U.S. Warns Mines on Safety, Using Rule for First Time
Wall Street Journal – Kris Maher
April 12, 2011
Federal mine safety officials placed two coal mines in Kentucky and West Virginia on notice that they could be shut down for any future safety violations, using for the first time an enforcement tool that has been on the books for more than 30 years.
The Mine Safety and Health Administration said Bledsoe Coal Corp.'s Abner Branch Rider Mine in Leslie County, Ky., and New West Virginia Mining Co.'s Apache Mine in McDowell County, W.Va., failed to correct safety problems after being targeted for stricter oversight late last year. Representatives of New West Virginia Mining and James River Coal Co., of Richmond, Va., which owns the Bledsoe operation, couldn't immediately be reached to comment.
"We're trying to send a message to the mining industry that you do not want to go down this path," said Joseph A. Main, head of the Mine Safety and Health Administration. "We're hopeful that we'll make mines safer."
Instead of lowering the rate of violations over the past few months, Mr. Main said the two mines actually had a higher rate of violations for problems like accumulations of explosive coal dust. "The great disappointment is that they didn't take measures to fix their problems to avoid this enforcement action," said Mr. Main. He said management at the Apache mine has temporarily closed the mine but could potentially reopen it.
The federal safety agency will shut production at the mines and order miners to leave every time an inspector cites the mine for a serious safety violation. The mine would remain closed until the operator corrects the problem.
The mines were technically placed on "pattern of violation" status, meaning they had a history of persistent safety violations that the companies didn't fix over the past several months. Eight other mines were able to avoid the designation by correcting problems, the agency said.
MSHA hasn't used the enforcement option since the Mine Act was enacted in 1977.
The move is the latest by MSHA to beef up mine oversight following the April 5, 2010, explosion at Massey Energy Co.'s Upper Big Branch mine in West Virginia in which 29 miners were killed.
The agency was criticized by Democratic lawmakers and others for not using its full enforcement authority to shut Massey's mine after it had a spike in safety violations in 2009.
Tomblin Visits Coal Mine
The Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register – Joselyn King
April 13, 2011
WHEELING - There are presently 154 miners employed at Alliance Coal's Tunnel Ridge Mine in Ohio County. One year from now there should be 350, company officials project.
The mine has been in operation for just over a year, and the officials expect Tunnel Ridge to be operating at full capacity by the start of the second quarter of 2012.
Acting Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin got a drive-by tour Tuesday of the Tunnel Ridge facilities, built upon the former Valley Camp Mine operations in Triadelphia.
Alliance Coal's top officials showed Tomblin the new belt lines they've constructed for the mine, a renovated preparation plant, a new shower house for the miners and a health care center for workers that's been built on the property. They then took Tomblin down to the company's site along the Ohio River to see the refurbished coal silo and barge loading facilities they have there.
It all represents an investment of more than $300 million by Alliance Coal, according to Joseph W. Craft III, chief executive officer and director for Alliance Resource Partners, the parent company of Alliance Coal. He noted the investment is the largest ever made by Alliance Coal.
"We wouldn't make it if we didn't believe in coal," Craft said. "There have been a lot of questions about the coal industry and the future of coal, and Washington, D.C., policy leaders that haven't been too kind to coal."
Craft added that President Barack Obama has said he "wants to win the future" by incorporating more alternative energy sources into America's energy mix.
"He needs to know that America won the past on the back of coal," Craft said of Obama. "And West Virginia coal was right there from the beginning - not only providing the steel for the industrial revolution, but helping us to win the wars and provide more electricity than any other source in America.
"Coal has had a historic part in the path of our country and was the economic backbone of the country," he continued. "If we're going to win the future, we're going to win it with coal. We believe it so much, we're investing a lot of money in it."
Tom Wynne, chief operating officer and senior vice president for Alliance Coal, noted the company has a safety record that indicates 30 percent fewer accidents at its mine than is the industry standard. He also provided some other facts and figures pertaining to the Tunnel Ridge operation:
- It is estimated the Tunnel Ridge mine has the capacity to produce 5 million to 6 million tons of coal each year, according to Wynne. And he said 97 million tons of high-sulfur, Pittsburgh No. 8 coal is available for mining over 65,000 acres of property stretching into Washington County, Pa.
- Every Alliance Coal operation also has a health care clinic on-site, where miners and their families are encouraged to have regular checkups and screenings, Wynne said. It is staffed by a nurse practitioner, and a doctor based at Alliance Coal's main office in Lexington, Ky., is able to see the patients through video conference technology.
