Flooding dented Whitehaven's coal output
Whitehaven Coal made a record $1.6 billion in cash in the September quarter, but wet weather meant the coalminer was unable to take full advantage of skyrocketing coal prices.
Whitehaven announced on Wednesday it had produced 4.0 million tonnes of coal during the three months to September 30, down 37 per cent from the June quarter.
It sold 3.69 million tonnes at an average price of $A581 a tonne for the quarter, compared to $514 a tonne in the previous quarter and $189 a tonne a year ago. Sanctions imposed on Russian coal following its invasion of Ukraine have sent prices surging.
The $1.55b in cash generated over the quarter left the coalminer with a net cash position of $1.93b sitting on its books as of 30 September.
It has plans to buy back as many as 240 million of its shares, assuming shareholders assent at Whitehaven's annual general meeting next Wednesday.
Whitehaven chief executive Paul Flynn told analysts that it had been an "up and down" quarter, with its three open-cut mining operations in northeastern NSW hampered by the wet weather and flood-closed roads.
"We certainly experienced some limitations to access, Maules Creek in particular," Mr Flynn said.
The mines still have water in them, which Whitehaven Coal can only discharge off-site in very limited circumstances, he said. So the company is hoping the Bureau of Meteorology's forecast that La Nina conditions will be over by early next year holds true.
Mr Flynn said that Whitehaven has been paying quarterly retention bonuses to try to keep skilled workers in light of labour shortages.
"Trades are hard to find, there's no question about that," he said.
"It is not a feature not just on our payroll, but our suppliers too."
Construction of the Western Sydney airport and various tunnelling projects in Sydney is having an impact on the labour market, he said.
And while borders are open, Whitehaven hasn't seen the same inflow of skilled expatriate workers that it has in past years, he said.
The company, which operates a total of four mines in northwestern NSW, is experimenting with fly in, fly out operations to try and attract more workers, Mr Flynn said.
At 11.50am AEDT, Whitehaven shares were down 1.3 per cent to $10.275 - up 293.7 per cent from the start of the year.
