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- / Platts proposes to launch premium mid vol hard coking coal CFR India assessment
05 Aug 2024 | 11:58 UTC
Platts proposes to launch premium mid vol hard coking coal CFR India assessment
Platts, part of S&P Global Commodity Insights, is proposing to launch a daily Premium Mid Vol (PMV) Hard Coking Coal CFR India price assessment, effective Oct. 1, 2024. The assessment would reflect a maturing secondary market, in which a half- or full-Panamax shipment is broken into smaller parcel sizes for resale in the India metallurgical coal spot market.
The proposed addition of an India-focused assessment for PMV coals reflects evolving buying patterns and increasingly diverse origins of hard coking coal cargoes imported by India following the country's emergence as the largest global importer of coking coal.
The proposed assessment would specify cargoes between 10,000 mt and 25,000 mt in quantity, in reflection of the bulk of spot activity taking place on a CFR India basis.
Market feedback gathered during an extensive consultation period showed that India-import trade discussions for cargoes 30,000 mt and above for both spot and term contracts, including both Australian and non-Australian origins, were predominantly discussed on an FOB Australia basis.
Discussions on an outright CFR India basis are typically observed for smaller parcel sizes for resale.
The PMV HCC CFR India assessment would have the following specifications:
| Assessment name | Quality | Quantity | Incoterm | Location | Timing | Payment term | Unit of measurement |
| Premium Mid Vol Hard Coking Coal CFR India | 67% CSR, 23% VM, 10% TM, 9% ash, 0.55% sulfur, 0.03% phosphorus, 1000 ddpm max fluidity, 60% vitrinite | 10,000 mt – 25,000 mt | CFR | Paradip | Delivered 20-75 days | L/C at sight | $/mt |
Platts spot price assessments consider market information reported to Platts and published throughout the day, including firm bids and offers, transactions and indications, as well as any other data deemed relevant to the assessment process. Market information received before the 5:30 pm Singapore (0930 GMT) timestamp would be considered for the daily PMV HCC CFR India assessment.
Platts may consider and normalize information reported surrounding cargoes differing in quality, volume, timing, basis location and payment terms to the specifications stated above using price differentials prevailing in the spot market.
The assessment would consider cargoes of all origins, and Platts may normalize for premiums and discounts that may arise from duty rates applicable to cargoes of different origins.
A full description of Platts assessments methodology can be found here:
Platts continues to invite submission of high-quality data relevant to the India spot market for publication, in order to test representativeness of market information for various coal types. High-quality data typically includes details such as counterparty, product quality, specifications, order sizes, dimensions, lead times and locational information.
The new assessment would be in addition to Platts' existing CFR India assessments for PLV and Low Vol hard coking coal, which reflect a calculated freight net forward basis to the corresponding FOB Australia assessments.
Platts first opened a consultation to invite feedback on its CFR India coking coal price assessments in a subscriber note published March 15:
The consultation period was extended to May 17 to capture more feedback:
The assessment would be published in Platts SBB Steel Markets Daily, Platts Steel Alert on page 0205 and in the Platts price database.
Platts invites feedback on this proposal to pl_cokingcoal@spglobal.com and pricegroup@spglobal.com by Aug. 27, 2024.
For written comments, please provide a clear indication if comments are not intended for publication by Platts for public viewing. Platts will consider all comments received and will make comments not marked as confidential available upon request.