Tuesday, 24 Jan 2012
Vale informed that it is lifting force majeure effective January 23, 2012, on a number of its iron ore sales contracts.
Force majeure was declared on January 11, 2012 following heavy rainfall since mid December 2011 and continuing over the beginning of January in the Brazilian states of Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and Espírito Santo, that affected the Southern and Southeastern systems.
Showing posts with label heavy rains. Show all posts
Showing posts with label heavy rains. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Saturday, January 14, 2012
CSN may declare Force Majeure on iron ore shipments on rains
Saturday, 14 Jan 2012
Dow Jones reported that Brazilian steelmaker and iron ore miner Companhia Siderurgica Nacional SA study the possibility of declaring force majeure on shipments from its iron ore operations in Minas Gerais state, southeast Brazil on heavy rains.
(Sourced from Dow Jones)
Dow Jones reported that Brazilian steelmaker and iron ore miner Companhia Siderurgica Nacional SA study the possibility of declaring force majeure on shipments from its iron ore operations in Minas Gerais state, southeast Brazil on heavy rains.
(Sourced from Dow Jones)
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Vale, CSN, MMX Iron-Ore Mines May Be Disrupted by Heavy Rain
Thu,January 05, 2012
Vale SA, Cia. Siderurgica Nacional SA and MMX Mineracao e Metalicos SA operations in southeastern Brazil may suffer output disruptions and transportation delays for a third year because of heavy rains.
The state of Minas Gerais will receive 300 millimeters (11.8 inches) of showers in the seven days through Jan. 10, said Marco Antonio dos Santos, a meteorologist at Sao Paulo-based Somar Meteorologia.
That equals the average for the entire month of January in the past 30 years, Santos said yesterday in an interview from Valinhos, Brazil.Minas Gerais declared a state of emergency in 71 cities yesterday after a cold weather front caused storms and floods that have killed at least eight people. The state’s capital, Belo Horizonte, last month received the heaviest rainfall for December in a century, according to Somar. Downpours in the January-March rainy season reduced output at Vale, CSN and MMX mines and disrupted ports and railways in the past two years.
Rain can be “a serious problem for mining in Brazil,” Pedro Galdi, an equity strategist at brokerage SLW Corretora, said in a phone interview from Sao Paulo yesterday. “It’s hard to operate with storms and water.” Vale declined 1.2 percent to 40.30 reais at 12:02 p.m. in Sao Paulo trading, while MMX dropped 1.6 percent to 6.87 reais and CSN fell 0.8 percent to 15.88 reais.Vale, the world’s largest iron-ore producer, said last year that the heaviest rain in 44 years in the beginning of 2011 reduced output by 600,000 metric tons.
MMX, the mining company controlled by Brazilian billionaire Eike Batista, also said iron-ore production fell between January and April because of downpours and power outages.Steelmaker CSN’s 5.6 million tons of iron-ore output in the first quarter of 2010 missed the company’s estimates by 2 million tons after downpours disrupted railways and port shipments.
(sourced Bloomberg)
Vale SA, Cia. Siderurgica Nacional SA and MMX Mineracao e Metalicos SA operations in southeastern Brazil may suffer output disruptions and transportation delays for a third year because of heavy rains.
The state of Minas Gerais will receive 300 millimeters (11.8 inches) of showers in the seven days through Jan. 10, said Marco Antonio dos Santos, a meteorologist at Sao Paulo-based Somar Meteorologia.
That equals the average for the entire month of January in the past 30 years, Santos said yesterday in an interview from Valinhos, Brazil.Minas Gerais declared a state of emergency in 71 cities yesterday after a cold weather front caused storms and floods that have killed at least eight people. The state’s capital, Belo Horizonte, last month received the heaviest rainfall for December in a century, according to Somar. Downpours in the January-March rainy season reduced output at Vale, CSN and MMX mines and disrupted ports and railways in the past two years.
