Coal

Fuelling global growth

Global energy demand is rising due to the rapid development of manufacturing industries in emerging economies and the needs of the world’s growing population. The International Energy Agency expects global energy demand to grow by one third from 2010 to 2035.

“Our projects could double our production in the next five years.” Peter Freyberg,
Chief Executive,
Xstrata Coal

Demand for coal, alongside a wide range of energy sources including fossil fuels, nuclear and renewable, continues to grow. The World Coal Association forecasts that the use of coal will increase by more than 50% over the next 20 years. In particular, the emerging economies of Asia represent a growing market for coal, as billions of people in countries such as China and India move to live and work in new cities and industries.

Responsible balance

Coal is a vital energy source but burning coal releases carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, which in turn contributes to climate change. Mining coal can release methane, another greenhouse gas. We are minimising our direct emissions from coal mining, committing over AUD$25 million to develop technologies to reduce the emissions from burning coal and working with universities to enhance research and education in energy management. Visit our Sustainability section for more detail.

Leading coal business

With a complementary mix of underground and open cut mines which produce thermal, coking and semi-soft coal products, we run some of the most efficient coal mines in the industry. Over 90% of the coal we mine is exported to global markets and we sell the remainder to domestic customers in Australia and South Africa. Our coal business has identified over 30 billion tonnes of coal resources, with an unmatched pipeline of growth projects currently in various stages of development with the potential to increase production by more than 50 million tonnes per annum by 2015.