China coking coal demand seen up 180MT by 2015

Shanghai Securities News citing unspecified government authorities reported that China’s demand for coking coal is expected to increase by 180 million tonnes by 2015. And, coking coal output in North China’s Shanxi province, the main production base for steelmaking material, would merely gain 80 million tonnes, which may result in demand shortfall of 100 million tonnes, due to limited increase in other production provinces.

According to reports of relevant government departments, it is estimated that China consumed 540 million tonnes or so washed coking coal for the production of over 380 million tonnes coke in 2010.

Hellenic Shipping News reports:

“Data from the National Bureau of Statistics, Shanxi produced 340 million tonnes of coking coal last year, contributing 34% of the total in China, showed. Other main production provinces, like Shandong, Anhui, Heilongjiang and Henan, witnessed limited growth in their coking coal outputs, due to depletion of the rare resources. With development of large sized blast furnaces, China’s steel mills are increasing demand for premium coking coals that are low in ash and sulfur content but strong in caking property. The nation’s demand for the steelmaking ingredient would continue increasing, but at a low pace, due to an expected slowdown in steel production over the next 5 years.”