Rain can be “a serious problem for mining in Brazil,” Pedro Galdi, an equity strategist at brokerage SLW Corretora, said in a phone interview from Sao Paulo yesterday. “It’s hard to operate with storms and water.” Vale declined 1.2 percent to 40.30 reais at 12:02 p.m. in Sao Paulo trading, while MMX dropped 1.6 percent to 6.87 reais and CSN fell 0.8 percent to 15.88 reais.Vale, the world’s largest iron-ore producer, said last year that the heaviest rain in 44 years in the beginning of 2011 reduced output by 600,000 metric tons.
MMX, the mining company controlled by Brazilian billionaire Eike Batista, also said iron-ore production fell between January and April because of downpours and power outages.Steelmaker CSN’s 5.6 million tons of iron-ore output in the first quarter of 2010 missed the company’s estimates by 2 million tons after downpours disrupted railways and port shipments.
(sourced Bloomberg)
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Coal shortage hits NTPC’s output
Wed, Oct12,2011
By Sanjay DuttaSanjay Dutta, TNN
NEW DELHI: The power situation has worsened as generation at state-run utility NTPC's several plants across the country has been hit because of recent heavy rains in coal producing areas in eastern and central parts of the country and disruption of coal supplies due to continuing blockade in Andhra Pradesh's Telengana region.
NTPC is the biggest power generator in the country and accounts for 34,000mw. It has been recognized as the number one utility in the world in terms of utilizing capacity but is now producing some 4,000 mw less due to fuel shortage. The company's power stations at Dadri in the National Capital Region, Singrauli and Unchahar in the northern region, Vindhyachal in Madhya Pradesh, Farakka and Kahalgaon in the eastern region and Ramagundam and Simhadari in the south have been affected due to shortage of coal.
The Badarpur plant in Delhi is generating less because of shortage of water due to temporary closure of the Agra canal. Water is used in cooling towers of power plants. Together, these plants account for nearly 14,000 mw. Frequent bandhs in the Central Coalfields' area, a two-day strike by Coal India employees and continued strike at Singareni Coalfields as part of the Telangana agitation from September 13-20 have aggravated the situation. During the last one month, supply from the Singareni Coalfields was less than 34%.
Besides, mining and loading of coal have been affected at Coal India subsidiaries - Northern Coalfields, Central Coalfields, Eastern Coalfields and Mahanadi Coalfielfds. These mines account for almost 70% of NTPC's coal supply contracts.
Before the onset of monsoon, NTPC had a coal stock of 5.3 million tonnes, good enough for 13 days. This has depleted to critical levels - an average of 3-4 days - in the absence of normal replenishment, forcing NTPC to switch off some units at each affected plant to avoid running them dry and damage to equipment.
Coal supply and transportation of the fuel have been identified as the bugbear of the country's power sector at every meeting on energy and industry held over the last 2-3 years in various levels of the government. (sourced TOI)
By Sanjay DuttaSanjay Dutta, TNN
NEW DELHI: The power situation has worsened as generation at state-run utility NTPC's several plants across the country has been hit because of recent heavy rains in coal producing areas in eastern and central parts of the country and disruption of coal supplies due to continuing blockade in Andhra Pradesh's Telengana region.
NTPC is the biggest power generator in the country and accounts for 34,000mw. It has been recognized as the number one utility in the world in terms of utilizing capacity but is now producing some 4,000 mw less due to fuel shortage. The company's power stations at Dadri in the National Capital Region, Singrauli and Unchahar in the northern region, Vindhyachal in Madhya Pradesh, Farakka and Kahalgaon in the eastern region and Ramagundam and Simhadari in the south have been affected due to shortage of coal.
The Badarpur plant in Delhi is generating less because of shortage of water due to temporary closure of the Agra canal. Water is used in cooling towers of power plants. Together, these plants account for nearly 14,000 mw. Frequent bandhs in the Central Coalfields' area, a two-day strike by Coal India employees and continued strike at Singareni Coalfields as part of the Telangana agitation from September 13-20 have aggravated the situation. During the last one month, supply from the Singareni Coalfields was less than 34%.
Besides, mining and loading of coal have been affected at Coal India subsidiaries - Northern Coalfields, Central Coalfields, Eastern Coalfields and Mahanadi Coalfielfds. These mines account for almost 70% of NTPC's coal supply contracts.
