2010 looking good for coal industry: analyst

By Sineva Toevai – www.lloydslistdcn.com.au

Specialist shipping market analyst Braemer Seascope Research predicts that total coal consumption will rise 5 per cent from last year to 6.2 billion tonnes while coking coal consumption will increase 12 per cent to 931 million tonnes driven by a 16.8 per cent rise in steel production to 1.44 billion tonnes.
Rio Tinto’s subsidiary, Coal & Allied, is also upbeat about the outlook for coal with the company predicting 2010 will be a buoyant period for thermal coal and semi-soft coking coal.
Thermal coal and semi-soft coking coal lifted total coal production at Coal & Allied’s Hunter Valley operations by 11 per cent in the December quarter, a 2 per cent increase in production at its Bengalla mine and more than doubling output at its Mount Thorley operations.
Braemar Seascope predicted that international coking coal exports could reach 248 million tonnes, of which 58 per cent will be from Australian ports.

Goonyella coal chain efficiency drive 'on track'
By Sineva Toevai
Integrated Logistics Centre (ILC) says it is on track to improving efficiency in Queensland's Goonyella coal supply chain.
The Mackay-based company was launched in August last year to manage all aspects of planning for the Bowen Basin to Dalrymple Bay Coal Terminal (DBCT) supply chain.
ILC’s general manager Philip Bourne said that getting the business and its main service provider into a centralised location had been the “most obvious achievement.”
"We have quickly established our place in the coal chain and we are now beginning the long journey to start improving the coal chain,” Bourne said.
"We are receiving excellent support from all participants of the coal supply chain and both producers and service providers stand to benefit from gaining efficiencies in the increased throughput of coal from mine to ship hatch.
"When this project is successfully delivered and maintained we should see significant gains across the supply chain."
Bourne said that while there were noticeable improvements since its launch, significantly more work was needed.
“We need transparency throughout the coal chain to make it work effectively," he said.
One initiative ILC has been working on since its launch is the Performance Management Framework (PMF) data portal, which covers every step in the coal chain’s day of operations, including parcel assembly times and load and unload times.
"It relies upon accurate, timely and regular updates enabling managers to make informed decisions and to focus on priorities of the entire coal chain," Bourne said.
"Over time PMF will continue to grow and expand beyond day of operations to monitor forecast and tactical and long-term plans as well as supply and demand."
ILC this month launched its open-access website, which provides a portal into the Dalrymple Bay Coal chain. The site has already received interest from countries including the US and Japan, Bourne said.
"Within the next week we will be at a stage where it will enable any interested party to see a snapshot of the coal chain at any given moment with headline figures such as inbound tonnes, outbound tonnes and number of ships in the queue."
DBCT is the third largest coal export terminal in the world.

Source: Lloyd’s List Daily Commercial News – www.lloydslistdcn.com.au