Australia's Whitehaven Coal sees higher prices on disruptions

Australia's Whitehaven Coal WHC said it expected higher prices for steelmaking coal in the near and medium term due to supply constraints and strong demand from India, as it reported quarterly production on Friday.

Australia's biggest independent coal miner almost doubled production in its fourth quarter, due largely to its acquisition of two coking coal mines from BHP Group BHP. Higher coking coal prices are coming partly due to supply disruption, it said.

"Recent disruptions in the supply of steelmaking coal have added to price volatility," it said.

The comments come after a fire at an Anglo American AAL coking coal mine in Queensland state. Anglo cut its production forecast for coking coal this year by as much as 9% after an underground fire at its Grosvenor coal mine.

Whitehaven on Friday posted a 91.8% jump in fourth-quarter coal production from a year earlier, underpinned by strong performance at its New South Wales operations and Narrabri, with the mines acquired from BHP boosting output further.

Whitehaven said its managed run-of-mine (ROM) coal production for the three months ended June 30 was 9.7 million metric tons, compared with 5.1 million tons a year earlier.

The Blackwater and Daunia mines in Queensland, purchased from BHP for $4.1 billion, produced 4.8 million tons, their first quarterly production under Whitehaven's ownership.

Production at its Narrabri coal mine more than doubled compared with the third quarter, following engineering upgrades early in the quarter to end-June.

Costs for the quarter came in at $114 a ton, above guidance of $103/$113, reflecting lower output from Narrabri compared with a year earlier and inflation.

Whitehaven sold metallurgical coal from its newly acquired Queensland operations for an average price of A$271 ($182) a metric ton, it said.

The potential sale of a strategic 20% stake in the Blackwater mine to a steelmaker was progressing, it also said.

Whitehaven shares fell 2.1% on Friday amid similar declines in Australia's mining sector.

($1 = 1.4914 Australian dollars)