BHP Billiton Ltd said yesterday that prices this year for metallurgical coking coal products were expected to rise as much as 240 percent above last year's levels.
The estimate was based on the settlement of contracts so far by the BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance, a partnership between the Anglo-Australian miner and a subsidiary of Japan's Mitsubishi Corp. The alliance operates coal mines in the state of Queensland.
"Prices for Peak Down and other similar BMA metallurgical coking coal products are expected to increase within the range of 206-240 percent over 2007 levels," BHP Billiton said.
The statement noted that a "significant proportion" of annually priced BMA contracts had been concluded.
The global mining industry is thriving on higher prices for raw materials, such as iron ore and coking coal, as steel makers race to meet growing demand from construction companies, auto makers and other manufacturers. At the same time, supplies are constrained as miners try to boost production.
Earlier yesterday, Tokyo-based JFE Steel Corp said it had agreed to an increase that would more than triple coal prices for fiscal 2008 to US$300 a ton, from US$98.