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Coal freight from Quetta: what it costs to get coal to your site
On a long haul, freight can be a quarter of what you pay for a tonne of coal. Diesel has moved a lot this year, and so have truck rates. Here is how the cost is built.
How freight is charged
Coal is moved by the truckload, not by the tonne. The transporter charges for the trip, so the cost per tonne depends on how much the truck carries. A 22-wheeler carrying 40 to 50 tonnes costs less per tonne than a 10-wheeler carrying 25 to 30.
The main things that set the rate are distance, the diesel price, tolls, the return trip (whether the truck can find a load back) and the season.
What this year's diesel changes did
Diesel was above Rs 420 a litre in mid September after several increases in a row, and goods transporters raised their rates by around 15% in July and by up to 40% in total by September. Diesel came back to around Rs 397 a litre from 16 October.
Transporters are slower to cut rates than to raise them, so freight quotes this month may still reflect September's prices. It is worth asking for a fresh quote rather than accepting last month's.
Our delivered prices
On our current sheet, Duki lump costs about Rs 38,000 a tonne ex-Quetta and about Rs 47,000 delivered to the main Punjab cities. The difference, around 9,000 rupees a tonne, is the freight to Lahore, Faisalabad, Multan, Sialkot and Gujranwala.
Karachi is quoted per truck because the route and unloading vary more. The rest of Sindh and KP are quoted on request.
Ex-Quetta or delivered?
Buying ex-Quetta and sending your own truck makes sense if you have a regular transporter with a good rate, or a truck that would otherwise come back empty from Quetta.
Delivered is simpler for most buyers. One price covers everything, the transporter is our responsibility, and you pay on the weight at your gate.
Keeping freight down
Order full trucks. Half loads pay nearly the full trip.
Order ahead in the busy season. Urgent trucks cost more, and in October to February kilns, cement plants and boilers are all buying at once.
Make unloading quick. Trucks that wait hours at a site cost the transporter money, and that ends up in the next quote.
Prices are indicative, per tonne, excluding sales tax, and change week to week. See today's sheet or ask us for a confirmed price.
