Queensland coal exports fall by 20pc in August

Coal shipments from Queensland's ports are around 20pc lower than a year earlier for a second consecutive month August, as demand for Australian hard coking, semi-soft coking and thermal coal remains weak.

Early shipping data suggests that Queensland coal shipments slipped to below 15mn t in August compared with shipments of 18.06mn t in August 2019 and below the already depressed July exports of 15.62mn t. The multi-user 85mn t/yr Dalrymple Bay Coal Terminal (DBCT) continues to lead the decline in shipments in August, with maintenance also interrupting shipments from the adjacent port of Hay Point and Gladstone shipping below average. Abbot Point had a better August than July, with the ongoing ramp up the 10mn t/yr Byerwen coking coal mine underpinning its exports.

The August and July declines extend a trend of lower coal exports over the course of this year, with official port data showing that shipments from Queensland fell by 8pc during January-July from a year earlier. The cuts could continue to deepen over the coming months, with Chinese port restrictions poised to tighten particularly for coking coal, a slow Covid-19 economic recovery outside of China and ongoing safety issues across mines in Queensland.

August and July are typically strong months for Queensland coal shipments, with calm weather allowing mining firms to catch up on shipments lost during the November-April wet season and Chinese imports still usually comfortably below quota levels. But demand is weak with vessel queues fairly short and stocks at ports high, according to logistics sources.

DBCT has set a target to ship at an annualised rate of 75.56mn t/yr in September. It missed its August target of 80.57mn t/yr by around 35pc, shipping at 52.5mn t/yr, according to data released logistics providers.

DBCT has a vessel queue of just six today, down from 14 a month earlier, according to logistics data. The combined queue for DBCT and the adjacent port of Hay Point was 18 today, according to marine trackers compared with an average of 22 and a high of 55 in March.

DBCT provides port services for many smaller mining firms in Queensland, many of which are struggling to place product in the oversupplied market where demand has fallen because of the global economic slowdown. Some of DBCT's mining customers also scaled back production because of safety issues.

Queues are also short at Gladstone and Abbot Point at 10 and one vessels, respectively.

By Jo Clarke