Before the onset of monsoon, NTPC had a coal stock of 5.3 million tonnes, good enough for 13 days. This has depleted to critical levels - an average of 3-4 days - in the absence of normal replenishment, forcing NTPC to switch off some units at each affected plant to avoid running them dry and damage to equipment.
Coal supply and transportation of the fuel have been identified as the bugbear of the country's power sector at every meeting on energy and industry held over the last 2-3 years in various levels of the government. (sourced TOI)
Monday, March 7, 2011
Fortescue trims March Qtr iron ore production on rains
Mon Mar 7, 2011 8:06am GMT
PERTH, March 7 (Reuters) - Fortescue Metals Group has trimmed its March quarter production guidance to a range of 8.5-9.0 million tonnes, down 0.5 million tonnes, after heavy rains hit its mining operations in the Pilbara area of Western Australia.
The company said in a statement it was working to maximise production throughout the rest of the quarter.
Rio Tinto , which also mines iron ore in the region, said its operations had been impacted by adverse weather conditions during the first quarter, but that it will announce any impact in its quarterly production report.
Earlier this month, Rio said its coastal operations had been hampered by cyclone-related weather, resulting in a likely impact to shipped tonnage for the first quarter.
"The weather conditions are certainly better now than they were two weeks ago," Rio Tinto spokesman Gervase Greene said on Monday.
"That said, obviously there was a fair bit of ground to catch up," he said.
A spokeswoman for BHP Billiton said the company had not put out any new guidance on its iron ore operations. (Reporting by Rebekah Kebede and Ed Davies in Sydney,sourced:Reuters)
PERTH, March 7 (Reuters) - Fortescue Metals Group has trimmed its March quarter production guidance to a range of 8.5-9.0 million tonnes, down 0.5 million tonnes, after heavy rains hit its mining operations in the Pilbara area of Western Australia.
The company said in a statement it was working to maximise production throughout the rest of the quarter.
Rio Tinto , which also mines iron ore in the region, said its operations had been impacted by adverse weather conditions during the first quarter, but that it will announce any impact in its quarterly production report.
Earlier this month, Rio said its coastal operations had been hampered by cyclone-related weather, resulting in a likely impact to shipped tonnage for the first quarter.
"The weather conditions are certainly better now than they were two weeks ago," Rio Tinto spokesman Gervase Greene said on Monday.
"That said, obviously there was a fair bit of ground to catch up," he said.
A spokeswoman for BHP Billiton said the company had not put out any new guidance on its iron ore operations. (Reporting by Rebekah Kebede and Ed Davies in Sydney,sourced:Reuters)
Friday, March 4, 2011
Heavy rains in Pilbara adversely affect Fortescue’s iron ore operations
Friday, 04 March 2011
Australian iron ore producer Fortescue Metals Group Limited (Fortescue) has announced that continued and heavy rainfall across the Pilbara region of Western Australia is impacting the company's mining operations.
According to a company release, the sustained wet weather events have caused significant flooding across the Pilbara resulting in extended access road closures and air access restrictions to Fortescue's mining operations, disrupting production.
Fortescue now estimates iron ore production of 8.5-9 million mt in the first quarter of 2011 down 500,000 mt compared to the previous guidance, assuming a return to normal weather conditions.
Fortescue is working to maximize production throughout the remainder of the quarter, the company said.
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Pilbara region takes cover as cyclone hits home
By Andrew Burrell
February 23, 2011 12:00AM
MAJOR petroleum and mining projects in Western Australia's Pilbara region were forced to suspend operations for the third time in a month yesterday as Tropical Cyclone Carlos battered the coast with 140km/h winds and heavy rain.
Loading of ships for export was halted after authorities at Port Hedland, which is used by iron ore miners BHP Billiton and Fortescue Metals Group, suspended operations due to the cyclone.
Plants across the Pilbara have experienced heavy rains that closed rail lines and roads.
A spokeswoman for Woodside Petroleum said production from its Enfield oilfield and Cossack Pioneer floating facility had stopped, while production from its Vincent oilfield remained shut-in due to planned maintenance.
