The company said mining activity largely continued at full production rates through the first quarter, but lower sales volumes, winter weather and transportation issues affected clean coal production. As a result, mining costs will be above its annual guidance range in the first quarter, in the range of $54/mt to $57/mt.
With production and sales volumes expected to return to more normal levels in the second quarter, the company reconfirmed its previous annual production guidance of 27 million mt to 28 million mt and annual mining cost guidance of $46/mt to $50/mt.
The second-quarter 2017 quarterly contract price for steelmaking coal has not yet been agreed upon, as the market awaits the outcome of the cyclone event in Australia, but assuming a return to normal market conditions, Teck expects its average blended realized price for all of its coking coal products in the second quarter to be in the usual range of approximately 95% of the quarterly contract price.
