Melbourne, Australia-based mining company BHP Billiton is looking to hire five traders for its commoditized coal-trading desk in Amsterdam. Peter Sceats, head of the three-strong team in Amsterdam, said the company wants to more than double its coal-trading desk in what is a relatively new part of the market. The desk executes both proprietary and hedging trades for all types of coal derivatives, said Sceats, declining to elaborate.
"We're the largest mining house in the world. We mine 50 million tonnes of coal per year," Sceats added. But he declined to comment on the size of the coal-trading book or why the company is ramping up its activities now. Sceats joined BHP in July from RWE, where he had been a coal portfolio manager.
