The low production rates for the six months to September 2015 were mainly due to limited longwall production at Russell Vale colliery, the company said.

Russell Vale colliery was put under care and maintenance from 1 September 2015 while Wongawilli colliery remains under care and maintenance.

The company completed extraction of 365m of longwall-6 block at Russell Vale colliery, which was approved by the New South Wales Department of Planning.

Approval for the remaining portion of longwall 6 and other longwall block 7, 9, 10 and 11 (around 4.7Mt) remain under consideration by the NSW government.

The company’s total revenue for the half year was $7,267,000 compared to $8,173,000 for the six months to 30 September 2014 as a result of lower coal prices.

The loss for the consolidated entity after providing for income tax amounted to $70,770,000.

The loss includes a net foreign exchange loss of $44,445,000 and mainly relates to the change in exchange rate between the US dollar and Australian dollar on the debt facilities.

The company’s borrowings are in US dollars so the fluctuation in exchange rates gives rise on conversion to a gain or loss depending on the direction of the movement, the company said.