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Indonesia’s Adaro to spin off thermal coal holding firm

  • Spanish Market: Coal
  • 13/09/24

Indonesian coal producer Adaro Energy Indonesia is planning to sell shares in a subsidiary that serves as a holding company for its thermal coal mining concessions.

Adaro said that it aims to sell its shares in Adaro Andalan Indonesia (AAI) in a public offering, effectively creating a new business entity. Any remaining unsold shares will be retained under Adaro's ownership.

Around 21.9mn AAI shares will be offered for sale with an appraised value of $2.45bn. Adaro through AAI owns shares in several thermal coal producers such as Adaro Indonesia, Paramitha Cipta Sarana, Semesta Centramas, Laskar Semesta Alam and Mustika Indah Permai, which produce medium-calorific value thermal coal.

It also owns through AAI shares in two thermal coal producers that are currently under development, Pari Coal and Ratah Coal. It also operates a logistics business, which consists of coal barging and ship loading, river channel dredging and maintenance, stevedoring, land and sea port operations, as well as barge maintenance and repair.

The restructuring is aimed at enhancing the performance of the company's different business sectors by separating the thermal coal mining segment and its supporting businesses from metallurgical, minerals and renewable energy operations. The sale will allow each sector to focus on developing their core strengths by focusing on their own development and performance, Adaro said.

The proposed sale is the second major corporate restructuring by Adaro this year as part of its long-term diversification efforts. The company simplified its ownership structure in its metallurgical coal and mineral business in June of this year by buying shares held by two subsidiaries, increasing its direct ownership of Adaro Minerals to 83.84pc from 68.55pc previously.

Adaro's January-June coal output and sales rose from a year earlier on firm export and domestic demand. Production rose by 7pc to 35.74mn t from 33.41mn t.


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13/09/24

Hurricane Francine brings rain to the lower Miss. River

Hurricane Francine brings rain to the lower Miss. River

Houston, 13 September (Argus) — Hurricane Francine dropped 4-8 inches of rain around the lower Mississippi River, raising forecast water levels on the river and potentially improving shipping conditions for barges. Points between Cairo, Illinois, and Vicksburg, Mississippi, that were at their low water thresholds over the week are now forecast to exit those thresholds in the coming week according to the National Weather Service (NWS). Increased rainfall from Hurricane Francine has locations like Greenville, Mississippi and Helena, Arkansas entering regular water levels as soon as this weekend. Other locations, such as Memphis, Tennessee, will see a bump in water levels, but will remain at its low water threshold, said NWS. The US Coast Guard has not made any changes to the draft and towing restrictions since 10 September when they changed the point for heavier loading from Greenville, Mississippi, to Vicksburg for southbound limits. More water is likely to enter the lower Mississippi River through its tributaries in the coming days, after Francine has passed the Mississippi Delta. The storm made landfall as a hurricane on the Louisiana coast the evening of 11 September but downgraded to a tropical storm as it moved northward. By Meghan Yoyotte Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Colombia advances moves to end coal production


