Indonesia coal: Prices up while ICI 4 trade surges

Spanish Market: Coal
08/03/19

Fob Indonesia prices rose again this week, supported by tight availability amid weather issues in Kalimantan and Sumatra and strong Chinese demand.

The situation is being exacerbated by a government-imposed reduction in output at smaller mining firms that did not fulfill their 2018 domestic market obligations, while a large Indonesian producer has had to declare force majeure on its shipments, market participants said.

Activity also surged in the ICI 4 derivatives market this week, with 168,000t clearing on the CME today — the highest single daily volume since the contract launched in February last year.

Indonesian producer Bayan Resources has had to declare force majeure on shipments because of low river levels, which have impacted its ability to barge coal from mines to waiting vessels, market participants said. The firm said previously that it aims to produce 32mn-36mn t of coal this year, up from 31mn t in 2018. It is unclear how long the problem will last, although the monsoon season in Kalimantan has already begun, which typically raises water levels in rivers that are used to transport coal by barge.

Fob prices of the actively traded GAR 4,200 kcal/kg coal increased the most out of the Indonesian grades, rising by $2.16/t to $40.50/t — the highest since early August 2018. The prices at which deals were concluded and cargoes offered increased as the week progressed. A March-loading geared supramax cargo of this coal was offered at the start of the week at $39/t, but offers had risen to as high as $43/t by today for an April-loading shipment. Deals involving April-loading geared supramax cargoes were concluded in a $40.50-42/t range. By comparison, March-loading geared supramax shipments changed hands last week at $38-38.50/t.

Demand for low calorific value (CV) product has also increased as prices of other grades have risen. A cross-month late March/early April loading supramax cargo of GAR 3,400 kcal/kg (NAR 3,000 kcal/kg) coal traded at $22.75/t this week. A March-loading cargo of the same coal changed hands at the same price, although this fell outside the current April and May assessment window. Fob GAR 3,400 kcal/kg prices increased by 63¢/t to $22.74/t.

Participants are monitoring an Indian ruling that could potentially remove around 3-5mn t/yr of demand for mostly mid-CV coal from the market, despite the generally bullish mood in the market. India's National Green Tribunal has ruled against ceramic makers using coal in their gasifiers in the Gujarat area, where they are clustered, and use LNG or LPG instead. The ruling has not yet had any impact on prices but has curtailed trading activity in the mid-CV GAR 5,000 kcal/kg (NAR 4,600 kcal/kg) market, participants said.

Fob Indonesia GAR 5,000 kcal/kg prices increased by 55¢/t to $57.39/t over the week, but cfr east coast India prices of the same coal were unchanged at $65.96/t. Delivered prices of NAR 5,500 kcal/kg coal declined by $2.06/t to $72.44/t, while GAR 4,200 kcal/kg prices were assessed $1.03/t higher at $48.89/t.

ICI 4 futures trade further out

Activity increased sharply in the ICI 4 thermal coal derivatives market, with a total of 365,000t of mostly third and fourth-quarter 2019 contracts changing hands this month. This week's volume also broke the previous monthly record of 265,000t in October 2018.

The latest trades take the total volume cleared on the CME since the contract launched last year to just under 2.5mn t.

All of today's trades, totalling 168,000t, changed hands for the third and fourth quarters of 2019 at $39-40.25/t in strips of 4,000-9,000t and were brokered by Singapore-based Evolution Markets. The trades were concluded at higher prices than similar trades earlier this week, when a total of 72,000t traded for the third and fourth quarters of 2019 in strips of 5,000-7,000t at $38.10/t. This was the third time this week that trades cleared all the way out to the end of the year since the launch of the contract.

