Coal

Coal shortage now at alarming levels, say aluminium producers

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With no relief in sight despite coal stocks running critically low and production disruptions looming across the Indian aluminium sector, the Aluminium Association of India (AAI) has urged the union coal ministry for immediate resumption of adequate coal rakes for the highly power-intensive Aluminium industry.

In its representation to the Ministry, the AAI has lauded the combined efforts by the Ministry of Coal and Coal India Limited in reviving domestic coal production, which has helped ease the coal supply crisis for the Power Sector. The steps undertaken by the Ministry increased the overall daily rakes dispatched from 242 rakes/day in September 2021 to 289 rakes/day in December 2021…Full Story

Coal Shortage Crisis: 15 Of 135 Power Plants Have Zero Days Of Stock

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Concerns on coal have also come from political quarters, as Power Minister RK Singh describes the situation as "touch and go"

By - Mohammed Kudrati | Boom Live


India is running perilously low on coal for thermal power generation, shows data from the Central Electricity Authority. According to their daily release on coal stocks through the National Power Portal, 15 of India's 135 coal-fired thermal power plants have zero days worth of coal, which is as of September 30. 

On average, the data shows that there is only four days worth of coal stock, that is 8.082 million tons of coal. The data show that the daily requirement for coal across all categories of plants is 1.825 million tons. 104 power plants have critical or super critical supplies, which the data show is eight days or less worth of supplies...Full Story

China Energy Crunch Triggers Alarm, Pleas for More Coal

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By David Stanway | Reuters

As a severe power crunch roils China’s northeastern industrial heartland, senior officials face mounting pressure from alarmed citizens to ramp up coal imports thick and fast in order to keep lights on, factories open and even water supplies flowing.

With electricity shortages sparked by scant coal supply crippling large sections of industry, the governor of Jilin province, one of the hardest hit in the world’s no.2 economy, called for a surge in coal imports, while a power company association said supply was being expanded “at any cost”.

News organisations and social media carried reports and posts saying the lack of power in the northeast had shut down traffic lights…Full Story

Mgojo blames Exxaro’s 30% plunge in coal exports to “one of worst rail performances”

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By Brendan Ryan | Mining MX

EXXARO Resources churned profits and dividends in the six months to end-June but that was thanks to its non-managed iron ore investments because its core coal business was hammered by Transnet Freight Rail’s (TFR’s) disastrous performance on the coal export line to Richard’s Bay.

Coal export sales plunged 30% to 4.1 million tons (Mt) in the six months to end-June (six months to end-June 2020: 5.9Mt). That’s worse than was predicted in March by Exxaro CEO-elect Nombasa Tsengwa who warned that some two million tons of coal exports were “at risk” for all of 2021 because of TFR’s poor performance.

Tsengwa today told Miningmx that the “at risk” figure on Exxaro’s forecast coal exports for 2021 had been increased to three million tons…Full Story

Robust China coal demand amid Australia import ban fuels price rally: Russell

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By Clyde Russell | Reuters

Seaborne coal has become a quiet winner among energy commodities, lacking the attention of higher-profile crude oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG), but enjoying strong gains amid rising demand.

Both thermal coal, used in power plants, and coking coal, used to make steel, have rallied strongly in recent months. And in both cases the driver has largely been China, the world’s biggest producer, importer and consumer of the fuel.

There are two elements to China’s influence on seaborne coal markets in Asia; robust demand as the Chinese economy rebounds from the coronavirus pandemic; and Beijing’s policy choice to ban imports from Australia…Full Story

Thermal coal fires NSW budget

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By Lou Caruana | Mining Monthly

HIGHER thermal coal prices have prompted the New South Wales government to increase its budget forecast for money raised from mining royalties by $50 million to $1.6 billion in 2021-22.

That means mining royalties are forecast to raise nearly $6.4 billion over the next four years, delivering significant ongoing funding for the NSW Generations Fund.