"It has been a very good program for us," Wynne said. "We're proud of it. It's ahead of its time."
Ohio County Commission President David Sims noted the Alliance Coal jobs "were good jobs with benefits," and that the county should benefit from a large increase in severance tax collections attributed to the mine.
Last year, Ohio County collected about $25,000 in severance taxes, according to Greg Stewart, county administrator. He said it's expected the annual collections could "reach the six figure mark" once the Tunnel Ridge mine reaches full production next year.
Commissioners will invest this money into infrastructure improvements, Sims added.
There are "good things happening in Wheeling," Tomblin said.
"I want to thank you for your faith in West Virginia," he told Alliance Coal officials. "One of the things I want to do in West Virginia is create jobs, and this is an example.
U.S. Coal Companies Poised to Benefit Due to Nuclear Energy Concerns
FoxNews.com - Molly Line
March 29, 2011
View Video at: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/03/29/coal-companies-poised-benefit-nuclear-energy-concerns/
Japan's nuclear crisis half a world away could have a significant impact on America's coal-mining industry here at home, ultimately increasing exports and profits.
The dangerous situation at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant has captured the attention of governments around the world, raising concerns about the safety of nuclear power and forcing a reexamination of the international energy supply chain.
While Japan struggles to repair and rebuild, analysts predict the island nation will be forced to rely more heavily on oil, natural gas and coal imports.
"They will turn to their typical suppliers, like the Indonesians and Australians, for some of their coal needs, but over time, as not only Japan's coal demand increases, and also Asian countries' coal (demand) increases, there will be a place for U.S. coal into those markets," said Michael Dudas, Managing Director at Jefferies and Company, a global securities and banking firm.
The United States shipped nearly 2.5 million tons of coal to Japan in 2010, but the U.S. is one of that nation's smallest suppliers, contributing just 2% of total imports. Australia provides about 62% of Japan's supply, while China ships in 20%.
Dudas argues the crisis in Japan will create a domino effect that will reverberate through the world coal market. He predicts coal prices will rise 5 percent to 10 percent over the next 12 to 18 months.
"It will be an opportunity for the coals out of the United States to meet demands not only in Asia, but even more so, I think, will be in Europe as European countries and utilities had relied more on Australian coal. And that Australian coal is now going to be shipped to Japan and Asia. They need somewhere to go," said Dudas.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, in 2010 the United States produced more than 800 million tons of coal, exporting nearly 61 million tons, equaling about 7.5% of total production. Europe is the largest importer of U.S. coal, bringing in roughly 28.5 million tons in 2010.
Dudas predicts U.S. coal exports will grow by 10 million to 15 million short tons in the coming year and that production could hit 1 billion tons.
Coal is the largest domestically produced source of power in the United States and is used to generate about half of the nation's electricity. Wyoming mines the most coal, followed by West Virginia, Kentucky and Pennsylvania.
America's coal industry employs roughly 123,000 people in 26 states.
More than 600 mining operations and hundreds of supporting companies bring in roughly $35 billion in revenue each year, according to ResearchandMarkets.com.
The National Mining Association estimates 50,000 new mining employees will be needed in the upcoming five years to meet increasing demand and to replace retiring workers. Big name companies include Massey Energy, Peabody Energy, Arch Coal and CONSOL Energy.
CONSOL Energy employs roughly 8,600 people and owns 11 mining complexes in five states, including the massive Bailey mining complex comprised of two mines nestled in the hills of Greene County, Pennsylvania. The facility is the largest of its kind in the United States, churning out 22 million tons of coal per year. The site also boasts the biggest preparation plant in the world where coal is readied for transport.
Bob Pusateri, Vice President of Energy Sales and Transportation Services for CONSOL, believes the company is well prepared to meet the increasing demands of the world coal market with a new mine slated to come online in three years.
“That mine will produce some five and a half million tons of coal and we really believe the majority of that coal will go overseas,” said Pusateri. “It will go into China, Europe as well as Brazil.”
“Over time, CONSOL will be exporting some 15 [million] to 20 million tons of our annual production,” said Pusateri. “We’re currently producing roughly 60 million tons annually. In 2014, with the new coal mine coming online, we expect that to increase to about 65, 66 million so we’re looking for 15 to 20 million tons of export capacity.”
CONSOL boasts more than six decades of coal reserves and Vice President of Pennsylvania Operations David Aloia believes coal offers America a secure future.
