Coronado Coal, which owns the Curragh mine in central Queensland, said it had avoided the worst of the apparent ban imposed by China on Australian coal because it did not have term volume contracts with China’s steel mills and was a strategic “base load” supplier of coke blends.

Chief executive Gerry Spindler warned that if there is a ban it would have a negative impact on pricing, but longer term it “may be offset by the positive effect of global steel producers restarting”.

The company said the Curragh mine broke production records in the September quarter. Saleable production was 3.6 million tonnes, an increase of 24 per cent on the previous quarter.

Several factors were behind the increase including an improved performance by its mining contractor.