By Gavin Maguire

LITTLETON, Colorado, Feb 19 (Reuters) - The world's top exporter of thermal coal is on track to smash last year's record sales after projected shipments for the first two months of 2024 jumped nearly 25% from the same period in 2023.

Indonesian exports of thermal and thermal bituminous coal - used in power generation - are on track to top 90 million metric tons for January and February, up 24% from the same two months in 2023, ship tracking data from Kpler shows.

For 2023 as a whole, Indonesian exports scaled a new high of 504.6 million tons, so if the blistering pace of exports seen so far this year is sustained, 2024 will mark a new high for Indonesian exports of the high-polluting power fuel.

TOP DESTINATIONS & KNOWN UNKNOWNS

China, India, South Korea and the Philippines were the top markets for Indonesia coal so far this year, iconwin accounting for 33%, 15%, 5.8% and 5.