Vale’s annual thermal coal production was 112.4% higher at 2Mt as the company also ramped up production from its Moatize mine in Tete, Mozambique.

After a difficult year in 2011, overall production from Integra Coal rose 65.8% in 2012, with 962,000t of coking coal and 351,000t of thermal coal in 2012.

“Coking coal output doubled compared to 2011, due to continuous improvement in geological conditions in both the underground and open cut mines and the better performance of longwall operations,” the company said.

Carborough Downs, whose production is 100% coking coal, increased its output by 185.3% in the fourth quarter of 2012, to 373,000t from 131,000t in Q3.

“The sharp increase is a consequence of the successful ramp-up from the stoppage of operations in the second quarter of 2012.”

The company’s successful record in Mozambique is in stark contrast to that of Rio Tinto, which last month announced it would be writing off $US3 billion from the value of its Riversdale coal assets in that country – a decision that contributed to the resignation of Rio chief Tom Albanese.

In its first full year of operation Vale’s Moatize mine produced 3.77Mt, of which 2.5Mt was met coal and 1.27Mt was thermal coal.

The ramp-up of the first phase of the Moatize coal project is restricted by the availability of railroad and port capacity, according to Vale.

“Improvements in the Linha do Sena railroad – which is operated by a Mozambican state-owned company – expected from the conclusion of investments in signalling and higher efficiency, will allow for some increase in the volumes of coal carried by our trains to the port of Beira,” Vale said.

“Given these limitations, we have been concentrating our shipments on the higher priced Chipanga premium hard coking coal and typical HCC.”

Vale said the completion of the Nacala corridor project was critical for the extraction of maximum value from its coal assets in Mozambique as it would eliminate the logistics bottleneck.

The required licences had already been granted by the governments of Mozambique and Malawi and construction was underway, the company said.