European countries are snapping up alternative supplies from South Africa as the effective date of the ban on Russian coal imports draws closer.
The EU's intakes of South African coal through Richards Bay port during the first five months surged over 40% year on year.
Richards Bay delivered 3.24 million tonnes of coal to the EU during January-May, up from 2.32 million tonnes in the same period a year ago, with the share rising notably to 15% from 4%, according to Reuters.
In early April this year, 27 EU members reached a consensus on some measures proposed by the European Commission for the fifth round of sanctions against Russia, including stopping the purchase of Russian coal and banning Russian ships from entering EU ports.
However, the coal ban was agreed to be postponed to mid-August, more than a month later than the original plan, in order to allow some member states more time to find alternative supplies.
The Netherlands, Italy, France, Spain, Denmark and Poland have all received coal from South Africa as of the reporting. The shipments have surged since late February due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, according to Reuters.
The Netherlands did not import any coal from Richards Bay during January-February, but the intakes during March-May surged to 1.27 million tonnes, making it the fourth-largest coal export destination, accounting for 5.76% of Richards Bay's total exports.
From January to May, France's coal imports from Richards Bay increased to 464,400 tonnes compared with 68,000 tonnes for the whole year of 2021.
Spain, Poland and Germany imported 355,300 tonnes, 181,500 tonnes and 157,400 tonnes of coal from Richards Bay respectively during January-May, compared with 0 shipment in 2021, data showed.
The increase in demand, combined with the sharp rise in global coal prices, has fueled the export enthusiasm of South African miners and boosted coal production in the country.
However, South African railway capacity has been running at a low level due to sustained problems including improper maintenance, shortage of trains and theft of copper cables. Some miners reportedly are trucking coal to the port.
(Writing by Emma Yang Editing by Tammy Yang)
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