Atlantic Coal swings to profit in first half

Atlantic Coal swung to a profit in the first half on the back of an increase in production and tighter cost control.The coal miner reported a net profit of $2.4m, compared to a loss of $1.3m last year.Clean coal production rose 37.4% to 81,965 tonnes, up from the prior year's 59,642 tonnes.The company achieved cost savings at operations at the Stockton mine which mitigated against the effects of falling prices. An independent audit confirmed a 29% increase in clean coal reserves at Stockton to 1.77 m tonnes.During the period the group completed its lease of the 410-acre Pott and Bannon mine in Pennsylvania. The site is expected to have extensive reserves and is located about 25 miles from Stockton."This has been an exciting period with the Pott and Bannon site being brought into our Pennsylvania anthracite portfolio and having achieved substantially increased production compared with the first half in 2012," said Managing Director Steve Best."This has been against a background of falling prices and demand compared with last year but our flexible approach to operations at the Stockton Mine and continuing rigorous review of operations has enabled us to produce a healthy net profit."Shares surged 88% to 0.24p at 11:22 on Thursday.RD