China is expected to export 14 million to 15 million tonnes of coke each year to 2010, an executive at China's top coking coal producer has told a conference - roughly in line with recent export levels.
Liu Jianzhong, deputy general manager of Shanxi Coking Coal Group, also said the coke supply gap in the international market had reached 7.5 million tonnes in 2007, but there would be a surplus of 12 million tonnes by 2011, due to expected new supply from Australia.
Domestic coke prices will continue to rise in the third and fourth quarters of this year, by another 200 to 300 yuan ($US29 to $US44) a tonne, due to tight supply, Mr Liu said.
China's coke price has surged this year, with the export price for first-grade metallurgical coal jumping more than 50 per cent to over $US700 a tonne.
Source: Business Spectator
"Coke prices will definitely continue rising," he said, adding that the supply of coking coal, the key input for coke production, had been very unstable in Shanxi, China's top coal- and coke-producing province.
More than half of China's coking coal resources are controlled by small mines, many of which have been closed as the government pushes small and dangerous mines out of business in a safety campaign.
Beijing this week issued the second batch of coke export quotas for the year at 2.39 million tonnes, bringing the total so far this year to 12.01 million tonnes, just shy of last year's amount.
Shanxi Coking Coal Group is the parent of Shenzhen-listed Shanxi Xishan Coal and Electricity Power and Shanghai-listed Shanxi Coking Co .
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