The colliery delivered 540,127 tonnes of washed two and four-seam thermal coal to Eskom in Q4 2014, an increase of 3.7% from Q4 2013, the South African miner reported.
The colliery delivered 1.74 million tonnes to Eskom in the first nine months of the year, up 4.4% on Q4 2013, while sales of five-seam metallurgical coal were 30,897t for Q4, up 30.1% from Q4 2013, and 95,903t for the nine months, up 21.6% over last year’s effort.
“B-grade” sales were 9959t for the quarter, up 248.4% over Q4 2013, and 31,988t for the nine months, as this new product gained market acceptance.
Keaton’s Vaalkrantz colliery sold 79,662t of anthracite to local and export customers in Q4 2014, an increase of 29.5% over the corresponding period last year.
Importantly, the quarter also saw the first contracted sales of a new 32% ash product which Keaton said had been met with “considerable” market support.
Keaton CEO Manti Glad said 2015 would be a year of “sustained performance” at Vanggatfontein, with consistent production of coal and cash generation from the long-life colliery.
“After a lot of hard work at Vaalkrantz, we are starting to see the benefits of improved work practices and the introduction of the new 32% ash product,” Glad said.
Glad also praised the company increasing its safety performance at Vaalkrantz to zero LTIFR (lost time injury frequency rates), after its Q3 2014 result was 0.31, which the company said was an “outstanding effort” in difficult narrow seam mining conditions.
Its safety performance at Vanggatfontein was also improved to 0.04, compared to 0.09 at Q3 2014 – though “zero harm” is the company’s ultimate goal.
Keaton owns 74% of Vanggatfontein, with the remainder held by Rutendo Mining. The colliery is 15km east of Delmas on the edge of the central Witbank coalfield in Mpumalanga.
The Vaalkrantz anthracite colliery is owned by a JV called Leeuw Mining and Exploration, which is 74% Keaton, 26% Leeuw & Associates. It lies 20km east of Vryheid in KwaZulu-Natal, with two shaft complexes comprising four underground access portals, with a two-stage anthracite washing plant producing duff, peas and nuts.
