On May 5, Anglo-Swiss ferroalloy and
coking coal producer Xstrata Plc announced that its
coking coal output in
Australia amounted to 2.2 million metric tons in the first quarter of this year as a result of the resumption of longwall operations at Oaky No. 1 in August 2009 and increased productivity at Oaky North, while its semi-soft
coking coal production came to 1.8 million metric tons, increasing by 83.3 percent and 28.46 percent respectively, both compared to the corresponding period of 2009.
For prime hard
coking coal, quarterly and annual contract business has been settled at prices ranging from $200/mt to $270/mt. In view of the strong
coking coal market, Xstrata has settled semi-soft
coking coal contracts on a quarterly basis to June at $167/mt, over 114 percent higher than last year.
On the other hand, in response to rising demand, Xstrata's ferrochrome
production rebounded strongly in the first quarter of 2010, rising more than four-fold compared to the same period in 2009. The company's attributable saleable ferrochrome
production in the given period totaled 305,000 metric tons, climbing by 318 percent year on year. In the first three months of this year, Xstrata's ferrovanadium
production volumes increased by 66 percent compared to the same period in 2009 in response to improving demand, amounting to 1,210 metric tons.
In Q1 2010, Xstrata's total refined nickel
production increased by eight percent year on year, reaching 14,692 metric tons, as the company's Nikkelverk refinery recorded its third consecutive quarter of
production at an increased annualized capacity rate of 92,000 metric tons, setting a monthly
production record in March 2010. However, Xstrata's total mined nickel
production regressed by 3.36 percent year on year to 14,692 metric tons, following the transition of end-of-life, high cost operations at Craig, Thayer-Lindsley and the Fraser complex to a care and maintenance schedule during 2009.