Teck cuts forecast for coal output

Article Excerpt

TECK RESOURCES LTD. $35 (Toronto symbol TECK.B; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Shares o/s: 573.5 million; Market cap: $20.1 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 3.2; Divd. yield: 0.6%; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; www.teck.com) is a major producer of metallurgical coal, a key ingredient in steelmaking, and zinc and copper. In January 2018, an explosion at its Elkview coal mine in B.C. damaged the facility where natural  gas and specialized equipment is used to dry coal. Teck has now completed those repairs at a cost  of $10 million. The railway has also suffered delays and problems at its main port in Vancouver, which have slowed  its coal shipments to customers in Asia. As a result of the setbacks, Teck now expects to sell 6 million tonnes of coal in the first quarter  of 2018. That’s down from its earlier forecast of 6.3 million to 6.5 million tonnes. Still, it’s  higher than the 5.9 million tonnes that the company sold in the first quarter of 2017. Teck is still…