Coal news and updates

Indonesia coal output down 15.4% in January-August

Coal production in Indonesia fell 15.4% to 263 million tonnes in the first eight months of 2015, as Indonesian coal miners cut production due to low global coal demand.

Meanwhile, Indonesia’s coal exports fell 18% year on year to 211 million tonnes in the January-August period.

Indonesia’s reference thermal coal price hit another all-time low at $58.21/t FOB in September, down 1.6% from August, and the fifth consecutive month of decline.

The September reference thermal coal price declined 8.8% from the reference price of $63.84/t in the first month of the year. Compared to its peak of $127.05/t in February 2011, the reference price has fallen around 54%.

Indonesia, the world’s largest thermal coal exporter, continues to feel the negative impact of low global coal prices as this commodity constitutes an important foreign exchange earner.

Nearly 80% of Indonesian coal miners have temporarily ceased coal production as the production cost margin turned negative, said the Indonesian Coal Mining Association (APBI). Meanwhile, the Indonesian government cut the nation’s coal production target in 2015 from 425 million tonnes to 400 million tonnes.

Domestic coal consumption remained stable so far in 2015. In the first eight months of the year, 52 million tonnes were consumed domestically -- down one million tonne from the same period last year, particularly by power plants and the industrial sector.

Indonesian listed coal miner Adaro Energy is likely to cut production in 2016 to the range of 52-54 million tonnes -- a 7% decline from the production target in 2015, due to low coal price, it said.

source: http://en.sxcoal.com