As weak demand in the global market and domestic supply constraints hampered loadings, Colombian producer Cerrejon's coal exports last month fell below 1 million tonnes to their lowest since February 2013.
Cerrejon's exports in May fell by 2 million tonnes in the year to 800,000 tonnes, which was also 500,000 tonnes lower than in April. This was the lowest export volume since February 2013, when Cerrejon shipped 522,607 tonnes during a union strike.
Cerrejon's January-May exports fell by 3.4 million tonnes in the year to 8.1 million tonnes, with most of the decline recorded in April and May. Total Colombian coal exports fell by nearly 3 million tonnes in the year to 4.4 million tonnes last month, the lowest since February 2014.
Colombian exports to Asia-Pacific markets have dropped sharply in Q2 as a result of greater competition from regional suppliers and declining demand. Exports to Turkey, which is Colombia and Cerrejon's biggest export market, fell by 80,000 tonnes to 920,000 tonnes in May.
Following the disruption caused by the pandemic, Cerrejon is gradually ramping up production and said it is producing at 75 percent of capacity.
