PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Coal miner Allegiance Coal went into voluntary administration on Wednesday, days after announcing plans to pivot back to metallurgical coal production at both of its North American operating mines in response to a dramatic fall in thermal coal prices.
The administrators on Wednesday said that they would be undertaking an urgent assessment of the company, and would work closely with management, employees, suppliers and customers to stabilise operations and determine the appropriate strategy for the business.
Allegiance again failed to meet its production expectations in the three months to December, with run-of-mine production reaching 132 000 t, down from the 171 000 t produced in the previous quarter, while saleable coal production reached 89 000 t, down from the 114 000 t in the September quarter.
In February, the company announced plans to move away from thermal coal production, citing the fall of coal prices delivered into Europe and the significant recovery in metallurgical coal prices over the last two months.
The company is yet to make its first metallurgical coal sale for 2023, after failing to win a tender for a steel mill in Europe.