Woodside chief executive Don Voelte said on Monday that plans for the $14 billion Pluto project near Karratha to be completed by August could be delayed by the wild weather in recent weeks, including Tropical Cyclone Bianca that hit the Pilbara last month.
The cyclones caused 20 days of lost production, which might not be recoverable, Mr Voelte said. "At this late stage of the project, it might be hard to make up any or all of that time," he said.
"It's a fact of life -- it's raining and raining and raining up there."
Apache Corporation said it halted production at its Stag and Van Gogh fields off Western Australia before Carlos, but output at Varanus Island continued.
On Monday, Rio Tinto warned that shipping volumes were likely to be affected this quarter as cyclones Carlos and Dianne hampered its operations.
Dianne moved further off the coast this week.
Fortescue said it was waiting to hear from the harbourmaster at Port Hedland as to when the port would reopen.
A spokeswoman for the port said it remained closed and on "yellow alert", although there was an expectation operations might resume late yesterday.
Smaller mine company Murchison Metals said its Jack Hills iron ore project in WA's mid-west had been suspended for at least 14 days because of heavy rain and floods, forcing at least two export shipments set to leave the port of Geraldton next month to be delayed.
(sourced:The Australian, Additional reporting:Dow Jones Newswires)
Tags:BHP Billiton, Australia's Fortescue Metals Group, Murchison Metals, Port of Geraldton, Australian iron ore shipment, raw material
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Asian Thermal Coal Contracts May Rise 36% to Record After Rains
By Ben Sharples - Feb 14, 2011
Asian utilities begin negotiations with coal producers this week and may be forced to pay as much as 36 percent more for their fuel after heavy rain in Australia, Indonesia, South Africa and Colombia disrupted output.
Prices for the year starting April 1 may increase to between $125 and $133 a metric ton, analysts from Bank of America Merrill Lynch, UOB-Kay Hian Ltd., Citigroup Inc. and National Australia Bank Ltd. said. Japanese utilities agreed to pay Xstrata Plc $98 a ton for the 12 months starting April 1, 2010, the company said in August.
“There are still lingering supply concerns around the place, not just in Australia,” Mark Pervan, head of commodity research at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. in Melbourne, said by telephone. The bank has forecast contract prices may rise to $125 a ton.
Heavy rain has crimped output in Colombia, Indonesia and Australia, where flooding in December and January shut mines and damaged rail lines in Queensland, the nation’s biggest coal-producing state. Prices more than doubled to a record $125 a ton in 2008 after floods disrupted supply from the state. Contract negotiations start this week, according to Citigroup.
While prices of the fuel for immediate delivery “have eased back” after increasing to a two-year high last month, “the focus will be on the longer-term outlook,” Citigroup analysts said in a Feb. 11 note. “We still see strong demand growth and expect contract prices to be settled at record highs.” The bank forecast contract prices at $130 a ton.
Newcastle Price The price for thermal coal at the port of Newcastle in New South Wales, the benchmark for Asia, rose to $138.50 a metric ton in the week ended Jan. 14, the highest since September 2008, according to IHS McCloskey, a Petersfield, U.K.-based provider of data. It was at $120.75 in the week ended Feb. 11.
Queensland exports about 50 million tons of thermal coal each year, according to Macquarie Group Ltd. Shipments of the power station variety may be reduced by more than 5 million tons after a landslide shut a rail network that serves mines operated by Peabody Energy Corp. and New Hope Corp., Citigroup analysts, led by Daniel Hynes, said in the Feb. 11 report.
Merrill Lynch analysts led by Sydney-based Alex Tonks said contract prices may rise to $125 a ton, and National Australia Bank Ltd. minerals and energy economist, Ben Westmore, said they may increase to $130 a ton. UOB-Kay Hian Hong Kong-based analyst Helen Lau said they may reach $133 a ton.
Annual accords between mining companies and customers may be agreed “by mid-to-late March,” Australia & New Zealand Banking Group’s Pervan said. “Xstrata has become the number one player in the market. It’s their deal with a Japanese utility, usually Tokyo Electric,” that sets the benchmark for prices.
