PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Despite coal prices declining over the past year, Queensland has achieved record coal exports during the 2014/15 financial year, reaching 219.4-million tonnes, up 5% on the 2013/14 record level.

Analysis of port data released by the Queensland Resources Council (QRC) on Wednesday revealed that three ports broke coal export records during the 2014/15 year, namely Dalrymple Bay coal terminal, with exports of 71.6-million tonnes, Hay Point coal terminal, with 43.4-million tonnes, and Abbot Point, with 28.7-million tonnes.

Gladstone port, which exported 68.5-million tonnes was just short of last year’s record, and preliminary advice from Port of Brisbane indicated that it shipped 7.2-million tonnes of coal in 2014/15.

QRC CEO Michael Roche said the results show that coal continued to deliver for the Queensland economy and was also delivering for the state budget through royalties.

“Any shortfall in royalty revenue in next week’s state budget is not down to lack of export volumes, but rather due to the optimistic price forecasts in the December 2014 mid-year budget review published by the previous government.”

“Industry is doing the heavy lifting on production activity – but we are all subject to the vagaries of global commodity price setting.”

Roche said in the mid-year review, the treasury forecast the 2015/16 hard coking coal price at A$140/t and thermal at A$80/t, whereas current spot prices sit at around A$90/t and A$60/t respectively.

“Treasury also forecast that the Australian/US dollar rate would trade at 84c in 2015/16, so the current exchange rate of below 75c will provide some buffer to royalty revenues,” Roche said.

He added that other parts of the Queensland resources sector would also play their part in 2015/16 in delivering revenues to fund essential government services for Queenslanders.

“Queenslanders will benefit from the beginning of the ramp up in gas exports and therefore gas royalties, while non-coal minerals will also deliver hundreds of millions of dollars in royalties again in 2015/16.”

“Our sector continues to provide one in every five jobs and one in every four dollars to the Queensland economy while supporting more than 17 000 businesses across the state.”