Tag: whitehaven

Whitehaven Coal: Soldiering on

Whitehaven Coal: Soldiering on

Despite a contraction in coal prices, Whitehaven Coal is weathering the storm. The company, which operates four mines in the Gunnedah Basin of NSW along with Winchester South in Queensland’s Bowen Basin, has been able to reward investors and pay out $312m in dividends through the FY20 period. This was despite a softening of Whitehaven’s earnings in the year ending June 30, which reflected lower Newcastle thermal coal prices and the impact on run of mine production due to labour shortages and dust issues at its Maules Creek mine, which produces some of the highest quality high energy thermal coal in Australia. Whitehaven also required a longwall change out at the Narrabri mine, which caused eight weeks of disturbance to...

China-US deal boost for coal trade

China-US deal boost for coal trade

AUSTRALIAN coal producer Whitehaven Coal sees a silver lining for global coal markets from the signing of the first phase of a trade deal between China and the US on Wednesday. Whitehaven Coal said in a production update to the ASX that the easing of China-US trade tensions should improve market conditions for metallurgical coal, a key ingredient in steel production in China, and for thermal coal used in power stations to generate electricity. “The metallurgical coal market recovered in late 2019 from the lows experienced mid-2019,” the company stated. “The dynamics of the steel market are impacted by the trade tensions between China and the US, so the signing of the Phase 1 trade deal should have a welcome...

North Queensland Mining: Old king coal

North Queensland Mining: Old king coal

ACCORDING to the Queensland Resources Council (QRC), the resources sector added $74.3b to the State’s economy in 2018-2019 – and with new mining developments underway, the economy is set to grow even further in 2020 and beyond. QRC Chief Executive Ian Macfarlane said the sector already supports more than 316,000 jobs across the state, earns 80pc of Queensland’s exports and generates more than $5b in royalties for the State Government. “Queensland’s resources sector is now supporting one in every seven jobs, and one in every five dollars for Queensland’s economy,” Mr Macfarlane said. “That means from Burleigh Heads to Brisbane and from Mackay to Mount Isa, the resources sector is powering local economies and employing local people. “This year’s figures...

Coal: Stronger for Longer

Coal: Stronger for Longer

BY REUBEN ADAMS Coal’s decline has been greatly exaggerated, it seems. Emerging in 2016 from some of the most difficult industry conditions in years, prices have stabilised as supply side tightness combined with international demand growth have analysts upgrading their price forecasts once again. Global thermal and metallurgical coal prices are spiking for the third time in the past 12 months due to supply tightness in the Chinese market, according to Citi analysts. With ongoing safety inspections and other Government policy interventions, China's spot domestic thermal coal supply may remain tight in the coming months. The impacts all along the Australian supply chain have been overwhelmingly positive. For example, coal exports from northern Queensland surged in August...