Whitehaven Coal cuts 2023 production guidance amid labor shortages

By Ambar Warrick

Investing.com -- Australian coal miner Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX:WHC) said on Wednesday that its coal production and sales in 2023 will be lower than initially expected, as the firm grapples with unexpected labor shortages, as well as additional headwinds at its biggest mine.

Whitehaven forecast total managed run-of-mine production for fiscal 2023 between 18 million and 19.2M tonnes, down from its prior guidance of 19M to 20.4M tonnes. This compares to production of 20M tonnes in fiscal 2022.

The drop in production stems chiefly from the firm’s Maules Creek mine, which is its biggest coal producer. The mine was hit by adverse weather, including a week-long forest fire in early-March.

But Whitehaven also flagged labor shortages at the mine, as well as limited dumping locations for coal waste.

Lower production is also expected to result in lower sales, Whitehaven said, with managed coal sales in 2023 now expected at 15.3M to 16M tonnes, down from the prior forecast of 16.5M to 18M tonnes.

The firm also forecast higher unit costs per tonne of coal mined.

Whitehaven is among the largest coal producers in Australia, and benefited from increased demand for the material over the past year, amid growing disruptions in global energy markets.

This saw the firm log a fivefold increase in earnings for the six months to December 2022, helped chiefly by a record-high average coal price during the period of A$552 a tonne.

But with global energy ructions now beginning to ease, the firm forecast an average coal price of A$400 a tonne for the March quarter. The firm also said it will report coal production of 4.3M tonnes for the quarter, down from 4.8M tonnes in the December quarter. 

Labor shortages are a recurring trend for several Australian companies, as the country grapples with an insufficient supply of skilled workers. But this has also kept unemployment low over the past year.