We welcome article submissions from experts in the areas of coal, mining,
shipping, etc.
To Submit your article please click here.
|
|
|
Thursday, 26 November 20
DECLINE IN COAL EXPORTS ADDS TO NAVAJO-OWNED COMPANY'S PROBLEMS - IEEFA U.S.
 Weak demand and low prices are likely creating steep losses for NTEC
U.S. coal exports to Asia—once heralded as the saving grace for struggling coal producers in the western United States—are facing new strains from low prices and weak demand in the wake of the global COVID-19 crisis.
In its third-quarter financial statement released earlier this month, Westshore Terminals in British Columbia, the primary terminal for U.S. thermal coal bound for the Pacific Rim of Asia, reported a 47% quarter-over-quarter drop in thermal coal exports. Quarterly thermal coal shipments from the terminal fell to their lowest level since 2016, when global coal markets were overwhelmed by a massive supply glut that sent seaborne coal prices crashing.
Even though the Westshore terminal is in Canada, virtually all of its shipments of thermal coal—the type burned in power plants—come from U.S. mines, mostly located in Montana. Data from the U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration suggest that Montana’s Spring Creek mine, owned by the Navajo Transitional Energy Company (NTEC), bore the brunt of the decline. Coal production at Spring Creek totaled 2.2 million tons during the third quarter of 2020, down from about 3.9 million tons during the year-ago quarter. On an annualized basis, Spring Creek production has now fallen to its lowest level since 2003 (See Figure 1).
Meanwhile, production at the Signal Peak mine, the other major U.S. thermal coal exporter that ships through Westshore, held roughly steady compared to the year-ago quarter. (Signal Peak has been in the news for other reasons, having to do with a fraud and embezzlement scheme perpetrated by former executives. Signal Peak is partially owned by FirstEnergy, also in the news for fraud allegations.) Westshore doesn’t disclose its customer volumes, but Signal Peak’s relatively stable production during the quarter suggests that NTEC’s Spring Creek mine accounted for the bulk of the decline in thermal coal exports through Westshore.
In a related wrinkle, Westshore reported that it took in “$2.6 million [Canadian] of customer shortfall payments” from July through September. This means that at least one of the terminal’s shippers is paying penalties for shipping less coal than promised.
If last quarter’s shortfall payments are indeed coming from NTEC, the company is probably paying even more in penalties to BNSF, the rail company that moves Spring Creek coal to Westshore. (Documents from the 2019 bankruptcy filing of Cloud Peak Energy, the previous owner of the mine, suggest the company paid a little over $25 per ton in rail fees, more than twice as much as Westshore charges to ship a ton of coal.)
Cloud Peak shelled out millions of dollars in such payments to both BNSF and Westshore during times of low international prices, and—ironically enough—frequently shipped coal at a loss to avoid even steeper losses from contractual penalties.
NTEC touted its purchase in 2019 of Powder River Basin mines as a “prudent investment,” pointing to a study (commissioned by the company itself) arguing that Spring Creek exports held the “potential for high profitability.” Yet Cloud Peak had also had made big bets on Spring Creek exports—and those bets helped cement the company’s financial collapse.
Now, NTEC’s gamble on coal exports is backfiring—just as it backfired on Cloud Peak.
This will only worsen difficulties for NTEC, which has recently agreed to an ill-advised expansion of its stake in the aging coal-fired Four Corners power plant in New Mexico and whose core business—coal production for the domestic electricity industry—is in severe decline, and not just because of COVID but because utility companies continue to aggressively abandon coal for cheaper and more modern forms of generation.
If you believe an article violates your rights or the rights of others, please contact us.
|
|
Friday, 12 March 21
INDIA SHOULD FOCUS ON REDUCING COAL POWER GENERATION INSTEAD OF CAPACITY - IEEFA
Nearly half of existing coal power in India is more expensive than new renewable power
To get to its ambitious climate targets, Indi ...
Friday, 12 March 21
BATTERIES ARE REPLACING COAL NOT GAS - IEEFA
No amount of government subsidies can halt gas’s decline
Batteries are replacing coal not gas.
Today the early ...
Friday, 12 March 21
RENEWABLES SHOULD BE FOCUS OF VIETNAM’S DRAFT PDP8, NOT COAL AND GAS - IEEFA
Evidence was clear to inform the next stage of Vietnam’s power development
Vietnam’s recently published draft power deve ...
Thursday, 11 March 21
U.S. TO PRODUCE 581 MMST IN 2021, UP 8% FROM 2020 - EIA
EIA expects U.S. coal production to total 581 MMst in 2021, 42 MMst (8%) more than in 2020. In 2022, EIA expects coal production to rise by a furth ...
