South Korea: Australia coal freight firms while Indonesian rates remain softer in latest KEPCO tenders

• Australia-South Korea freight rises 11.6% to $20.95/t
• Indonesia-South Korea freight holds near $12/t

South Korea’s Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) latest coal freight tenders indicate divergent trends across the Australia-South Korea and Indonesia-South Korea trades, with Australian-origin freight strengthening while Indonesian rates remained comparatively softer.

For Australia, Wooyang bid $20.95/tonne (t) FIO for an 80,000 t Newcastle-Boryeong shipment for 22-31 October loading. The latest bid is $2.17/t, or 11.6%, higher than Pan Ocean’s $18.78/t bid in the previous tender on 22 September for an 80,000 t Gladstone-Boryeong shipment for 5-14 October.

Meanwhile, Woohyun bid $21.50/t FIO for another 80,000 t Gladstone-Dangjin shipment for 21-30 October loading. The bid was marginally higher than Wooyang’s $20.95/t Newcastle-Boryeong indication, further supporting the firmer tone in Australia-South Korea coal freight.

The increase suggests firmer freight indications for October-loading Australian coal, following the easing seen in the previous tender. The latest level also indicates that vessel availability and competition for prompt-to-forward tonnage may be tightening again.

Meanwhile, Indonesian-origin freight remained around the $12/t level. Hanaro bid $12.07/t FIO for a 75,000 t Muara Pantai-Hosan shipment for 19-28 October. This compares with bids of $11.51-12.11/t in the previous KEPCO tender on 30 September, indicating broadly stable-to-firmer levels on the latest indication.

The latest Indonesian bid also remains below the $13.07-13.17/t levels seen in the 22 September tender, suggesting that freight has not fully recovered from the softer indications recorded earlier.