(sourced:bloomberg)
Tags: Asian Thermal coal contracts, heavy rains, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, UOB-Kay Hian Ltd., Citigroup Inc., National Australia Bank Ltd, Xstrata Plc, Newcastle coal, Tokyo
Asian utilities begin negotiations with coal producers this week and may be forced to pay as much as 36 percent more for their fuel after heavy rain in Australia, Indonesia, South Africa and Colombia disrupted output.
Prices for the year starting April 1 may increase to between $125 and $133 a metric ton, analysts from Bank of America Merrill Lynch, UOB-Kay Hian Ltd., Citigroup Inc. and National Australia Bank Ltd. said. Japanese utilities agreed to pay Xstrata Plc $98 a ton for the 12 months starting April 1, 2010, the company said in August.
“There are still lingering supply concerns around the place, not just in Australia,” Mark Pervan, head of commodity research at Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. in Melbourne, said by telephone. The bank has forecast contract prices may rise to $125 a ton.
Heavy rain has crimped output in Colombia, Indonesia and Australia, where flooding in December and January shut mines and damaged rail lines in Queensland, the nation’s biggest coal-producing state. Prices more than doubled to a record $125 a ton in 2008 after floods disrupted supply from the state. Contract negotiations start this week, according to Citigroup.
While prices of the fuel for immediate delivery “have eased back” after increasing to a two-year high last month, “the focus will be on the longer-term outlook,” Citigroup analysts said in a Feb. 11 note. “We still see strong demand growth and expect contract prices to be settled at record highs.” The bank forecast contract prices at $130 a ton.
Newcastle Price The price for thermal coal at the port of Newcastle in New South Wales, the benchmark for Asia, rose to $138.50 a metric ton in the week ended Jan. 14, the highest since September 2008, according to IHS McCloskey, a Petersfield, U.K.-based provider of data. It was at $120.75 in the week ended Feb. 11.
Queensland exports about 50 million tons of thermal coal each year, according to Macquarie Group Ltd. Shipments of the power station variety may be reduced by more than 5 million tons after a landslide shut a rail network that serves mines operated by Peabody Energy Corp. and New Hope Corp., Citigroup analysts, led by Daniel Hynes, said in the Feb. 11 report.
Merrill Lynch analysts led by Sydney-based Alex Tonks said contract prices may rise to $125 a ton, and National Australia Bank Ltd. minerals and energy economist, Ben Westmore, said they may increase to $130 a ton. UOB-Kay Hian Hong Kong-based analyst Helen Lau said they may reach $133 a ton.
Annual accords between mining companies and customers may be agreed “by mid-to-late March,” Australia & New Zealand Banking Group’s Pervan said. “Xstrata has become the number one player in the market. It’s their deal with a Japanese utility, usually Tokyo Electric,” that sets the benchmark for prices.
(sourced:bloomberg)
Tags: Asian Thermal coal contracts, heavy rains, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, UOB-Kay Hian Ltd., Citigroup Inc., National Australia Bank Ltd, Xstrata Plc, Newcastle coal, Tokyo
Xstrata declares force majeure at Australia's Ulan coal mine
Tuesday 15 February 2011
PERTH, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Global (news) miner Xstrata (XTAF.EX - news) has declared force majeure at its Ulan thermal coal mine in Australia's New South Wales state due to heavy rains, the company said on Tuesday.
"We have declared FM on certain customer vessels for the Ulan operation, following the interruption to production as a result of significant water underground following recent heavy rains," spokesman James Rickards said in an email.
The company is currently pumping the water out from the underground area, but said it is currently does not have an estimate to speculate at this time as to when production will resume.
(Reporting by Rebekah Kebede; editing by Balazs Koranyi,sourced:Reuters)
Tags:Perth, Xstrata, declared, force majeure, Ulan thermal coal mine, Australia, South Wales state, heavy rains, coal vessel,
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Anglo Says Most South Africa Coal Assets Work to Plan Amid Rain
January 28, 2011,
By Carli Lourens,(Bloomberg)
Anglo American Plc said “most” of its South African steam coal operations delivered to plan in recent weeks as heavy rains pummel the country.
“Despite the challenges posed by rain, our Thermal Coal operations have performed well with most of them delivering according to plan,” London-based Anglo American’s local unit said in an e-mailed response to a query.
