JOHANNESBURG – MC Mining said on Monday its revenue per saleable tonne declined by 14% to $75/t in the three months to March 31, the third quarter of its financial year.
MC Mining said its Uitkomst Colliery reported run-of-mine coal production of 113 190 t, down 2.2% from the same period last year.
The company reiterated that its board had conditionally approved the phased development of the Makhado project in Limpopo, with construction of the first phase anticipated to commence in the third quarter of calendar year 2019 and expected to yield 540 000 t/y of hard coking coal and 570 000 t/y of export quality thermal coal.
The construction of the first phase would make MC Mining the pre-eminent South African producer of high-grade metallurgical coal, a key ingredient contributing to the manufacture of steel, the company said.
South Africa produces significant quantities of thermal coal but has a very limited domestic supply of high-quality metallurgical coal.
MC Mining said once developed, Makhado would be the only significant hard coking coal mine in the country.
The project, which is expected to create approximately 650 permanent job opportunities, is expected to provide significant direct and indirect benefits to communities located in an area with significant unemployment levels.