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Colombia to produce 95Mt of coal in 2017 – vice-minister

Datetime: 2017-04-19 16:22:39

colombia to produce 95Mt of coal in 2017 – vice-minister


BOGOTA – Colombia could produce at least 95-million tonnes of coal in 2017, below an initial target of 102-million tonnes, themining vice-minister said on Wednesday.

The Andean country is the world's fifth-largest producer of the fuel and recorded an output of 90.9 -million tonnes last year, the highest figure in its history despite price instability.

"The country's great potential in coal is reflected in the close to six-billion tonnes of reserves and a potential of 16-billion tonnes," Carlos Cante, vice-minister of mining and energy, told a coal conference in the Caribbean city of Cartagena.

"We expect that 2017 will have the same growth rhythm that we've had, despite projections in our multi-year investment plan showing that in 2017 we were going to get close to 102 -million tonnes, we think that with 95-million tonnes in output the country will move forward," Cante said.

The biggest players in Colombia's coal-mining industry are Drummond, Glencore, Murray Energy's Colombia Natural Resources, and Cerrejon, which is jointly owned by BHP Billiton, Anglo American and Glencore.

Escondida outcome seen as disaster for BHP as workers return

SANTIAGO – The end of a historic strike at Chile's Escondida copper mine, the world's biggest, has left its owner, BHP Billiton, nursing an estimated $1-billion loss and probably in a weaker position for negotiations in a year or so, company and industry insiders said.

On Thursday, the 2 500-member union at the mine decided to end the strike after 43 days by invoking a legal provision that allows it to extend the old contract by 18 months.

Workers will begin the gradual job of getting Escondida up and running again from Saturday, in a tense atmosphere and with little resolved for either the union or BHP.

The resolution will be a relief for the Chilean economy, which analysts say may contract this quarter for the first time since 2009 due to the strike. Escondida produced some 5% of the world's copper last year and the resumption of output will also ease supply concerns.

Workers told Reuters on Friday they were satisfied with the result. Although they lose out on any signing bonus or pay rise, the extension means they get to maintain current working conditions and benefits, which Escondida wanted to change. Their position in 2018 will also be stronger, thanks to new labour laws in Chile coming into practise next month.

Workers told Reuters on Friday they were satisfied with the result. Although they lose out on any signing bonus or pay rise, the extension means they get to maintain current working conditions and benefits, which Escondida wanted to change. Their position in 2018 will also be stronger, thanks to new labour laws in Chile coming into practise next month.

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