Colombian coal miner Drummond production, exports fell in 2020

18th January 2021 By: Reuters

BOGOTA  – Colombian coal producer Drummond saw production and exports fall 10.3% and 4.4% respectively in 2020, the company said on Friday, amid difficulties caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The coal miner produced 29.3-million tonnes of coal last year, compared with 32.6-million tonnes in 2019. Exports fell to 29.7-million tonnes, down from 31.1-million tonnes in the prior year.

"We recognize that this was not an easy year," Drummond CEO Jose Miguel Linares said in a statement. "We overcame huge challenges amid a difficult market environment and a health crisis that hit the whole world."

Drummond announced its decision to significantly reduce operations in late March due to the coronavirus pandemic, before restarting some of its operations in April.

Earlier this week Cerrejon, another Colombian coal miner owned equally by BHP Group, Anglo American and Glencore, reported 2020 production levels down almost 52% on 2019, while exports declined 48.2%.

Going into 2021 Drummond will focus on working to support the Colombian economy, Linares said.

Drummond operates the Pribbenow and El Descanso mines, located in the Cesar province, in northern Colombia.