September 07, 2008

Newcastle thermal coal price rises for 3rd week

Bloomberg reported that thermal coal prices at Australia's Newcastle port rose for a third week as constraints on exports in New South Wales and Queensland limit supplies amid rising demand from power generators.

According to the globalCOAL NEWC Index, the weekly index for power station coal prices at the New South Wales port gained AUD 5.51 or 4.4% to AUD 130.93 a tonne in the week ended April 18, a seven week high.

Mr Clyde Henderson, a Sydne based analyst at Barlow Jonker Pty, a unit of Wood Mackenzie Consultants Ltd said that “It's still a very tight market. It will be quite a long time before things do much in New South Wales or Queensland and it's still not exactly wonderful out of South Africa and China as well.''

The port, the world's biggest coal export harbor, increased shipments of the fuel by less than expected in the first quarter as wet weather and a lack of available coal crimped loadings early in the period. Xstrata Plc, the world's largest exporter of power-station coal, in February declared force majeure on deliveries from its Newlands mine in Queensland after heavy rain.

Port Waratah Coal Services Ltd in a report said that shipments at Newcastle's two coal terminals rose 6.8% to 22.26 million tonnes in the three months ended March 31, from 20.84 million a year earlier.