13/09/24
13/09/24

Colombia advances moves to end coal production

Bogota, 13 September (Argus) — The Colombian government has identified areas in thermal coal rich parts of the Cesar and La Guajira provinces as special mining districts where coal production may eventually be replaced with operations meant to aid the transition to cleaner energy sources, deputy minister of mines Johana Rocha said on 12 September. The country has selected five areas in Cesar and three areas in La Guajira to be subject to Colombian president Gustavo Petro's decree issued on 2 August to create 16 special mining districts for diversifying production. The districts that have been selected include areas where Drummond, Cerrejon and CNR have coal mining operations and where Glencore subsidiary Prodeco used to mine. Anticipating the downturn in international coal demand, the Petro administration is looking at how to convert mining areas to other uses. Cesar and La Guajira also have the ability to be used for producing renewable energy, tourism and production of other minerals in high need such as silicon and agriculture, Rocha said. The Ministry of Mines will soon declare some of the areas as strategic mining areas that will be auctioned before the end of Petro's term in August 2026, Rocha said. The areas contain high grades of ferro silicon and polysilicon needed for production of solar panels and microchips. The ministry has held 20 separate meetings with local people in Cesar province. But Colombia will not convert the special mining districts until existing lease agreements with producers expire, Rocha said. "We want these coal licenses to continue operating under the contractual terms that they have. In the meantime, we will look at how we can supplement other income for those territories that have a high dependence on coal," Rocha said. Colombia's policy also could change under future presidential administrations. Drummond's El Descanso coal concessions expire in 2032. The company's La Loma lease ends in 2039. Drummond Colombia president Jose Miguel Linares told Argus two weeks ago that the company is interested in extending the El Descanso coal project for an additional 30 years. The company's three mines in Colombia have measured coal reserves that exceed 2bn metric tonnes. On the other hand, Glencore has laid out plans to progressively close Cerrejon by the time current mining concessions expire in 2034. Colombia's coal production could end by 2040 under a scenario of a gradual energy transition, Alvaro Pardo, the director of the Colombian mining agency, ANM recently said. By Diana Delgado Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Norfolk Southern replaces CEO with CFO


12/09/24
12/09/24

Norfolk Southern replaces CEO with CFO

Washington, 12 September (Argus) — Eastern Class I railroad Norfolk Southern (NS) has appointed a new chief executive, replacing former executive Alan Shaw after determining he violated company policies by having a consensual relationship with the company's chief legal officer. NS' board announced late Wednesday that it had promoted chief financial officer Mark George to replace Shaw. The board said Monday it was investigating Shaw for potential misconduct in actions not consistent with NS' code of ethics and policies, but did not provide details. The railroad yesterday clarified that Shaw's departure was not related to the railroad's "performance, financial reporting and results of operations". Instead, the board voted unanimously to terminate Shaw with cause, effective immediately, for violating policies by engaging in a consensual relationship chief legal officer Nabanita Nag. She was also dismissed by NS. Shaw worked at NS for 30 years and was appointed chief executive in May 2021, following six years as chief marketing officer. Earlier this year he led NS through a proxy fight with a group of activist investors that sought his replacement. The overall effort failed but the challengers secured three seats on the board . The investors had been displeased with the railroad's financial performance and "tone deaf response" to the February 2023 derailment in East Palestine, Ohio . New chief executive George had served as NS' chief financial officer since 2019. Prior to that, he held roles at several companies including United Technologies Corporation and its subsidiaries. "The board has full confidence in Mark and his ability to continue delivering on our commitments to shareholders and other stakeholders," NS chairman and former Canadian National chief executive Claude Mongeau said. By Abby Caplan Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Taipower settles term coal deals below spot rates


12/09/24
12/09/24

Taipower settles term coal deals below spot rates

Singapore, 12 September (Argus) — Taiwanese state-owned utility Taipower has settled its thermal coal term contracts with Australian producers at $137.44/t fob, below spot market rates, a source close to the matter said. Taiwanese buyers have traditionally referred to the fixed price in the term contracts between Switzerland-based mining and trading firm Glencore and Japanese utility Tohoku Electric Power for their deals. But prolonged stalling in price negotiations between Glencore and Tohoku has prompted Taipower to settle its contracts without the reference price. The settlement has not been officially confirmed by Taipower. Taipower's latest contract deal with its Australian suppliers signals a move away from the long-time practice of using the Glencore-Tohoku price, also known as the Japanese reference price (JRP), as a pricing cue. The price negotiations between Glencore and Tohoku for term contracts that start in April have historically involved the largest volume of coal supplied from Australia to Japan. The JRP serves as a reference for other Australian coal producers and Japanese utilities. It is also followed by other Asian coal buyers including those in Taiwan, Thailand and the Philippines. Taipower and its Australian suppliers agreed to the price of $137.44/t fob in July-August this year for GAR 6,322 kcal/kg coal, the source told Argus . The price applies to term contracts that run from January-December this year. Price negotiations for these contracts usually start in April of the same year, after the contracts have started running. Taipower has a few contracts with Glencore for the supply of Australian coal, but these contracts have not been settled because the two parties have yet to agree on the price, the source said. They expect to conclude price negotiations for these contracts by the end of September. The source did not disclose the volume involved in any of Taipower's term contracts. Taipower's settlement price was lower than the spot market rates at the time when the price was agreed upon. The price of high-calorific value (CV) NAR 6,000 kcal/kg coal rose in August to above $140/t fob, according to Argus' assessment. This was because traders anticipated greater demand for thermal coal on concerns about natural gas supply because of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The price of high-CV coal rose by 7pc from 2 August to 16 August, to $145.41/t fob Newcastle. It has since pulled back and was last recorded at $140.82/t fob on 6 September. Glencore may have tried to fix the JRP at $145.95/t fob through a smaller deal with a Japanese firm. It had signed a term contract with another Japanese firm that was not Tohoku in March at this price for the supply of high-CV Australian coal, market participants said at the time. Some Japanese utilities, steel mills and industrial users had followed the cue and settled their contracts at the same price. By Jinhe Tan Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

