Indonesian Coal Swaps Rise a Sixth Day; China Prices Unchanged

Swaps prices climbed a sixth day for thermal coal for loading next year from Indonesia, the world’s largest exporter of the fuel for electricity generation, according to Ginga Petroleum Singapore Pte.

The swap for Indonesian sub-bituminous coal with a calorific value of 4,900 kilocalories a kilogram in the first quarter of 2013 rose 5 cents to $62.75 a metric ton on a net-as- received basis on Nov. 30, Ginga said in an e-mail today. The December contract stood at $61.45 a ton.

In Australia, Centennial Coal said it is deferring spending on a number of mines and putting its Mannering project near Lake Macquarie and its Airly mines at Western Coalfields on “care and maintenance” status starting next month. The sites will be reopened when market conditions improve, the company, owned by Banpu Pcl in Bangkok, said in a Nov. 28 statement.

Contracts for coal with heating value of 5,500 kilocalories a kilogram for shipment to South China in the first quarter were unchanged at $84.30 a ton on a net-as-received basis, the energy broker said. The swap for December remained at $83.85.

A commodity swap is a financial agreement whereby a floating price is exchanged for a fixed rate over a specified contract period.

About 60 percent of Indonesia’s coal is classified as sub- bituminous. Higher moisture levels and a lower carbon content reduce the heating value compared with better-quality stock. Sub-bit coal has kilocalories of less than 6,100 per kilogram, according to the Indonesian energy ministry.

To contact the reporter on this story: Fitri Wulandari in Jakarta at fwulandari@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Alexander Kwiatkowski at akwiatkowsk2@bloomberg.net CEY AU <Equity> CN