AlwaysFree: Cold Weather Seen Prolonging China’s Coal Crunch

China’s domestic coal production has risen to more than 12 million tons per day, helping power plants to increase their inventories. However, it has not ended China’s energy crisis, as a colder-than-usual winter is expected to keep power demand elevated. Some parts of China are forecast to experience cooler temperatures during this winter due to a La Nina weather pattern. As a result, space heating demand is expected to increase, forcing utilities to keep burning and purchasing coal. Analysts said that robust coal demand would keep supply tight and prices high in the next one to two months. Thermal coal futures on the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange gained 1% to CNY871.2 ($) per ton on November 23, having risen more than 7% since the middle of the month.