Mining royalties represent a significant proportion of revenue for the fund, which is expected to grow to $90 billion by 2031 and has delivered investment returns of 8.6% since its inception in late 2018.

NSW Minerals Council CEO Stephen Galilee said mining royalties were helping underpin the NSW government’s fiscal strategy and infrastructure program through provision of strong ongoing revenues into the NSW Generations Fund.

“Once again mining royalties are providing an economic boost to the state budget, with royalty revenues now embedded as a critical component of the government’s fiscal strategy,” he said…Full Story

China Mulls Price Caps on Coal in Campaign to Tame Inflation

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Bloomberg with help by Jason Rogers, Winnie Zhu, and Dan Murtaugh

China’s efforts to control raw materials costs could include price limits on its runaway coal market, underscoring the government’s tough stance on taming inflation.

Beijing is considering imposing a cap on the price of thermal coal as it struggles to contain stubbornly high energy costs ahead of peak demand over the summer. The move would be the latest in a largely successful campaign across commodities that began in April to prevent inflationary pressures harming the economy.

One idea under discussion for coal is to limit the price at which miners sell, according to people familiar with the plan, who declined to be named because the matter isn’t public…Full Story

It’s not over for coal as global prices surge on hot demand

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By Dan Murtaugh and Vanessa Dezem | Sydney Morning Herald

Coal is seeing a dramatic spike in demand just as several major miners are hit with production problems, sparking a surge in prices from China to Europe.

Prices for the dirtiest fossil fuel are soaring as sweltering temperatures in North Asia increase air conditioning needs, adding to already strong demand due to the industrial recovery from the pandemic. Mine safety issues in China, heavy rainfall in Indonesia and disruptions in Colombia are constraining output.

The price spike comes amid an existential crisis for coal, with climate policies making it increasingly difficult to invest in new projects. The squeeze might not change that, but it’s providing miners with a windfall while it lasts…Full Story

Coal set to dominate Indonesia power mix in 2030 as renewables lag

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Despite major global economies moving away from coal to curb carbon emissions, coal is set to maintain its dominance in Indonesia’s power mix during 2021-30, as a decisive renewable energy policy remains absent.

By Damon Evans | Energy Voice

GlobalData’s latest report reveals that thermal power capacity in Southeast Asia’s largest economy is expected to jump from 59.38 GW (85.6% share of total power mix) to 92.53 GW in 2030. “During 2021-2030, thermal power generation will be dominated by coal-based electricity generation,” said the data and analytics company.

The expansion of renewable power in Indonesia has been relatively small compared to neighboring Southeast Asian countries. In 2000, renewable power capacity in Indonesia stood at 1.3 GW, which increased to 4.3 GW in 2020. Renewable power capacity is expected to expand at a CAGR of 12.5% to hit 14.9 GW in 2030, reckons GlobalData.

“Indonesia is expected to produce 62.2 TWh of its electricity from renewable sources in 2030, which will only be around 13% of the total power generation in the country,” reported the company…Full Story

China’s coal futures hit record as exchange tries to cool rally with fee hike

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Prices have rallied 34 per cent so far this year as miners struggle to meet robust demand from the nation’s economic rebound.

By Krystal Chia | Bloomberg

Prices have rallied 34% so far this year as miners struggle to meet robust demand from the nation’s economic rebound. Safety and environmental inspections, mining accidents and an unofficial ban on Australia coal has disrupted supply and tightened the market. A recent worsening in diplomatic relations with Australia has also given the raw material another boost.

Futures reversed a drop earlier Tuesday morning after authorities raised trading fees, typically a step that’s taken to cool markets. Trading fees for iron ore futures were also increased on Tuesday.

“The market has been unusually explosive,” said Huatai Futures Ltd. analyst Wang Haitao. Inspections in major coal-producing regions have been rife with corruption investigations in Inner Mongolia, overproduction probes in Shaanxi province, and environmental checks in Shanxi province. …Full Story

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