South32, a global producer of premium-quality hard coking coal for steelmaking with its Illawarra Metallurgical Coal asset in Australia, has announced its production and sales results for the first quarter of 2022-23 ended September 30, 2022.
In the given quarter, the company’s metallurgical coal production amounted to 1.27 million mt, decreasing by 7.9 percent quarter on quarter and down by 19.1 percent year on year. South32’s metallurgical coal sales in the given quarter totaled 1.19 million mt, down by 24.6 percent quarter on quarter and by 20.1 percent year on year.
The company’s total coal production in the first quarter amounted to 1.59 million mt, down by 15.4 percent year on year and up by 0.6 percent compared to the fourth quarter last year. Higher output from the Dendrobium mine during the first quarter was mostly offset by lower production at the Appin mine. In the first quarter, South32’s total coal sales came to 1.39 million mt, down by 18.2 percent year on year and by 26 percent quarter on quarter.
The company has reduced its financial year 2022-23 production guidance by five percent to seven million mt, due to the extended longwall move at Appin mine during the first quarter.