HCMC – Vietnam’s January-July coal imports soared by a steep 53% year-on-year to nearly 30 million tons.
Despite the higher volume, the total coal import value dropped 12.2% year-on-year to around US$4.34 billion due to a sharp price decline, showed data from the General Department of Vietnam Customs.
The average import cost was US$147 per ton in the first seven months of the year, down from US$255 in the same period last year.
Australia, Indonesia and Russia were the top three suppliers of coal for Vietnam, accounting for 88% of the coal import volume.
Australia led the way, exporting 12.5 million tons of coal worth US$2.13 billion to Vietnam, though experiencing a decrease of over US$860 million in trade value.
Indonesia secured the second place, shipping 11.4 million tons, resulting in a trade value of over US$1.3 billion. This marked an increase of 5.22 million tons and over US$300 million in trade value year-on-year.
Russia sold 2.1 million tons for US$449 million to Vietnam, up by 600,000 tons and US$22 million compared to the same period last year.
Vietnam also imported coal from China and Laos due to growing demand for coal in its domestic electricity and industrial production sectors.
In 2021, the nation imported over 36 million tons of coal. The coal import volume is projected to rise to around 46.5 million tons in 2025.