Heavy rain since December in South African derailed trains, flooded crops and added to coal producers’ problems in Australia, where floods have shut mines in Queensland. South Africa declared 28 municipalities across seven of its nine provinces disaster areas last week.
Wescoal Holdings Ltd. said two of its coal pits in South Africa’s main producing region, Mpumalanga, flooded and it may lose about a quarter of a year’s output. Rockwell Diamonds Inc. lost five days’ worth of gem production due to flooding at its operations north of Kimberley, where three-quarters of the normal annual rainfall was recorded in the past six days, the Vancouver-based company said in a statement today.
Rains may persist into June, the South African Weather Service said Jan. 26. In the first 10 days of January, most of South Africa received more than double its normal rainfall, according to a map on the service’s website.
Optimum Coal Holdings Ltd. said last week its opencast mines were affected by excessive rain and First Uranium Corp. said yesterday some of its pump stations had flooded.
In Mozambique, on South Africa’s northern border, about 12,000 people were displaced by flooding, state-controlled Radio Mozambique reported, citing Joao Ribeiro, director of the national disaster institute.(sourced:bloomberg)
By Carli Lourens,(Bloomberg)
Anglo American Plc said “most” of its South African steam coal operations delivered to plan in recent weeks as heavy rains pummel the country.
“Despite the challenges posed by rain, our Thermal Coal operations have performed well with most of them delivering according to plan,” London-based Anglo American’s local unit said in an e-mailed response to a query.
Heavy rain since December in South African derailed trains, flooded crops and added to coal producers’ problems in Australia, where floods have shut mines in Queensland. South Africa declared 28 municipalities across seven of its nine provinces disaster areas last week.
Wescoal Holdings Ltd. said two of its coal pits in South Africa’s main producing region, Mpumalanga, flooded and it may lose about a quarter of a year’s output. Rockwell Diamonds Inc. lost five days’ worth of gem production due to flooding at its operations north of Kimberley, where three-quarters of the normal annual rainfall was recorded in the past six days, the Vancouver-based company said in a statement today.
Rains may persist into June, the South African Weather Service said Jan. 26. In the first 10 days of January, most of South Africa received more than double its normal rainfall, according to a map on the service’s website.
Optimum Coal Holdings Ltd. said last week its opencast mines were affected by excessive rain and First Uranium Corp. said yesterday some of its pump stations had flooded.
In Mozambique, on South Africa’s northern border, about 12,000 people were displaced by flooding, state-controlled Radio Mozambique reported, citing Joao Ribeiro, director of the national disaster institute.(sourced:bloomberg)
Rains hamper Vale iron ore shipments in Brazil
Sunday, 30 Jan 2011
Heavy rains over recent weeks have interrupted Brazilian miner Vale's shipments of 600,000 tonnes of iron ore from Brazil and 500,000 tonnes of coal from Australia.
Mr Roberto Castello Branco director of investor relations said the shipments were expected to be made up over the next couple months. He said that the iron ore delays were relatively small compared to the company's expected production in 2011 of 311 million tonnes.
The coal delays will have a greater effect on operations, given that Vale expects to produce around 5 million tonnes of coal in 2011 in Australia.
Heavy rains in Brazil this month caused floods that killed hundreds of people and slowed port operations in some places. Branco said the company last year prepared contingency plans to ensure that rains had only a limited effect on shipments.(sourced:reuters)
Heavy rains over recent weeks have interrupted Brazilian miner Vale's shipments of 600,000 tonnes of iron ore from Brazil and 500,000 tonnes of coal from Australia.
Mr Roberto Castello Branco director of investor relations said the shipments were expected to be made up over the next couple months. He said that the iron ore delays were relatively small compared to the company's expected production in 2011 of 311 million tonnes.
The coal delays will have a greater effect on operations, given that Vale expects to produce around 5 million tonnes of coal in 2011 in Australia.
Heavy rains in Brazil this month caused floods that killed hundreds of people and slowed port operations in some places. Branco said the company last year prepared contingency plans to ensure that rains had only a limited effect on shipments.(sourced:reuters)
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