Platts launches Caval Ridge coking coal brand relativity assessment, discontinue relativities with lower spot liquidity

Platts, part of S&P Global Commodity Insights, has launched daily brand relativity price assessments for Caval Ridge Coking Coal and discontinued existing brand relativities published for Lake Vermont, Middlemount Coking, Peak Downs North, and Poitrel Semi Hard, effective Sept. 2.

The new launch and discontinuations were first proposed on May 20, in a subscriber note available here:

https://www.spglobal.com/commodityinsights/en/our-methodology/subscriber-notes/052024-platts-proposes-to-launch-caval-ridge-coking-coal-brand-relativity-assessment-discontinue-relativities-with-lower-spot-li

Following market feedback, the decision to implement the proposed launch and discontinuations was communicated in a subscriber note published June 20:

https://www.spglobal.com/commodityinsights/en/our-methodology/subscriber-notes/062024-platts-to-launch-caval-ridge-coking-coal-brand-relativity-assessment-discontinue-relativities-with-lower-spot-liquidity

The publication of a daily Caval Ridge Coking Coal brand relativity assessment arises from increased liquidity observed for the coal in the spot market.

The brand relativity is assessed on an FOB Australia basis. A CFR China basis calculation is also published by adding the FOB Australia basis brand relativity assessment to the Platts spot Panamax freight rate from Australia to China.

The specifications and symbols are as follows:

Platts takes a market survey approach to its assessments of brand relativities, evaluating the relativity of each brand as a percentage of Platts Premium Low Vol Hard Coking Coal FOB Australia (PLVHA00) assessment. The daily relativities are published as an outright value in dollars per metric ton.

Platts has also created symbols for the Caval Ridge relativities expressed as percentages of Platts Premium Low Vol Hard Coking Coal FOB Australia and CFR China assessments, and for all the other percentage expressions of existing coking coal brand relativities, backdating them to when they were first published, to enable more direct access to the data.

The discontinuation of the brand relativities for Lake Vermont, Middlemount Coking, Peak Downs North, and Poitrel Semi Hard stems from reduced liquidity for the coals in the spot market, with most, if not all cargoes for the brands sold via term contracts. The discontinuation of the Peak Down North relativity additionally reflects the April 2024 transfer of ownership of the Daunia mine, which was one of the key inputs to the Peak Downs North blended product.

The following symbols are affected by the discontinuation of the brand relativity assessments:

Platts coking coal brand relativities are published in SBB Steel Markets Daily, Coal Trader International, Platts Steel Alert page STL1064, and in the Platts price database.

Please send comments and questions to pl_cokingcoal@spglobal.com and pricegroup@spglobal.com.

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