The company – which had a challenging 2012 – will be seeking to rein in costs and maintain high productivity levels at its Oaky North and Oaky No 1 longwall mines, said general manager Shane Hansen in an internal newsletter.

“After one full month of production so far this year, we are on forecast at both mines and this is a great start to be on target for full year,” he said.

“It is also pleasing to see that the effort that has gone into reducing our costs is making a difference to the health of our business.

“We need to be a low-cost business to stay competitive. Remaining productive and low costs sustains our business, out town and our community.”

Hansen said production at the mines was better than expected for last year.

Oaky North finished its annual production just below its record performance and the longwall at Oaky No.1 saw a dramatic improvement.

“The coal market is showing some signs of recovery and prices seem to be improving,” he said.

“Our cost focus will continue with the major effort being increasing efficiency of our production process with more tonnes for the same cost and reducing waste,” he said.

“We also need to continue working together to identify opportunities which will improve the business.”

Last year Hansen said the new longwall at Oaky No 1 is an “area of concern”, as is the company’s safety record.

“There has been a number of commissioning issues and we are working closely with the supplier,” he said.

“Resolving these issues is likely to take some months and it will require patience and perseverance to rectify the problems.

“Therefore, the pressure remains on Oaky North to efficiently produce the tonnes to as low cost as possible.”