Coal news and updates

UK Q1 thermal coal imports drop 18% year on year to 8.2 million mt

The UK imported 8.2 million mt of thermal coal in the first quarter, an 18% drop on the year, according to customs data released Tuesday.

March deliveries into the UK dropped by 38% year on year to 2.446 million mt, the lowest monthly imports since November 2014, due to a fall in Russian thermal coal shipments.

Total March imports also fell 11% from February, UK customs data showed.

Russian thermal coal shipments in March were 1.039 million mt, a 33% drop on the month and 53% on the year.

UK thermal coal imports from Colombia in March surged 67% month on month to 923,981 mt, a five-month high, and were relatively stable from the same month in 2014.

This is despite a nighttime coal transport ban on Colombia's Fenoco rail line aimed at reducing noise pollution along the tracks, which started in February and affects over half of country's thermal coal production.

Imports from the US fell 16% month on month and 38% year on year to 448,671 mt, while no South African shipments were reported in March.

source: http://www.platts.com