Category I · Legacy energy commodities
Anthracite.
High-carbon, low-volatile coal used in metallurgical applications. Commands a premium to thermal coal.
Benchmark
FOB premium to thermal coal
Unit
US$ / tonne
Current price · 3-mo forward avg
US$ 220 / tonne
Apr — Jul 2026 (forward 3-mo avg)
High-carbon, low-volatile coal used in metallurgical applications. Commands a premium to thermal coal.
Price · FOB premium to thermal coal
2016 — 2035
Solid line: historical annual averages. Dashed line: forward projections (consensus).
Top 5 producing countries
- 01
China
~75%
Dominant Shanxi-province producer
- 02
Vietnam
5%
Quang Ninh basin
- 03
Russia
4%
Eastern Donbass and Kuznetsk
- 04
South Africa
4%
Permian-age deposits, KwaZulu-Natal
- 05
Ukraine
3%
Pre-conflict Donbass production
Leading companies
- 01
Shanxi Coking Coal Group
Largest single anthracite producer
- 02
Vinacomin (Vietnam)
State-owned, Quang Ninh basin
- 03
Petmin
South African anthracite producer
- 04
Anglo American Coal SA
Historical SA anthracite operations
- 05
Atrum Coal
Canadian anthracite developer
Of note
- §
Used as a reductant in ferrochrome, ferromanganese, ferrosilicon, and silicon metal production — i.e. core to the ferroalloy industry that downstream consumes SA's chrome and manganese.
- §
Anthracite trades at 1.5–2.5× the price of thermal coal due to its metallurgical specification.
- §
SA's Permian-age deposits (~KZN) are among the highest-rank anthracites globally.
Sources
S&P Global Commodity Insights · USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2024. Curated quarterly. Forward projections are consensus indications and are not a guarantee of future prices.