The Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC) share price is well and truly in the green today despite no news having been released by the coal producer.
It's joined in the green by many of its S&P/ASX 200 Energy Index (ASX: XEJ) peers as the sector leads the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO). Meanwhile, the company has slammed a mooted tax on thermal coal and gas.
Right now, the Whitehaven Coal share price is $8.765, 6.5% higher than its previous close.
At the same time, the ASX 200 has dropped 0.51% and the energy sector is up 1.49%.
Let's take a closer look at what might be going on with the ASX 200 coal favourite today.
Whitehaven share price lifts 7% on Wednesday
The Whitehaven share price is powering up on Wednesday. Its joined in the green by fellow coal producers New Hope Corporation Limited (ASX: NHC) and Coronado Global Resources Inc (ASX: CRN). They've gained 5% and 3.7% respectively at the time of writing.
It comes after coal futures lifted 5.9% to US$198.65 a tonne overnight, according to CommSec.
Meanwhile, Whitehaven has hit headlines after urging the federal government to "rule out" a contemplated tax on thermal coal exports intended to lower energy prices. The company today said:
The compounding nature of the measures the Government is actively considering, or has refused to rule out in the case of a new mining tax, is bad news for jobs and investor confidence and is hard to reconcile with Labor's stated support for Australian mining – including coal – in its pre-election policy platform.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers leant away from tax talk yesterday, telling ABC Radio National:
Our first preference is to try and find a regulatory solution here, rather than a tax solution.
There's an important reason to leave all the options on the table and that is; there's a lot of complex interactions here in these markets … [we need] a temporary, meaningful, sensible, responsible intervention in this market which recognises that these high prices brought about by a war in Europe have the potential to strangle our local industries and make life harder for Australians.
But Whitehaven is sceptical a tax would do anything to address energy prices. It said:
Further taxing our coal exports won't make electricity cheaper for Australian consumers, it will just cost jobs and undermine our reputation as a reliable trading partner.
The rising cost of living is something the Government must address but a new tax will never be a cure for high domestic energy prices.
