Australia: Whitehaven's coal output up 3% y-o-y in Q1CY'24

Whitehaven Coal Ltd., an Australian miner, announced its raw coal production for January-March 2024, totalling 3.53 million tonnes (mnt), marking a 2.9% increase from the previous year's 3.43 mnt. However, this volume reflected a decline of 11.8% compared to 4 in the previous quarter.

During the same period, saleable coal output reached 3.14 mnt, representing a 4.8% increase y-o-y but a 6.4% decrease q-o-q.

The decline in quarterly output was primarily attributed to ongoing shutdowns at the Narrabri mines due to geological challenges and equipment reliability issues, while openpit mines in Maules Creek and Gunnedah maintained normal production levels.

Whitehaven Coal's equity coal sales for the quarter amounted to 3.12 mnt, showing a decrease of 7.3% y-o-y and 16% q-o-q.

In the first nine months of the fiscal year (July 2023-March 2024), the company's raw coal output stood at 11.79 mnt, marking a 12.5% increase y-o-y, while saleable coal production rose by 4.4% to 10.05 mnt. Equity coal sales also saw a significant increase of 21.8% from the previous year, reaching 9.91 mnt.

Guidance

Whitehaven Coal plans to produce a total of 18.7-20.7 mnt of coal in FY'24, with expected equity coal sales ranging from 12.7-13.9 mnt.