The Trans-Pacific Strategic Economic Partnership agreement, which includes Chile, Brunei, Singapore and New Zealand, means Chile has agreed to immediately lift tariffs on New Zealand coal imports.
“Chile is a natural market for Solid Energy; we have a significant advantage compared to our competitors in the region – Indonesia and Australia – due to the shorter shipping distances,” Solid Energy export marketing manager Malcolm Roberts said.
“Lifting the tariffs should help us to improve our very low margins in this growing export market and make New Zealand thermal coal more competitive, in what is an extremely competitive commodity market.”
Solid Energy’s thermal coal exports to Chile generated $NZ9.5 million in foreign exchange earnings in the year ending June 2004, representing a quarter of the value of all New Zealand exports to Chile ($NZ36.5 million).
At up to 200,000 tonnes per annum, coal exports to Chile represent around 6% of Solid Energy’s annual international sales. Solid Energy has been trading with Gener, its major customer in Chile, since 1996.
Chile, with a population of almost 16 million, currently has an energy supply shortage, due to shortages of Argentine natural gas. Coal is being used to fill the gap and provide energy security.
