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A recent note from Moody’s investor service stated that the firm sees a negative outlook for the North American coal sector in the coming year. The firm expects the coal industry’s combined EBITDA to fall by 10 percent over the next year. As quoted in the press release: The downward shift has been driven by …
A recent note from Moody’s investor service stated that the firm sees a negative outlook for the North American coal sector in the coming year. The firm expects the coal industry’s combined EBITDA to fall by 10 percent over the next year.
As quoted in the press release:
The downward shift has been driven by competition from low-priced natural gas, regulatory-driven coal plant retirements, and — in the seaborne markets — by slowing steel production rates and global steel overcapacity.
“The North American coal industry has undergone a severe long-term structural shift,” says Moody’s Vice President Anna Zubets-Anderson. “Our view is that material recovery for US thermal or seaborne metallurgical coal is unlikely over the next several years.”
On January 21, 2016, Moody’s placed 55 companies in the base metal, precious metal, iron ore and coal industries rated between A1 and B3 under review for downgrade based on the belief that a severe decline in the mining industry represents a fundamental shift in the operating environment, rather than a cyclical downturn.