Pakistan posted a 5% m-o-m increase in thermal coal imports in Jul’21 to 1.7 million tonnes (mn t) as against 1.63 mn t in Jun’21, CoalMint’s vessel-line up data reveals.
The country’s coal imports from Indonesia rose by 20% m-o-m in Jul’21 to 0.33 mn t. During Jan-Jul’21, the same stood at 2.11 mn t, up by 14% y-o-y.
There has been a rise in power demand in Pakistan since Mar’21 amid the scorching summer heat and delay in the arrival of monsoon. The country also faced huge power outages in Jun’21 due to disruptions in thermal power plants and water shortage.
Post the outage, Pakistan’s National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) has warned the power distribution companies, including K-Electric, to provide uninterrupted and reliable power to its consumers.
The country recorded its highest electricity generation as on 7 Jul’21 at 24,284 megawatt (MW), as per Nepra data.
In addition, increased oil-linked LNG import prices coupled with fall in domestic gas production have also increased the country’s reliance on the cheaper option of thermal coal for power generation.
Rising South African coal prices deter Pakistan’s imports
Pakistan’s cement sector, one of the biggest consumers of thermal coal, posted a 19.4% m-o-m decline in sales to 3.9 mn t in Jul’21, data from the All Pakistan Cement Manufacturers Association revealed.
With a sharp 15% m-o-m rise in South African coal prices in Jul’21, domestic cement buyers in the country were heard to have either adopted a wait-and-watch stance or resorted to purchasing coal from the neighbouring country, Afghanistan.
No imports from Australia in Jul’21
After receiving 0.78 mn t of thermal coal from Australia during Jan-Jun’21, Pakistan recorded zero imports from Australia in July amid escalated Australian thermal coal prices that touched $90/tonne (t) FoB in July compared to $55/t in Jan’21.
Outlook
Amid the rise in thermal coal prices, Pakistan’s coal imports are likely to remain subdued in the near term.
Further, availability of the relatively cheaper high-grade coal in neighbouring Afghanistan may also hamper Pakistan’s coal imports especially from South Africa and Australia.
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