Metallurgical Coke Market - Forecasts from 2024 to 2029

The metallurgical coke market is expected to register a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 2.95% during the projected period (2024-2029).

Metallurgical Coke, commonly known as ‘met coke’, has application in a wide range of industrial applications. Met coke exhibits key properties that make it suitable for industrial purposes. Its mechanical strength makes it resistant to crushing and degradation during handling and transportation. 

Additionally, it has low reactivity, for slow consumption in various applications. Its high carbon content gives it thermal conductivity and stability under extreme temperatures, making it a good material for different industrial processes.  

Metallurgical coke is a necessary material for the steel industry, used in the blast furnace process to produce iron and steel. It also finds application in manufacturing non-ferrous metals like aluminum, titanium, and silicon. Additionally, Metallurgical Coke finds application in the production of high-quality castings. The growing industrial development in various regions worldwide demands metals and non-metals for the production of machinery and equipment from simple households to large industrial settings.

The growing demand for semiconductors in various wireless communications equipment, computer equipment, and electromedical devices has further increased the extraction and manufacturing of rare earth minerals and silicon.

Metallurgical coke can be of different grades in different sizes and used as a carbon additive and other purposes. The product can have different percentages of fixed carbon, ash content, moisture, sulfur, volatile matter, and size by different companies and sources. Furthermore, trading in metallurgical coke can benefit India, a deficit product in the country, but the demand is sustained and continuous. The industry has benefitted from ADD (an anti-dumping duty) on imports from China. Coking coal as imported raw material has 2.50% of BCD (basic customs duty), which has been constant for the past 3 decades.

Metallurgical Coke Market Drivers:

Growing other industry's applications:

The industrial consumers of metallurgical coke include integrated steel plants, industry/foundries producing ferroalloys, pig iron, engineering goods, chemicals, soda ash, zinc units, etc. Different varieties of metallurgical coke are used in the application of blast furnaces, waste incineration plants, non-ferrous metal refineries, recarburizer, lime calcination, ferroalloy manufacturing, carbon additive, packing coke, non-ferrous, and metal refineries.

With the growth of industrialization in different parts of the world including Africa, the demand for metallurgical coke would expand in the region with different applications. The estimates by the African Development Bank show the continent’s infrastructure needs at $130-170 billion per year for investment and development. Metallurgical coke is produced by ArcelorMittal in South Africa, with five batteries in Vanderbijlpark and three in Newcastle. It is a major producer and supplier of metallurgical coke in Africa.     

The growing application of metallurgical coke in the steel and chemical industry

Metallurgical Coke has properties suitable for various industrial applications. It finds application in blast furnaces for producing pig iron and in cupolas for producing grey iron castings. The steel as a material finds its application in various places for its durability and malleability. The steel is used in various sectors like construction, bridges, ships, automobiles, trains, farming equipment, storage silos, etc. Globally, 1,892,036 thousand tonnes of crude steel was produced, which the metallurgical coke finds usage, according to the World Steel Association.

Metallurgical coke is an important reducing agent that finds application in various chemical reactions. It is used to extract metals such as zinc and iron from their ores because it is a property of a good reducing agent. As a versatile reducing agent, chemicals like calcium carbide and calcium cyanamide are synthesized using metallurgical coke. It can donate electrons during chemical transformations essential for organic compounds.

The demand for fertilizer, pesticides, and other related chemicals is increasing as calcium cyanamide has versatile applications. The manufacturing of calcium cyanamide requires metallurgical coke as a reducing agent.

Metallurgical Coke Market Restraints:

• Environmental concerns are the major factor in the manufacturing process of greenhouse gas emissions. Various industries are exploring alternative materials and technologies to mitigate the impact.
• The regulatory impact on market growth with reliability and quality standards guidelines.

Metallurgical Coke Market Geographical Outlook

The Asia-Pacific region to dominate the metallurgical coke market during the forecast period.

The major economies like China, Japan, India, and South Korea dominate the Asia-Pacific region. Some of the fastest-growing emerging economies are from this region, such as ASEAN countries. India and China are the major developing industries in this region, where the use of metallurgical coke will be enlarged in coming years. The manufacturing exports in India had US$ 447.46 billion, with 6.03% growth during FY23 surpassing the previous year's (FY22) record exports of US$ 422 billion, showing the tremendous demand for raw materials like metallurgical coke in the industries.

Similarly, China grew from January to February, and major industrial enterprises nationwide realized total profits of 914.1 billion yuan, up 10.2 percent yearly. These industrial growth numbers also created demand for many input materials, including metallurgical coke, at various industrial ends.

Metallurgical Coke Market Players and Products:

• IGR metallurgical coke- Metallurgical coke by IGR is manufactured through the destructive distillation of a selected high-grade metallurgical coal blend. It occurs at 1,100 degrees Celsius. Metallurgical breeze coke has a size range of 0 - 10 mm. Moisture contains in between 14% - 18% max. Have fixed carbon (dry basis) at 76% min. Ash content (dry basis) at 16% - 20% maximum.
• IGR Metallurgical Nut Coke- Metallurgical nut coke ranges from 10 to 50 mm. Having moisture content at the range of 6% to 10% max. Fixed carbon (dry basis) to be at 86% minimum. Sulfur (dry basis) content ranges from 0.70% to 0.80% maximum. Phosphorous (dry basis) content ranges from 0.040% to 0.050% maximum. Carrying volatile matter (dry basis) at the range of 1.5% to 2.0% maximum.
• Simplex metallurgical coke- Simplex Coke is a leading low ash metallurgical coke manufacturer with manufacturing plants located in Kutch & Porbandar, Gujarat. The product has a moisture content of 5.00, ash (adb) at 12.50%, sulphur at 0.65%, and volatile matter at 1.25%.
• Richa Refractories metallurgical coke- Metallurgical coke by Richa Refractories is made by destructive distillation of a blend of selected bituminous coals in special high-temperature ovens without oxygen. Metallurgical foundry coke has a size range of 70-100 and 100mm. With specifications carrying moisture with a maximum content of 5%. Ash is to be at 12% maximum. Sulfur and phosphorus at 0.50% and 0.045 % maximum. The other types of Coke offered by the company are blast furnace, nut Coke, pearl coke, and breeze coke.

Metallurgical Coke Market Recent Developments

• In August 2023, Chinese-backed firms gradually started operations at the Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park (IMIP). Risun Wei Shan New Energy started its second coke oven in July, with production expected at the end of October.
• In April 2023, SunCoke Energy, Inc. and Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. agreed to a 12-year extension of their existing contract. Under this extension, SunCoke would provide 1.22 million tons of metallurgical coke annually to Cleveland-Cliffs from its Indiana Harbor coke-making facility in East Chicago, Indiana. The key points of the extension agreement are similar to the existing agreement.

The metallurgical coke market is segmented and analyzed as follows:

By Type

• Hard coking coals (HCC)
• Semi-soft coking coal (SSCC)
• Pulverized coal injection (PCI) coal
• Others

By Application

• Glass manufacturing
• Foundry And Casting Industry
• Chemical Industry
• Others

By Geography

• North America
• USA
• Canada
• Mexico
• South America
• Brazil
• Argentina
• Others
• Europe
• United Kingdom
• Germany
• France
• Italy
• Spain
• Rest of Europe
• Middle East and Africa
• Saudi Arabia
• Saudi Arabia
• United Arab Emirates
• Rest of Middle East and Africa
• Asia-Pacific
• China
• India
• Japan
• South Korea
• Taiwan
• Thailand
• Indonesia
• Rest of Asia-Pacific