Polish JSW exceeded its coal production plan by 17% in April

Poland’s Jastrzębska Spółka Węglowa (JSW), the largest coking coal producer in the EU, exceeded its coal production target by 17% in April 2025 as part of its Strategic Transformation Plan (PST), which has been in place since December 2024. The pilot program aimed at increasing efficiency covered five longwalls at Pniówek, Budryk, Knurów, Borynia and Zofiówka mines, the press release said.

Thanks to new technical solutions and a changed incentive system for workers, 325 thousand tons of coal were produced in these areas, compared to the planned 278 thousand tons. The pilot is continuing in May and will be scaled up to about 75% of longwalls where geological conditions allow.

“The positive results confirm that we can accelerate the pace without compromising safety. Starting in July, the company will implement additional changes to functions that directly affect production,” said JSW CEO Richard Janta.

In addition to increasing productivity, JSW is actively implementing cost reduction programs. In the procurement sector, more than PLN 307 million has already been saved, which is 85% of the annual plan for 2025. And total investment cuts amounted to more than PLN 1.2 billion.

As part of PST, changes are also taking place in the holding’s subsidiaries – all efforts are aimed at improving the efficiency of the entire JSW Group.

As a reminder, on May 20, 2025, Jastrzębska Spółka Węglowa announced force majeure due to a fire at the Budryk mine. The incident occurred on May 7, 2025, and forced the company to temporarily block the hazardous mining area due to endogenous ignition. According to preliminary estimates, JSW will lose about 345 thousand tons of coal in 2025.

In 2024, JSW reduced its coal production by 9.3% (12.3 million tons) and coke production by 8.6% compared to 2023 due to difficult geology and operational challenges. The company recorded a net loss of PLN 7.3 billion last year.