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28/04/25

Trump works to blunt renewables growth

Washington, 28 April (Argus) — US president Donald Trump has started to impede development of renewable energy projects he sees as boondoggles, but he is facing challenges to his attempts to halt government funding and tax credits for the sector. Trump has attacked wind turbines and solar projects as part of a "Green New Scam" that should not be built, based on his preference for the fossil fuel-fired and nuclear power plants he says are more reliable and affordable. Trump selected a cabinet of like-minded individuals who oppose renewables and see little urgency to address climate change. He was elected to end the "nonsense" of building renewable resources that are heavily subsidised, make the grid less reliable and raise costs, energy secretary Chris Wright said in an interview on Earth Day. Interior secretary Doug Burgum on 16 April ordered Norwegian state-controlled Equinor to "immediately halt" construction of the 810MW Empire Wind project off New York. Trump had already ordered a freeze on future offshore wind leases , and suspending Empire Wind's permits is likely to spook investors even outside the renewables sphere. To reverse course on a fully permitted project is "bad policy" that "sends a chilling signal to all energy investment", American Clean Power Association chief executive Jason Grumet says. The US last week separately said it would impose anti-dumping duties on solar components imported from four southeast Asian countries that will range from 15pc to 3,400pc. Those duties — in effect from June to support US solar manufacturers — will be in addition to a 10pc across-the-board tariff the US imposed this month on most imports. Solar industry groups have said that steep import duties will make new installations unaffordable, stunting the industry's ability to grow. Trump has had less success in his push to axe support for renewables approved under Joe Biden. On 15 April, a federal judge ordered the administration to unfreeze billions of dollars for clean energy projects provided by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and 2021 infrastructure law. The administration lacks "unfettered power to hamstring in perpetuity two statutes", judge Mary McElroy wrote. In a separate ruling on 15 April, judge Tanya Chutkan prohibited the administration from suspending $14bn in grants distributed to nonprofits under the IRA for a greenhouse gas reduction programme. The administration is appealing both rulings. Targeting the windfall Trump could further undermine the growth of renewables by convincing Republicans in Congress to use an upcoming filibuster-proof budget package to repeal or narrow the IRA's tax credits for wind, solar and other clean energy projects. Critics of that law see the potential for $1 trillion in savings by repealing its tax credits, which could offset the costs of more than $5 trillion in planned tax cuts. But there appear to be enough votes in each chamber of Congress to spare at least some of the IRA's energy tax credits. In the Senate, where Republicans can only afford to lose three votes, Alaska's Lisa Murkowski and three other Republicans signed a joint letter this month saying "wholesale repeal" of the tax credits would fuel uncertainty and undermine job creation. In the House of Representatives, where Republicans have a similarly slim majority, 21 Republicans voiced concerns earlier this year about repealing all of the tax credits. Renewables are on track to overtake natural gas as the largest source of US electricity by 2030 — assuming the tax credits and climate rules enacted under Biden remain intact — the EIA stated this month in its Annual Energy Outlook . The amount of power from renewables under the EIA's existing policy baseline by 2035 will increase by 135pc to 2.8bn MWh, while gas-fired power will decline by 14pc to 1.6bn MWh over the same time period. By Chris Knight Baseline US net power generation Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Cement sales at India’s Dalmia fall on year in Jan-Mar

28/04/25

Cement sales at India’s Dalmia fall on year in Jan-Mar

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Water levels delay Tennessee River lock reopening

24/04/25

Water levels delay Tennessee River lock reopening

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US generators weigh delaying coal plant retirements

23/04/25

US generators weigh delaying coal plant retirements

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By Elena Vasilyeva Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

FERC commissioner Phillips resigns from agency

22/04/25

FERC commissioner Phillips resigns from agency

Washington, 22 April (Argus) — Democratic commissioner Willie Phillips has resigned from the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) after serving more than three years at an agency responsible for permitting natural gas infrastructure and regulating wholesale power markets. Phillips' departure will clear the way for President Donald Trump to nominate a replacement at FERC, who once confirmed by the US Senate would provide Republicans a 3-2 majority for the first time since 2021. Phillips, whose term was not set to expire until June 2026, had a reputation for negotiating bipartisan deals on contentious orders involving pipelines and power market issues in the two years he served as FERC's chairman under former president Joe Biden. Phillips has yet to release a statement explaining his abrupt resignation. But Trump has already fired Democratic commissioners and board members at other agencies that, like FERC, are structured as independent from the White House. Two of the fired Democrats, who were serving at the US Federal Trade Commission, have filed a lawsuit that argues their removal was unlawful under a 1935 decision by the US Supreme Court. The White House did not respond to a question on whether it had pressured Phillips to resign. FERC chairman Mark Christie, a Republican, offered praise for Phillips as a "dedicated and selfless public servant" who sought to "find common ground and get things done to serve the public interest". Christie for months has been downplaying the threats to FERC's independence caused by Trump's executive order that asserts sweeping control over FERC's agenda. Energy companies have come to depend on FERC in serving as independent arbiter in disputes over pipeline tariffs and electricity markets, without the consideration of political preferences of the White House. Former FERC chairman Neil Chatterjee, a Republican who served in Trump's first term, said in a social media post it was "disappointing" to see Phillips pushed out after he "played it straight" in his work at the agency. As chairman, Phillips was able to authorize a "massive LNG project" — the 28mn t/yr CP2 project — at a time when Biden had sought to pause LNG licensing, Chatterjee said. Separately, Paul Atkins was sworn in as the chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on 21 April, after the US Senate voted 52-44 earlier this month in favor of his confirmation. Atkins was previously the chief executive of financial consulting firm Patomak Global Partners and served as an SEC commissioner from 2002-08. Republicans will now have a 3-1 majority at the SEC. By Chris Knight Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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