China may phase out more small coal mines

摘要

China may continue to phase out small coal mines, although it has met its 2016-20 target for capacity cuts. This will help raise the coal industry’s efficiency without reducing national coal production. There are still 3,113 mines with capacity of less than 300,000 t/yr, China’s national coal mine safety administration (NCMSA) said. The mines have a combined capacity of 460mn t/yr, accounting for 8.9pc of national coal operating capacity. Of this, 1,344 of the smallest mines — with a capacity below 90,000 t/yr — represent a combined total of 90mn t/yr or 1.7pc of national capacity. But small mines are considered inefficient and normally have poor safety standards.