Whitehaven Coal : Chairman's Address and Managing Director's Presentation

25 October 2017

The Manager, Listings Australian Securities Exchange

Company Announcements Office

Via ASX Online

Dear Sir,

Annual General Meeting - Chairman's Address and Managing Director's Presentation

We attach copies of the Chairman's Address and Managing Director's Presentation which will be delivered at the Company's Annual General Meeting being held at 11:00am today.

Yours faithfully

Timothy Burt

General Counsel & Company Secretary

Whitehaven Coal Limited ABN 68 124 425 396

Level 28, 259 George Street, Sydney NSW 2000 | P 02 8222 1100 | F 02 8222 1101 PO Box R1113, Royal Exchange NSW 1225

WHITEHAVENCOAL.COM.AU

25 October 2017

It gives me great pleasure to provide my Chairman's Report on Whitehaven Coal's performance for the 2017 financial year. This year marks ten years since your Company listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. I am pleased to report, a decade on, that Whitehaven Coal has delivered a record-breaking year. This year the Company:

• Produced a record amount of coal at more than 23 million tonnes on a managed basis;

• Reported a record profit of $405m for the year;

• Maintained a disciplined and best quartile cost structure;

• Improved high safety standards; and

• Strengthened the balance sheet by accelerating repayment of debt.

In further detail, for the year to 30 June 2017, net profit after tax for the year was $405.4m, up from $20.5m. Full year ROM production grew 13% to 23.1 million tonnes, total saleable production grew 6% to 20.7 million tonnes, sales revenue grew 52%, FOB cash costs were $58 per tonne and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation was $714.2m, up 219%. Importantly, we continued to deliver on our commitment to reduce our net debt which at 30 June 2017 was $311m. I can now report that since the end of the financial year our net debt has fallen to $65m.

These positive results have flowed through to Whitehaven's share price. Between 1 July 2016 and 30 June 2017 Whitehaven's share price rose 168%. Indeed, in FY2017 the Company was the best performing stock in the ASX200 index and today its market capitalisation is in excess of $3.7 billion.

The Board of Directors do of course want to thank long-standing shareholders, and newer entrants to the register, for your support.

To illustrate the confidence that the Board of Directors has in the Company, a 20 cent per share distribution to shareholders has been proposed, comprising a 14 cent capital return and a 6 cent unfranked dividend. The capital return is subject to a shareholder vote at today's meeting.

With the company generating healthy cash flows, debt levels having reduced by more than $800 million from their peak and the company's strong balance sheet, shareholders can expect to receive more returns in the future.

At this point I would like to thank Paul Flynn and his outstanding executive team for again showing great leadership across our business, industry and local community over the past 12 months. I would also pay tribute to Whitehaven Coal's strong and dedicated workforce for helping deliver another outstanding year.

A decade of growth

Ladies and Gentleman, in the decade since listing in 2007, your company has grown significantly and now produces ten times the amount of coal than it did in the year of listing.

At the 2007 AGM, the then Chairman (and now Deputy Chairman) John Conde reported a profit for the financial year of $24.1 million. The ten years since has been a decade of growth for Whitehaven operationally and financially and we believe the outlook is very positive for your Company's existing operations and projects.

Our next major development is the Vickery Project, an already approved coal mine located in the Gunnedah basin on land that has previously been mined. Whitehaven is seeking approval for an extension that will see it increase production from 4.5Mtpa to up to 10.0Mtpa.

Whitehaven is in the final stages of preparing to submit its Environmental Impact Statement for the Project - one of the most significant investments currently under way in North West NSW.

The Project, if approved, will cement our standing as the single largest private sector employer in the area. It will generate

WHITEHAVENCOAL.COM.AU For further information

please contact

Ian McAleese, GM Investor Relations Michael Van Maanen - Media

P 02 8222 1155

P 0412 500 351

around 500 jobs during the construction phase and roughly 450 jobs during operations, the majority of which will come from the local communities of Gunnedah, Narrabri, Boggabri and surrounding areas.

The Project will deliver substantial economic benefits to the local area and NSW more broadly, including more than $1 billion in royalties to the NSW Government over the life of the project.

Whitehaven has a highly skilled management team and workforce with a demonstrated capacity of delivering large, new projects and for improving efficiency in operating mines. These skills can be used in developing new projects and with existing mines. Whitehaven wants to continue growing and building on the achievements of the past decade.

We will continue to seek acquisition opportunities and new projects where we consider that the Whitehaven team can add shareholder value. The company will seek opportunities in Australia that diversifies our product range and infrastructure accordingly.

Local mining, community focused

Whitehaven has a proud history in the Gunnedah Basin where our mines, local investments, workforce and community contributions are centred and our commitment to the region remains strong.

As I am fond of saying, the Gunnedah Basin is home to some of the highest quality coal in the world, servicing export markets in Asia where it helps countries such as Japan, Taiwan and Korea meet their carbon emissions reduction targets.

As an Australian miner with a local focus, we want our projects to be environmentally and economically sustainable, and for the local community to benefit from our presence over the long-term. We are the largest non-government employer in the northwest NSW region, with a workforce of more than 1,500 across eight geographically dispersed sites.

Since 2012, Whitehaven Coal has invested around $1bn into the economy in northwest NSW, with wages, payments to councils, support for businesses and sponsorships and donations to community groups. We have a strong track record of creating skilled jobs and bringing new investment and prosperity to the region.

But as we look forward to the next decade, we want to do more. Our Vickery Project means a bigger Whitehaven Coal and more investment in local communities. The Vickery Project will support the local community by delivering more jobs, more investment and greater economic security. We look forward to updating shareholders as the Project progresses.

Innovation

I would like to close my report with a few words about innovation. Whitehaven Coal is an innovative company in an innovative industry.

At our world-class Maules Creek mine, the use of ultra-class equipment - trucks and excavators - has increased productivity and reduced costs. Up the road at our underground Narrabri operation, the longwall with its newly installed 400 metre wide face is fully automated and was one of the first in Australia to be equipped with a computerised operating system which enables horizon control. It is pleasing that Narrabri is now one of the most productive underground mines in Australia and consistently outperforms its original design capacity.

At our open cut operations, the commissioning of a new explosives provider has lowered the amount of explosives used and improved fragmentation of the blasted material. The use of the explosives has also contributed to improved productivity of the mining fleet and lowered costs.

And with our high quality coal helping countries across the region lower their carbon emissions, Whitehaven Coal and Australian coal producers more generally are well-placed to meet the increased global demand for cleaner coal. It would be a positive outcome for Australia if some of the high efficiency, low emission coal generating capacity were installed in Australia in the near future as a way of ensuring affordable and reliable electricity for the community.

Conclusion

In conclusion, reflecting on the past year, and the decade since Whitehaven's listing on the ASX, it is fitting to thank and pay tribute to my fellow Directors, our Joint Venture Partners, shareholders, banking syndicate, management (both past and present), workforce and of course shareholders for their support over recent years.

As we look forward to another decade of success, your company would not be in the strong position that we are in today without your support.

Lastly, thank you for your attendance today. I look forward to reporting on further progress over the next 12 months.

The Hon. Mark Vaile AO Chairman

WHITEHAVENCOAL.COM.AU

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2017

THE MINT, 10 MACQUARIE STREET, SYDNEY NSW 2000

25 OCTOBER 2017