Financial Times: China ban on low-grade coal set to hit global miners

In the UK’s Financial Times today: China ban on low-grade coal set to hit global miners

• China’s National Development and Reform Commission has banned the burning of coal with ash content of more than 16 per cent or sulphur content of more than 1 per cent from 2015 in populous and prosperous eastern cities
• That would in effect bar the import of lower-quality coal from Australia, southern Africa and elsewhere, since the cities along the east coast are also the biggest consumers of imported coal.
• Daniel Morgan, analyst at UBS in Sydney, said many Australian exporters that did not meet the new specifications could respond by washing or blending coal. “This would require a massive sampling and compliance regime in China in order to be implemented”

More at the (gated) link