Peabody lowers Q3 loss forecast on reduced Australian costs

Aug 5 (Reuters) - Peabody Energy said it is reducing metallurgical coal production by about 1.5 million tons per year from its high-cost Burton Mine in Queensland, Australia as production levels from the mine are not sustainable in the current market environment.

"Following negotiations with the contractor operator, production levels are expected to be reduced to approximately 1 million tons per year, as the operation targets lower-cost reserves using reduced fleets of equipment," Peabody said in a statement.

The coal miner said it is reducing 2014 targeted metallurgical coal sales from the Australian platform to 15 to 16 million tons, with new Australian sales targets of 34 million to 36 million tons.

Australia accounts for 40 percent of Peabody's total revenue.

The coal miner said it expects adjusted diluted loss of 36 cents to 49 cents per share for the third quarter. It had earlier forecast third-quarter adjusted loss of 40-53 cents per share.

(Reporting by Supriya Kurane in Bangalore; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)