Coal news and updates

China’s June daily coal output jumps on peak summer demand

China’s daily coal output in June rose 6.6 per cent from a month earlier as miners cranked up output ahead of peak summer temperatures, when electricity demand surges as households turn on air conditioners to keep cool.

China produced 379.31 million tonnes of coal last month, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Friday, equivalent to 12.64 million tonnes per day.

That compares with 11.87 million tonnes per day in May.

Coal output over the first six months of 2022 reached 2.19 billion tonnes, up 11 per cent from the same period last year, statistics bureau data showed.

Beijing has been urging miners to ramp up production and has accelerated approvals of new mining capacity to ensure enough supply and to avoid widespread power outages similar to ones that hit Chinese manufacturers last year.

The central government has targeted daily coal production of 12.6 million tonnes this year and asked miners to prioritise supply to power utilities at mandated prices.

June power generation rose 1.5 per cent from a year ago to 709 billion kilowatt-hours, statistics showed, the first growth in three months as COVID-19 lockdowns eased.

Several regions across China recorded all-time high power loads this week amid extremely high temperatures.

Daily coal consumption at major utilities in Chinese coastal regions climbed to around 2 million tonnes in the first week of July, little change from the volumes burned in the same period last year, data tracked by the China Coal Transportation and Distribution Association showed.