Thursday, 11 March 21
MARKET INSIGHT - INTERMODAL
Assessing the ship repair sector during the first months of 2021, we have come across a new era in which Owners chose the shipyards to repair their ...
|
|
|
Showing 621 to 625 news of total 6871 |
|
 |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
 |
|
|
| |
|
- Aditya Birla Group - India
- Thiess Contractors Indonesia
- PowerSource Philippines DevCo
- Filglen & Citicon Mining (HK) Ltd - Hong Kong
- Offshore Bulk Terminal Pte Ltd, Singapore
- Larsen & Toubro Limited - India
- Carbofer General Trading SA - India
- VISA Power Limited - India
- Trasteel International SA, Italy
- Holcim Trading Pte Ltd - Singapore
- Straits Asia Resources Limited - Singapore
- San Jose City I Power Corp, Philippines
- Orica Australia Pty. Ltd.
- Kartika Selabumi Mining - Indonesia
- Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand
- Sree Jayajothi Cements Limited - India
- Global Business Power Corporation, Philippines
- Indika Energy - Indonesia
- Antam Resourcindo - Indonesia
- Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Japan
- Iligan Light & Power Inc, Philippines
- Directorate Of Revenue Intelligence - India
- Malabar Cements Ltd - India
- Kaltim Prima Coal - Indonesia
- Aboitiz Power Corporation - Philippines
- Tata Chemicals Ltd - India
- Bahari Cakrawala Sebuku - Indonesia
- Electricity Authority, New Zealand
- Banpu Public Company Limited - Thailand
- Vizag Seaport Private Limited - India
- Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd, - India
- Kobexindo Tractors - Indoneisa
- Australian Commodity Traders Exchange
- Coal and Oil Company - UAE
- SMC Global Power, Philippines
- Meralco Power Generation, Philippines
- Xindia Steels Limited - India
- Asmin Koalindo Tuhup - Indonesia
- Global Coal Blending Company Limited - Australia
- Mjunction Services Limited - India
- Goldman Sachs - Singapore
- Billiton Holdings Pty Ltd - Australia
- Pendopo Energi Batubara - Indonesia
- ICICI Bank Limited - India
- Star Paper Mills Limited - India
- Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission - India
- Kalimantan Lumbung Energi - Indonesia
- Jaiprakash Power Ventures ltd
- Barasentosa Lestari - Indonesia
- Ministry of Mines - Canada
- Vedanta Resources Plc - India
- London Commodity Brokers - England
- India Bulls Power Limited - India
- Makarim & Taira - Indonesia
- Bhushan Steel Limited - India
- Simpson Spence & Young - Indonesia
- Uttam Galva Steels Limited - India
- Mintek Dendrill Indonesia
- Price Waterhouse Coopers - Russia
- Petrochimia International Co. Ltd.- Taiwan
- SN Aboitiz Power Inc, Philippines
- Bukit Baiduri Energy - Indonesia
- Essar Steel Hazira Ltd - India
- Bukit Asam (Persero) Tbk - Indonesia
- Posco Energy - South Korea
- White Energy Company Limited
- Vijayanagar Sugar Pvt Ltd - India
- PetroVietnam Power Coal Import and Supply Company
- Baramulti Group, Indonesia
- Sakthi Sugars Limited - India
- Manunggal Multi Energi - Indonesia
- LBH Netherlands Bv - Netherlands
- Videocon Industries ltd - India
- Bhoruka Overseas - Indonesia
- Borneo Indobara - Indonesia
- Planning Commission, India
- The State Trading Corporation of India Ltd
- Heidelberg Cement - Germany
- Maheswari Brothers Coal Limited - India
- GAC Shipping (India) Pvt Ltd
- Indian Oil Corporation Limited
- Samtan Co., Ltd - South Korea
- Sinarmas Energy and Mining - Indonesia
- Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd
- AsiaOL BioFuels Corp., Philippines
- Alfred C Toepfer International GmbH - Germany
- Power Finance Corporation Ltd., India
- Indo Tambangraya Megah - Indonesia
- Dalmia Cement Bharat India
- The Treasury - Australian Government
- Binh Thuan Hamico - Vietnam
- South Luzon Thermal Energy Corporation
- Cement Manufacturers Association - India
- Renaissance Capital - South Africa
- Metalloyd Limited - United Kingdom
- Ministry of Finance - Indonesia
- Riau Bara Harum - Indonesia
- Economic Council, Georgia
- IEA Clean Coal Centre - UK
- Energy Link Ltd, New Zealand
- Interocean Group of Companies - India
- GVK Power & Infra Limited - India
- Global Green Power PLC Corporation, Philippines
- PTC India Limited - India
