Glencore coal production grows in 1Q15

Glencore have announced a y/y increase in coal production in 1Q15 as new supplies of thermal coal came online in South Africa.

Production hit 35.6 million t – 4% higher than the 34.1 million t mined in 1Q14. The company’s South African production jumped 10% over the period as the newly commissioned Tweefontein Optimisation and Wonderfontein projects were ramped up. This new production more than offset the closure of higher-cost operations.

Announced production cuts at Optimum Coal did not impact output in the quarter but are expected to reduce overall saleable product for the year by 5 million t.

Elsewhere, Australian metallurgical coal production was 1.5 million t and thermal/semi-soft coking coal output was 14.3 million t – both in line with 1Q14. In Colombia, output at Prodeco rose 4% to 5.4 million t, while the company’s share of Cerrejon production was slightly up at 3 million t.

Written by Jonathan Rowland.

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcoal.com/mining/06052015/glencore-announce-rise-in-coal-production-in-1q15-2237/