same period of last year.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics, China coal output grew 28.1%YoY to well over 751 million tonnes in the Q1. According to an analysis by the China National Coal Association, the increase indicates China has built up a large coal production capacity after a rapid growth in fixed asset
Net import of coal in China soared to 60.11 million tons during the first five months of this year from 38.44 million tons a year back, according to Wang Xianzheng, chairman of the China National Coal Association.
China will continue to tighten its control on small coal mine so as to ensure work safety in coal mining activities across the county, sources reported. Luo Lin, director the State Administration of Work Safety, said China will shut down 1,000 small coal mines this year as planned.Large coal miners
China will continue to tighten its control on small coal mine so as to ensure work safety in coal mining activities across the county, sources reported. Luo Lin, director the State Administration of Work Safety, said China will shut down 1,000 small coal mines this year as planned.Large coal miners
According to Mr Guo Yuntao deputy director of the National Coal Safety Supervision Bureau, China coal net imports are expected to reach 170 million tonnes this year making the country the biggest importer in the world. He said that China should make effort to build a conservational clean, safe, stable
China Coal Energy Co Ltd, the country’s second-largest coal miner by revenue, announced yesterday that its raw coal output rose 7% year on year to 8.72 million tons in November, according to a statement filed with the Shanghai Stock Exchange.
Coal inventory at Qinghuangdao Port, a major transport in North China, has hit five-month low at 3.92 million tons by this Monday caused by the maintenance on rail corridors connecting the Port and coal production base in North China, revealed by China Coal Transportation and Distribution Association. The Association predicted
Loading...