The amount is up on the 139Mt produced in the same period in 2002, mostly due to an additional 8Mt produced by the state’s open cut mines. Underground output is however lagging on the 2002 figures with 23.5Mt produced from January 2003 to November 2003, as opposed to 26.8Mt in the same period a year earlier.

For the month of November underground mines in Queensland produced 2.3Mt, down on the 2.8Mt a year ago. The total for all the state’s mines for November was 13.8Mt, up on the 13.2Mt of a year previously.

At 123Mt, the export total for the 11 months ended November 2003 is well up on the 113Mt exported in the same period in 2002. Coking coal exports for the 11 months totalled 82.8Mt compared with 76.5Mt a year ago. Thermal coal exports were up to 40.4Mt, from 37.4Mt in 2002.

Japan remains the largest purchaser of Queensland coal taking 4Mt of the total amount exported, up on last November’s 3.8Mt. In the 11 months to November 2003 Japan had bought 46.3Mt of Queensland coal, an increase on the 44.7Mt bought in the same period in 2002.