<p> China Shenhua Energy Co., Ltd, the listed subsidiary of state-owned coal giant Shenhua Group, produced 23.1 million tonnes of commercial coal in March, down 16% year on year -- the seventh consecutive year-on-year decline, the company said late April 20. </p> <p> It represented an increase of 12.7% from February, as the miner put its coal mines into normal production after the Lunar New Year holidays. </p> <p> However, coal sales of the group continued to decrease on the back of sluggish demand from end users. Sales in March dropped 36% on year and down 14.5% on month to 25.4 million tonnes, the seventh consecutive year-on-year decline. </p> <p> In the first quarter, Shenhua produced a total 69.3 million tonnes of coal, down 13.3% year on year; while total sales during the same period dropped 33.5% on year to 72.8 million tonnes.Despite sliding market demand, Shenhua kept its prices steady in March, pegging the benchmark 5,500 Kcal/kg NAR thermal coal steady at 490 yuan/t after discounts, 11.6% higher than the mainstream spot price of 439 yuan/t by end-March. </p> <p> In March, China Shenhua sold 11.6 million tonnes of coal via northern Chinese ports, down 41.7% year on year and down 23.7% from the month before. Of this, coal shipped from Shenhua’s exclusive-use Huanghua port stood at 6 million tonnes or 51.7% of the total, down 42.9% on year and down 23.1% on month. </p> <p> In the first quarter, the company sold 33.8 million tonnes of coal via northern Chinese ports, down 36.6% year on year. Of this, coal shipped from Huanghua port stood at 17 million tonnes or 46.4% of the total, down 41.2% year on year. </p> <p> It didn’t import any coal during the same period, while total exports reached 0.3 million tonnes, down 50% on year, with March exports at 0.1 million tonnes, unchanged from the previous month. </p> <p> Meanwhile, China Shenhua generated 16.1 TWh of electricity in March, down 15.3% year on year but up 39.8% from February, while total power output over January-March decreased 7.6% year on year to 47.65 TWh. </p> <p> Shenhua’s March power sales stood at 15.03 TWh, down 15.1% year on year but up 40.7% month on month. Total power sales in the first quarter decreased 7.6% year on year to 44.4 TWh. </p> <p align="center"> <img alt="" src="/upfiles/news/image/20150430/20150430164340_6344.jpg" /> </p> <p> &nbsp; </p>