PERTH (miningweekly.com) – The lower coal prices received in 2014 have impacted on New Hope Corporation’s bottom line for the full year ended July.

The miner reported on Tuesday that after-tax net profit had declined to A$58.4-million, compared with A$74.1-million reported in 2013, as revenue declined to A$549-million, from A$652.1-million last year.

Coal production during the year had remained relatively unchanged compared with the previous year, at 5.6-million tonnes, while coal sales for the period had remained constant at six-million tonnes.

“The cyclical downturn in market conditions for Australian coal producers continued throughout 2014. Significant falls in export coal prices, combined with a stubbornly high Australian:US dollar exchange rate, meant New Hope’s focus remained on the tight control of costs, while also steadily advancing project approvals to position the group for growth when market conditions improve,” said CEO Shane Stephan.

During the year under review, New Hope continued to progress the approvals for the revised New Acland Stage 3 project, which would increase production to 7.5-milllion tonnes a year and the mine life until 2029.

An environmental-impact statement for the project was submitted during the year, and opened for public comment. An evaluation report on the project was expected in late 2014.

Stephan noted that the company’s strong balance sheet provided the financial strength to not only weather the current downturn, but also to take advantage of the market conditions by exploring asset acquisition opportunities at a time when valuations were becoming more compelling.

Meanwhile, New Hope was expecting the current challenging market conditions to continue into 2015, with Stephan saying that while global demand for thermal coal remained strong, an oversupply would continue to depress thermal spot prices.

“In the medium term, we expect demand for high-quality export coal to continue to grow, particularly from expanding Asian economies while significant new supply is unlikely given the current downturn.”

As a result, the company would continue to focus on its coal production in 2015, while preparing the company for an expected gradual recovery in spot prices within the next 12 to 18 months.