Beginning of 2016 brought another deep decline in coal and coke prices. The average price of coking coal sales to external customers decreased by 8.1 %, and the average selling price of coke by further 6.4 % compared to the price of Q4 2015. Also sales to external customers were lower ,respectively coal (16.3 %) and coke (12.5 %), so the JSW group revenues in the first quarter of this year were lower by 19.3 % than in the last quarter of 2015. Such a significant drop in revenues has been partially counterbalanced by effects of the austerity measures and agreements reducing labor costs level.

- In the first quarter, we explicitly felt the positive effects of the implemented restructuring program and the financial impact of the agreements concluded with the social side. We have no influence on global commodity prices, and so the income side, therefore we focus on expenditure restraint and here indeed, we have done a lot. Costs fell by a total of 18 %, while almost all costs types have been reduced - emphasizes Tomasz Gawlik, CEO of JSW.

In the first quarter of 2016 unit mining cash cost decreased by 12.1 % compared to the last quarter of 2015 to a record low of PLN 249.19 per ton (previous year amounted to PLN 346.94). Also the coke conversion cost decreased by 10.9 %, and fell from PLN 155.93 in Q4 2015 to PLN 138.91 in Q1 2016.

In Q1 this year JSW mines produced 4.3 million tons of coal, including 2.8 million tons of coking coal and 1.5 million tons of coal for energy purposes. At that time, coking plants in the group produced over 1 million tons of coke. These figures do not differ significantly from the results achieved in the previous quarter.