Vale Mozambique, the subsidiary of Brazilian major diversified mining group Vale, has reported that its Moatize mine, in the Mozambican province of Tete, had set a new monthly production record in June – 509 000 t. Moatize produces mainly metallurgical, but also some thermal, coal, which is currently transported down the Sena railway line to the port city of Beira for export.

“We have been producing at full capacity since April last year,” said Vale Mozambique operations director Altiberto Brandão at the recent IV National Coal Conference in Maputo. “In June, we hit a production record of 509 000 t at the mine and we had a record of moving more than 300 000 t, transported on the Sena line.” The company expected to export 3.5-million tons of coal this year, which would be an increase of about 900 000 t over last year’s total of 2.6-million tons.

At the same conference, Rio Tinto’s MD for Mozambique, Andrew Woodley, stated that the Anglo-Australian group expected to increase production at its Benga mine, which is also in Tete and not far from Moatize. However, this was dependent upon an expansion in the transport capacity needed to ship the coal to the coast.

He also reported that the recently concluded $140-million exploration programme carried out by his company on its Benga property had revealed that, while its coal reserves and resources were smaller than had been hoped, they were still considerable. The company is currently analysing the results, in order determine the scale the Benga operation could achieve and to define an optimal growth trajectory for it.

The company’s property extends eastward, towards Zam-bezia province. “The development of Zambesi and the east of Tete will also depend on the installed capacity of an inter- nationally competitive coal [supply] chain and global eco- nomic conditions,” stated Woodley. The creation of such a globally competitive coal supply chain through access to railway infrastructure was the key to the development of the coal sector, which would also facilitate regional development.

Barely had the coal conference ended, than a train carrying Rio Tinto coal from Tete to Beira derailed, at Kilometre 266 in Caia district of Sofala province. The train was composed of 42 wagons of which 23 (carrying 1 386 t of coal) came off the track. The Sena line is operated by CFM, Mozambique’s national railways and ports company.

The cause of the derailment was not immediately known, although in his reaction to the event Transport and Com-munications Minister Paulo Zucula noted that the line still suffered from some weaknesses. He also pointed out that the frequency of derailments on the Sena line had declined from as many as two a week to about one a month.

The line had to be closed for several days, to recover the wagons and the spilt coal. Cur-rently, an average of 12 coal trains run from Tete to Beira each day. A 13th daily train carries agricultural and other products from the interior to Beira.

Because of the limitations of the Sena lina, Vale is undertaking a major project to develop an alternative rail route through Malawi to the Mozambican port of Nacala. This involves both constructing new lines and upgrading existing ones. At the coal conference, Brandão reported that 30% of the construction work on the Nacala route had been com- pleted and that it would be fully ready by the end of next year.

Also at the coal conference, Mineral Resources Minister Esperança Bias revealed that the Mozambican government was considering building a railway line between Tete and the port of Macuse, in Zambesia, to supplement the Sena and Nacala lines. She also said that Maputo was studying the use of Mozambican coal to generate electricity and produce liquid fuels.