Yulin, a major coal hub in China's Shaanxi province, has maintained steady coal production during this wave of COVID-19 epidemic, according to a government press conference on December 3.
The city has secured daily production of more than 1.4 million tonnes since the outbreak, the local energy administration introduced.
Coal mines were asked to implement closed-loop management to minimize the infection, said Wang Huaixie, deputy director of the energy administration. With efforts of coal mines and the administration, the epidemic hasn't raged in coal minefields.
According to some market sources, the closed-loop management resulted in impediments to long-haulage trucking, but the impact will be mitigated as the government gradually optimizes COVID-19 control measures.
In China, several cities and provinces have fine-tuned COVID-19 measures concerning mass nucleic acid testing and medical services to minimize the impact on people and economic activity.
Starting on December 4, Shanghai will no longer require passengers to possess a negative nucleic acid test result when taking public transportation, including buses and subways, or when entering outdoor public spaces, according to an announcement made on Sunday afternoon.
In January-October, Yulin's coal production reached 482 million tonnes, achieving a high growth of 5.5% despite a high base of comparison in the same period last year. Its monthly production stayed above 48 million tonnes.
Spot coal prices have increased recently in Yulin, driven by strengthened demand following a wave of cold snap. Also, the price rally at northern ports also helped push the pithead market.
As of December 2, Yulin 5,800 Kcal/kg NAR thermal coal was assessed at 1,182 yuan/t, mine-mouth basis with VAT, up 1.3% from a day earlier but still 0.3% lower than the week-ago level.
(Writing by Alex Guo Editing by Tammy Yang)
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