Third quarter coal sales are now expected to be in the range of 5.2 to 5.5 million mt, in comparison to Teck’s previous guidance for the quarter of 5.8 to 6.2 million mt. Sales for the calendar year are expected to be in the range of 23 to 23.8 million mt, in comparison to Teck’s previously announced guidance of 23.5 to 24.5 million mt. Shipments through Westshore have been affected by Westshore not operating at its stated annual capacity of 29 million mt during the current quarter. Neither the ongoing strike at the Coal Mountain mine nor the June 2010 explosion in the Greenhills processing plant has had a material impact on sales. Teck continues to load vessels with Coal Mountain coal from port inventory. The rebuilt Greenhills dryer is expected to begin commissioning in December 2010, but the mine will continue to ship higher moisture coal in the interim.
Teck is in discussions with Westshore concerning the shortfall in shipments and possible measures to alleviate the situation. According to Westshore, improvements at the port are expected to permit Westshore to load all of Teck’s expected deliveries to Westshore in 2011.
In the interim, Teck is taking all available steps to mitigate the impact of the shortfalls at Westshore, including diverting shipments to Neptune Bulk Terminals (Canada) Ltd., in which it has a 46% ownership interest, and to Ridley Terminals in Prince Rupert.