China to develop 1.28bn t/yr of coal capacity: GEM


11/09/24
11/09/24

China to develop 1.28bn t/yr of coal capacity: GEM

London, 11 September (Argus) — China's coal output capacity could rise by up to 1.28bn t/yr based on the number of mines under development in the country, a report from US-based Global Energy Monitor (GEM) says. Capacity of 450mn t/yr is already under construction, and this is expected to lead to a surge in Chinese coal production in three to five years. Proposed Chinese mining capacity stands at 1.16bn t/yr, primarily made up of projects designed to produce at least 1mn t/yr, data from GEM's Global Coal Mine Tracker show. When combined with previously proposed projects and a lower capacity threshold of 600,000 t/yr, this totals 1.28bn t/yr of capacity under development in 14 Chinese provinces. The country's development pipeline accounts for almost half the proposed coal capacity globally, and more than double India's planned capacity for large-scale coal mines, which GEM classifies as being of 1mn t/yr or higher. And almost 80pc of China's proposed mines are greenfield developments, indicating a strong industry push to establish new operations, and implying that China's growing dependency on coal is unlikely to slow. China, the world's largest producer and consumer of coal, produced a record 4.66bn t last year, figures from the country's statistics bureau show. This accounted for over half last year's global coal production of 8.97bn t, also a record, according to GEM data. Large-scale coal mines make up a significant majority of China's coal production, with around 3.88bn t/yr of its operational capacity coming from these mines. This is equivalent to nearly half the global total from similar large-scale mines, and is almost double the combined output from India, Indonesia, and Australia — the world's next three biggest coal producers. New mines threaten China's climate goals GEM says China's push to increase coal production "starkly contrasts" with the country's carbon neutrality targets, adding credence to the IEA's recent claim that coal market developments, particularly in India and China, are at odds with climate pledges made at UN summits. Increased methane emissions from these new mines — coupled with abandoned coal mine methane from the accelerating closure of small-scale operations — pose significant risks to China's climate objectives of having emissions peak before 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality before 2060, as committed to under the Paris climate agreement, according to GEM. Although short-lived in the atmosphere, methane is more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas and has driven about a third of the rise in global temperatures since the Industrial Revolution. China's existing mines emit 52.73bn m³/yr of methane, accounting for 70pc of global coal mine methane emissions from large mines. If all of its proposed projects are completed, and without robust mitigation, GEM estimates that this figure will rise to 75pc. Although China's national climate plan has not been renewed since 2021, the government is expected to heighten its ambitions in a new plan by the start of 2025. The country has admitted that its heavy dependence on coal is straining its environmental goals. But the country's huge nuclear fleet and significant renewables additions have been unable to erode demand for coal-fired generation. Although solar and hydropower output rose in the first half of 2024, China's coal-fired generation also increased by 1.5pc on the year to 3,000TWh, Argus data show. By Bryan Wu Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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