The price for low-grade power-station coal in Indonesia, the world’s biggest exporter of the fuel, fell last week as Chinese stockpiles rose, according to a Bloomberg News survey, Jakarta Globe reported news.
Indonesian coal with a calorific value of 4,000 kilocalories a kilogram and 0.5 percent sulfur averaged $39.62 a metric ton in the week ended March 8, down from $42.93 a ton a week earlier, according to the median forecast of three traders in the survey.
Coal with a heating value of 4,500 kilocalories a kilogram and maximum 1 percent sulfur rose to an average $54.32 a ton in the same week from $51.25 a week earlier, the survey showed. Indonesian high-grade bituminous coal with a calorific value of 5,800 kilocalories a kilogram and as much as 2 percent sulfur averaged $71.20 a ton, rising from $71.10 a ton the previous week, according to the responses.
China’s benchmark price for coal at Qinhuangdao, the nation’s biggest port for the fuel, fell 5 yuan from the week before to a range of of 615 yuan ($98.93) to 625 yuan a ton as of March 10, the lowest in more than three years, according to data from the China Coal Transport and Distribution Association March 11. Stockpiles of the fuel at Qinhuangdao rose 3.6 percent to 7.45 million tons, the highest in a month.
Gross-as-Received
All Indonesian prices are on a gross-as-received and free-on-board basis at Kalimantan or Sumatra, Indonesia’s two main coal-producing regions.
They represent cargoes loaded on Supramax vessels, which can carry about 50,000 tons. Actual prices may vary from grade to grade, depending on moisture, ash and sulfur contents, loading point and rate.
Indonesian coal swaps fell for a second day, according to data from Ginga Petroleum Singapore Pte.
The contract for supplies of the fuel with 4,900 kilocalories per kilogram loading in the third quarter dropped 85 cents to $63.80 a ton yesterday, Ginga reported in an e-mail today. The April swap declined 85 cents to $63.40.
About 60 percent of Indonesia’s coal is classified as sub-bituminous. Higher moisture levels and a lower carbon content reduce the heating value compared with better-quality stock. Sub-bit coal has fewer than 6,100 kilocalories per kilogram, according to the Indonesian energy ministry.
Bloomberg