India: Coking coal imports rise by 7% m-o-m in Oct'23 on strong buying interest

India's coking coal imports in October 2023 rose by 7% m-o-m at 4.40 million tonnes (mnt), as per CoalMint data. However, imports dropped 11% to 4.40 mnt compared to 4.95 mnt in October 2022. Imports rose m-o-m on India's soaring industrial needs and the urgency to secure coking coal supplies, especially with depleting stocks at ports.

State-run miner Coal India Ltd (CIL) recorded a rise in coking coal production during October. Production rose by 8% m-o-m to 4.53 mnt in October as against 4.18 mnt in September.

PCI imports

India's PCI coal imports in October dropped 15% m-o-m to 0.91 mnt, as per CoalMint data. Imports dropped nearly 29% to 0.91 in October compared to 1.28 mnt in October 2022.

Prices of Australian low-vol PCI rose by 16% m-o-m to $218.4/t CFR India in October as against $188.26/t CFR India in September.

Country-wise imports

India's coking coal imports from Australia stood at 2.43 mnt in October, largely stable m-o-m compared with 2.44 mnt in September. Also, Australian PHCC Prices surged to a 7- month high during the month amid strong buying interest. Prices of Australian PHCC rose by 17% m-o-m to $364.7/t CFR India in October as against $310.9/t CFR India in September.

Due to soaring Australian coking coal prices, end-users now favour imports from Russia. The cost-effectiveness of Russian coal has become a prominent factor influencing consumer preference. Shipments from Russia rose marginally m-o-m to 0.49 mnt in October as against 0.48 mnt in September.

Shipments from the US dropped 4% m-o-m to 0.68 mnt compared to 0.71 mnt in September. Coking coal deliveries from Indonesia recorded a significant surge of around twofold, reaching 0.38 mnt in October compared with 0.13 mnt in September.

Moreover, shipments from Canada rose by 13% in the month under review. Exports from Mozambique witnessed a growth of 31%, reaching 0.22 mnt in October, up from 0.17 mnt in September.

Company-wise coking coal imports

JSW Steel recorded the highest imports at 1.30 mnt, up 4% m-o-m as against 1.14 mnt in September. SAIL recorded a drop of 4% in monthly import volumes at 1.05 mnt followed by Tata steel at 0.56 mnt. Jindal Steel and Power recorded a significant rise in volumes to 0.33 mnt in October, whereas imports by RINL dropped 72% to 0.16 mnt in October from 0.57 mnt in September.

Port-wise coking coal imports

Paradip port received the highest imported cargo volumes of 0.74 mnt, followed by Haldia at 0.69 mnt. Mormugao and Dharma ports received 0.61 mnt and 0.54 mnt, respectively. Krishnapatnam port recorded a significant rise of around threefold at 0.38 mnt in the month under review.

In contrast, Vizag and Gangavaram recorded a drop in import volumes by 29% and 48% respectively.

SAIL to raise met coal sourcing from Russia

SAIL is going to increase coking coal procurement from Russia due to inexpensive prices compared to Australian coal. Four shipments of 75,000 t each are expected to arrive in December. Since April, SAIL has imported eight shipments from Russia.

Outlook

It is anticipated that imports may rise due to strong buying interest and improved supply from Australia. However, rising domestic coal production may exert minor pressure on imports.