- Globalindo Alam Lestari - Indonesia
- Kideco Jaya Agung - Indonesia
- Cigading International Bulk Terminal - Indonesia
- Petron Corporation, Philippines
- Ambuja Cements Ltd - India
- Kohat Cement Company Ltd. - Pakistan
- Georgia Ports Authority, United States
- McConnell Dowell - Australia
- GN Power Mariveles Coal Plant, Philippines
- Latin American Coal - Colombia
- Singapore Mercantile Exchange
- Attock Cement Pakistan Limited
- OPG Power Generation Pvt Ltd - India
- SMG Consultants - Indonesia
- Krishnapatnam Port Company Ltd. - India
- Bangladesh Power Developement Board
- Miang Besar Coal Terminal - Indonesia
- Eastern Energy - Thailand
- Independent Power Producers Association of India
- Coastal Gujarat Power Limited - India
- Sical Logistics Limited - India
- Bulk Trading Sa - Switzerland
- Central Java Power - Indonesia
- Semirara Mining Corp, Philippines
- Ministry of Transport, Egypt
- Wilmar Investment Holdings
- Asia Pacific Energy Resources Ventures Inc, Philippines
- Minerals Council of Australia
- Sindya Power Generating Company Private Ltd
- Bukit Makmur.PT - Indonesia
- TNB Fuel Sdn Bhd - Malaysia
- Ceylon Electricity Board - Sri Lanka
- Intertek Mineral Services - Indonesia
- PNOC Exploration Corporation - Philippines
- Madhucon Powers Ltd - India
- Port Waratah Coal Services - Australia
- Mercator Lines Limited - India
- Eastern Coal Council - USA
- Leighton Contractors Pty Ltd - Australia
- CIMB Investment Bank - Malaysia
- Grasim Industreis Ltd - India
- Kepco SPC Power Corporation, Philippines
- Merrill Lynch Commodities Europe
- Salva Resources Pvt Ltd - India
- Thai Mozambique Logistica
- Truba Alam Manunggal Engineering.Tbk - Indonesia
- Formosa Plastics Group - Taiwan
- Deloitte Consulting - India
- Karbindo Abesyapradhi - Indoneisa
- Pipit Mutiara Jaya. PT, Indonesia
- Dr Ramakrishna Prasad Power Pvt Ltd - India
- Meenaskhi Energy Private Limited - India
- Indonesian Coal Mining Association
- Orica Mining Services - Indonesia
- Indian Energy Exchange, India
- Indogreen Group - Indonesia
- Chamber of Mines of South Africa
- Africa Commodities Group - South Africa
- Agrawal Coal Company - India
- Gujarat Mineral Development Corp Ltd - India
- Dong Bac Coal Mineral Investment Coporation - Vietnam
- Medco Energi Mining Internasional
- Savvy Resources Ltd - HongKong
- ASAPP Information Group - India
- The University of Queensland
- European Bulk Services B.V. - Netherlands
- Australian Coal Association
- Coalindo Energy - Indonesia
- Bayan Resources Tbk. - Indonesia
- Anglo American - United Kingdom
- Ind-Barath Power Infra Limited - India
- Romanian Commodities Exchange
- Wood Mackenzie - Singapore
- New Zealand Coal & Carbon
- Sarangani Energy Corporation, Philippines
- Gujarat Sidhee Cement - India
- Bhatia International Limited - India
- Semirara Mining and Power Corporation, Philippines
- Kapuas Tunggal Persada - Indonesia
- Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission - India
- Karaikal Port Pvt Ltd - India
- Tamil Nadu electricity Board
- GMR Energy Limited - India
- Edison Trading Spa - Italy
- Marubeni Corporation - India
- Oldendorff Carriers - Singapore
- MS Steel International - UAE
- Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited - India
- Siam City Cement - Thailand
- Parliament of New Zealand
- Central Electricity Authority - India
- Rio Tinto Coal - Australia
- CNBM International Corporation - China
- IHS Mccloskey Coal Group - USA
- International Coal Ventures Pvt Ltd - India
- Energy Development Corp, Philippines
- Lanco Infratech Ltd - India
- Bharathi Cement Corporation - India
- Mercuria Energy - Indonesia
- Sojitz Corporation - Japan
- Jorong Barutama Greston.PT - Indonesia
- Altura Mining Limited, Indonesia
- Timah Investasi Mineral - Indoneisa
- Commonwealth Bank - Australia
- Kumho Petrochemical, South Korea
- TeaM Sual Corporation - Philippines
- Chettinad Cement Corporation Ltd - India
- Therma Luzon, Inc, Philippines
- Siam City Cement PLC, Thailand
- Directorate General of MIneral and Coal - Indonesia
- Jindal Steel & Power Ltd - India
- Standard Chartered Bank - UAE
- Parry Sugars Refinery, India
|
| |
| |
|
