BHP announced Thursday it had lifted force majeure from its BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance (BMA) and BHP Billiton Mitsui (BMC) operations, nearly four-and-a-half months since the floods that devastated Queensland's mines.
BHP previously estimated it had lost 3.7–4.6 million tonnes of production due to the January floods.
BHP said the loss would be at the upper end of the range.
The company said discussions were continuing with insurance assessors to progress claims.
The weather and force majeure have also resulted in delivery delays for some of the company's 2007 sales contracts.
Sales from BMA and BMC during the 2008 financial year are expected to include about 2.1Mt of coal at the higher 2008 agreed prices.
About 1.4Mt will be delivered in the first quarter of the next financial year at lower 2007 prices.
