CONSOL Energy shipped 5.4 million tons during the third quarter. “The third quarter is typically a seasonally weak quarter due to planned maintenance shutdowns, and the Pennsylvania Mining Complex (PAMC) also encountered several operational issues and transportation delays that limited production to 5.3 million tons in the third quarter of 2021,” CONSOL Energy President and CEO Jimmy Brock said. “Nevertheless, demand for our product remains robust, and due to the strength in both the domestic and international coal markets, we are pleased to announce that we have restarted development for the fifth longwall at the PAMC to capture upside potential.” The fifth longwall, which is located at the Enlow Fork mine, is expected to be operational in late Q4 2022.
Brock also said CONSOL Energy had contracted for new business across 2022 and 2023 and he reported that progress on the Itmann preparation plant continues and remains on schedule and on budget, positioning the company for additional upside in 2022. The company expects to invest between $150-$170 million in the Itmann Project during 2021.
“On the safety front, our Enlow Fork mine, Bailey preparation plant, CONSOL Marine Terminal (CMT) and Itmann project each had ZERO employee recordable incidents during the third quarter of 2021,” Brock said. “Our year-to-date total recordable incident rate at the PAMC continues to track significantly and consistently below the national average for underground bituminous coal mines.”
CONSOL Energy’s marketing team sold 5.4 million tons of coal during the third quarter of 2021 at an average price of $47.46/ton, compared to 4.5 million tons at an average price of $40.55/ton during the same period last year. Exports through CMT were 2.8 million tons in Q3 2021, compared to 2 million tons in Q3 2020.
“The majority of our domestic customer stockpiles are below target levels for this time of year,” Brock said. “As such, we have seen domestic customer demand increase and have remained opportunistic in securing additional coal sales contracts for 2022 and 2023, bringing our contracted positions for those years to 20.2 million and 5.8 million tons, respectively.”
During the third quarter of 2021, CONSOL Energy ran four longwalls at the PAMC, but operational and geological issues, transportation delays and a planned maintenance shutdown limited production. The PAMC produced 5.3 million tons for Q3 2021, compared to 4.5 million tons for Q3 2020.
Based on current contracted position, estimated prices and production plans, CONSOL Energy is targeting 2021 coal sales of 23.5-24.5 million tons, Brock said.
