(Reuters) - A Glencore-led consortium deal to buy Canadian miner Teck Resources' steelmaking coal unit for $9 billion puts in focus the commodity giant's bet on the role of coking coal in the green energy transition.
Here are some details and background:
What is coking coal?
Also known as metallurgical coal or met coal, it is used mainly to create coke needed in iron- and steel-making. Coke is fed into a blast furnace with iron ore and limestone to produce steel.
What is its role in the green transition?
Renewable energy infrastructure will require iron and steel in wind turbines and solar panels, for example.
Could coking coal be replaced?
There are efforts underway to use less-polluting ingredients such as hydrogen to make iron and steel, but there are no commercially viable alternatives to coking coal at this point.
Prices
Coking coal currently sells for around $300 per metric ton while Newcastle thermal coal - used for power generation - sells for $120 a ton.
Why Teck?
Teck is the world's second-largest sea-borne exporter of steelmaking coal, according to its website.
Teck expects to produce about 23.0 to 23.5 million metric tons of coking coal in 2023, its third-quarter earnings release showed, versus Glencore (LON:GLEN)'s expected output of 10-12 million tons.
It produces coking coal at four locations in Western Canada while Glencore produces it in Australia so the deal offers Glencore geographical reach to supply customers.
The deal is also expected to pave the way for Glencore's eventual spin-off of its coal business.