Nov. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Coal prices at Australia's Newcastle port, the world's biggest export harbor for the fuel, rose to a record because port and rail facilities limit shipments, adding to expectations annual contract prices are set to gain.

Power station coal for delivery within the next three months climbed for a third week, by $1.43 to $83.51 a metric ton in the week ended Nov. 9, according to the globalCOAL NEWC Index, an Asian benchmark calculated each Friday.

China, the fastest-growing major economy, became a net importer of coal for the first time this year, worsening a shortage of the fuel in Asia. Consumption, spurred by global economic growth, has outpaced exports from Australia, Indonesia and South Africa.

``The port bottlenecks in Australia are a big factor; we don't seem to quite get the supply side sorted out,'' said Clyde Henderson, a Sydney-based coal analyst at Barlow Jonker Pty, a unit of Edinburgh-based Wood Mackenzie Consultants Ltd. ``The other big factor is the ongoing turnaround in China's net thermal coal exports.''

Coal mining companies in Australia's Hunter Valley shipped 7.4 million tons of coal through Newcastle in October, less than the targeted 7.9 million tons, because of maintenance work and cargo-loading constraints, the Hunter Valley Coal Chain Logistics Team said on its Web site. Xstrata Plc, Rio Tinto Group and BHP Billiton Ltd. are among producers that export through Newcastle.

Ship Queue

Ships waiting to load at Newcastle rose for a third week. Forty-two vessels were queuing off the port in the week ended this morning, two more than the previous week, according to Newcastle Port Corp.'s Web site today. The queue reached a record 79 in June after storms disrupted operations and hasn't been less than 37 this year.

Ships were held up an average of 14 days in the week ended this morning, compared with 1.2 days for general cargoes. A total of 1.5 million tons of coal was loaded, less than the 1.9 million tons a week earlier, Newcastle said. Some 7.3 million tons are targeted for shipment through the New South Wales port this month.

Nineteen vessels with coal departed Newcastle in the week ended Nov. 11 compared with 23 a week earlier, the port said in a separate e-mail statement. Thirteen headed to Japan, five to Taiwan and one to China, it said.

The globalCOAL monthly index reached its highest of $75.19 in October. The gains in the indexes are boosting expectations that power-station coal contract prices for the Japanese fiscal year starting April 1 will reach a record for a second year.

Contract Prices

Japanese power generators may accept a 22 percent increase in the contract price of coal in the year starting April 1 amid the supply constraints, Citigroup Inc. said in an Oct. 26 e- mailed note. The bank forecast prices will be set at $67 a ton, up from $55 this year. Sydney-based AME Mineral Economics is more bullish, forecasting at least $70 a ton.

Some South Korean utilities have already agreed to pay as much as 31 percent more for Australian coal next year. Korea Southern Power Co. signed contracts for about half its 2008 coal requirements from Australia, paying between $65 and $67 a ton for delivery in 2008, a company official said Sept. 17.

``Everyone is expecting contract prices to go up quite steeply next year,'' Barlow Jonker's Henderson said.

China's coal imports surged 48 percent to 38.61 million tons in the January to September period, customs said Oct. 17. Exports fell 21 percent to 38.01 million tons in the nine months to September. Only the U.S. consumes more energy than China.

Rising crude oil prices may push coal prices higher. Crude oil for December delivery reached a record $98.62 a barrel last week on the New York Mercantile Exchange and ended the week at $96.32, bringing its increase this year to 58 percent. Oil has risen more than fivefold in six years.

``Higher oil prices are expected to be sustained for quite some time and this will impact coal,'' said Donovan Huang, a Hong Kong-based coal analyst at Nomura Securities Co. ``This is another added optimism for coal prices.''

To contact the reporters on this story: Angela Macdonald-Smith in Sydney at amacdonaldsm@bloomberg.net; Michele Batchelor in Singapore at mbatchelor@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: November 12, 2007 01:29 EST