Czech coal miner OKD posted a profit last year, producing more than one million tonnes of coal

The mining company OKD made a profit last year, which will be around 1.5 billion korunas before accounting operations related to the creation of provisions. The company mined more than one million tonnes of coal at two sites of the ČSM Mine in the Karviná region. OKD spokesperson Barbora Černá Dvořáková told the Czech News Agency today. The company has not yet disclosed its net profit for last year. In 2022, it mined 1.3 million tonnes of coal and reported a net profit of 5.1 billion korunas, its highest since 2011. This year, it plans to extract 1.2 million tonnes of coal. It also aims to make a profit this year.

„Although in 2023 we faced a production shortfall due to a mining tremor in one of the longwall faces (mining areas) and had to close two others for safety reasons, we managed to make up most of the shortfall against our target of 1.1 million tonnes by mining at other longwall faces. Thanks to the high volume of coal sold, movements in global prices, particularly for coking coal, and lower mining operating costs, we managed to make a profit,“ said OKD CEO and Chairman of the Board Roman Sikora.

Last year, OKD miners extracted coal successively at ten longwall faces. The company is currently mining at two faces, with two more due to come on stream during January and February. „Four faces are being prepared for the second half of the year, and development teams are already driving roadways in preparation for the faces planned for 2025,“ Černá said.

The company’s plan for this year also forecasts a positive financial result. OKD Commercial Director and Board member Petr Hanzlík said that meeting the planned production volume and keeping global coal prices at their current level would be crucial to achieving the target. „We have already sold a significant share of this year’s thermal coal production. Demand for coking coal will be affected by market conditions for coke producers and steelmakers in Central and Eastern Europe,“ Hanzlík said.

OKD is the only producer of hard coal in Czechia. In recent years, however, the company has ceased mining at most of its mines because operations there had been unprofitable for a long time. Mining now continues only at the ČSM Mine, where it is expected to run until the end of 2025. OKD employs approximately 3,300 people, and the average monthly wage there was 49.354 korunas last year. The company is owned by the state through Prisko.