ARCHIVE

Major African coal terminal holding its own

AFRICA'S largest coal export facility has reportedly increased shipments 7.7% in April from a yea...

Justin Niessner

This article is 13 years old. Images might not display.

AFRICA’S largest coal export facility has reportedly increased shipments 7.7% in April from a year earlier.

The Richards Bay Coal Terminal in eastern South Africa is owned by mining giants BHP Billiton and Anglo American and has a design capacity of 91 million tonnes per annum.

According to Bloomberg, the 276-hectare terminal site moved 5.17 tonnes of coal over the year to April despite a 17% drop in exports due to increased US shipments depressing European and Asian demand.

XMP Consulting analyst Xavier Prevost told Bloomberg South African producers were waiting and hoping for prices to recover and the latest data showed Richards Bay prices at just under $US100 a ton.

“There is an oversupply of coal in Europe, China and India,” he was quoted as saying.

“The US market is very depressed, and shale gas is taking an increasing market share from coal. As a result, US coal is going to India, China and Europe.”

TOPICS:

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining Monthly Intelligence team.

A growing series of reports, each focused on a key discussion point for the mining sector, brought to you by the Mining Monthly Intelligence team.

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence: Future Fleets Report 2025

MMI Future Fleets Report 2025 looks at how companies are using alternative energy sources to cut greenhouse gas emmissions

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence: Automation and Digitalisation Report 2024

Exclusive research for Mining Magazine Intelligence Automation and Digitalisation Report 2024 shows mining companies are embracing cutting-edge tech

editions

ESG Mining Company Index: Benchmarking the Future of Sustainable Mining

The ESG Mining Company Index report provides an in-depth evaluation of ESG performance of 61 of the world's largest mining companies. Using a robust framework, it assesses each company across 9 meticulously weighted indicators within 6 essential pillars.

editions

Mining Magazine Intelligence Exploration Report 2024 (feat. Opaxe data)

A comprehensive review of exploration trends and technologies, highlighting the best intercepts and discoveries and the latest initial resource estimates.