Australia's South32 <S32.AX> on Monday posted a near 18% rise in third-quarter metallurgical coal output and said it had received approval to restart its South African coal operations during a coronavirus-related lockdown, although at a reduced rate.
Production of the steel-making ingredient rose to 1.2 million tonnes during the quarter ended March 31, meeting a UBS forecast, and was higher than the 990,000 tonnes of output a year earlier.
South32 also said it had received government approval to restart limited activity at its South African energy coal operations during the lockdown period, albeit at a reduced pace.
The unit had been in care and maintenance mode since the government announced a lockdown in late March.
"We have acted to protect our strong financial position," Chief Executive Officer Graham Kerr said, referring to a range of measures the company has taken, including suspension of buybacks, slashing capital spending and a separate review expected to control costs from fiscal 2021.
While a majority of South32's operations have escaped relatively unscathed from the outbreak, the miner withdrew 2020 guidance for its Colombian and South African operations in March owing to coronavirus-related restrictions.
The company on Monday maintained 2020 production guidance for all other operations, with the exception of Australian manganese output which is expected to be about 5% lower due to similar restrictions.
(Reporting by Rashmi Ashok and Shruti Sonal in Bengaluru; editing by Richard Pullin)
