Whitehaven Coal is aiming to return to profit this year despite falling coal prices.
The company expects a cost cutting program and higher volumes from its expanded mining capacity to drive the turnaround from last year's $330 million loss, managing director Paul Flynn told Whitehaven's annual general meeting.
The east coast coal miner's shipments increased 47 per cent in the three months to September, due mainly to the commissioning of its controversial Maules Creek project in northern NSW.
"There is extra volume coming out this year out of Maules Creek, in particular," Mr Flynn said.
"That would be coal at cheaper than the average cost of our production in previous years."
The company is also focusing on lowering its cost base by between $1 to $2 per tonne at its other sites, in an effort to ride out weak prices, he said.
That will involve restructuring operations, changing rosters and shift patterns, and tendering contracts. A lower Australian dollar also helps, Mr Flynn said.
The miner has forecast a further increase in shipments in the three months to December, and Maules Creek production will be bumped up to an annual rate of 8.5 million tonnes by December.
It has also raised production at Narrabri, its lowest cost mine.
Earlier this month, the company said prices for both its thermal and metallurgical coal had continued to fall in the first quarter of the financial year, and will remain weak for some time.
Spot thermal coal prices currently hover around $52 a tonne, their lowest level since 2007.
Whitehaven is trying to offset the decline by exporting more volumes to Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and India, where it receives a premium for its higher-quality coal, Mr Flynn said.
Earlier, the company faced protests from activist groups outside its shareholder meeting in Sydney.
A group of around 20 demonstrators from protest group Frontline Action On Coal accused the company of neglecting its social and environmental responsibilities, and of multiple breaches of regulations at its Maules Creek project.
Whitehaven shares dropped 1.5 cents to $1.02.
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