“Coal is here to stay. We can find a lot of different ways to use it, but hey, it’s right here in our own United States. Easy to get to, accessible and can be used for all kinds of energy,” said Aloia.
AuraSource Advances Its International Patent Application Portfolio for Its AuraCoal Technology
PRESS RELEASE – 4/14/11
CHANDLER, AZ - AuraSource Inc. announced in a press release that its wholly owned subsidiary, AuraSource Qinzhou Co., Ltd style="font: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif small;"., has advanced its patent applications from provisional to international patent applications (PCT) for four of its previous patent applications filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of the People's Republic of China.
All major industrialized countries are members of PCT.
The applications relate to a preparation method for ultra-fine coal-water slurry product, a centrifugal jig device, a slurry particles ultra-fine grinding device, and a centrifugal separation device. These technologies are at the core of AuraSources' system for ultra-fine particle separation.
Specifically, they will be utilized for industrial applications for clean coal preparation, low-ranking coal upgrading, low-ranking coal based syngas production, direct-reduced iron-making and mineral elements separation.
Philip Liu, AuraSource's CEO, stated, "We intend to develop our technology portfolio for ultra-fine material processing which will be used in a multitude of industrial applications. Furthermore, we will establish demonstration sites based on each application through licensing or joint ventures."
AuraSource focuses on clean energy technology development. AuraSource develops and licenses the AuraFuel™ and AuraCoal™ processes.
AuraSource is researching and developing other technologies related to Hydrocarbon Clean Fuel ("HCF"). AuraSource plans to sell and license products and services related to their HCF technologies in China and the United States.
Mining Machinery Plants Busy
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review – Joe Napsha
April 14, 2011
Domestic and overseas demand for coal is keeping workers at four mining machinery factories in Western Pennsylvania busy, and hiring is expected to continue.
"We're expecting to do well in 2011," said John Smyth, vice president of the room and pillar division of Bucyrus International Inc., a South Milwaukee-based company that makes longwall plow and continuous-mining systems and equipment to transport coal at its plant near Houston in Washington County.
Bucyrus recently added 15 jobs at the plant, where it employs about 200, and expects to hire more, said James Johnston, director of operations for the company's Eastern product group.
"We're hiring welders, machinists and material preparation workers," Johnston said.
Global coal demand is expected to rise strongly this year and in 2012, largely because of consumption in China and India, according to The Economist Intelligence Unit, a London research and analysis firm. U.S. coal production is expected to increase slightly, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
"We're seeing an increase in demand (for equipment) fueled by demand for coal globally," said Lou Boltik, a spokesman for Joy Mining Machinery, which manufactures longwall shearer systems in Homer City and continuous miners in Franklin, employing about 900.
Brookville Equipment Co. in Jefferson County, another equipment manufacturer, is in "a hiring frenzy," said Michael White, marketing specialist. The company, with nearly 200 employees, makes vehicles to haul miners and equipment. "We're definitely seeing a robust market," White said.
In addition to longwall systems and continuous miners, U.S. companies manufacture stage-loaders, batch haulage vehicles, hydraulic roof support systems and armored face conveyors needed for mining coal.
Underground U.S. mines utilize more continuous-mining machines than the larger longwall systems, according to Smyth and Boltik. Longwalls can remove millions of tons of coal from panels 1,000 to 1,500 feet wide by 12,000 to 16,000 feet long.
The cost for such production is steep. A longwall could require capital investment of $30 million to $100 million, they said, compared to $1.5 million to $3 million for the continuous miners that remove coal in smaller areas.
China looms as a major market for mining equipment. Analysts predict China will invest $151 billion in coal infrastructure by 2020, including constructing mines.
U.S. coal companies are expanding as well. Alpha Natural Resources Inc., which operates the Cumberland and Emerald mines near Waynesburg, anticipates capital expenditures this year of about $390 million, spokesman Ted Pile said.
Consol Energy Inc. of Cecil, which operates the Bailey and Enlow Fork mines in Greene County, is spending about $130 million this year as part of a $500 million Bailey Mine expansion expected to be completed in 2013.
"A significant portion of this money will be spent on mining-related machinery," Consol spokeswoman Laural Ziemba said.
Bucyrus sends equipment made in Houston to China, Russia, South Africa, Australia and Mexico, Smyth said. About 70 percent of its business is overseas.
Among its U.S. clients, Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. of Cleveland bought Bucyrus' automated longwall plow system for its Pinnacle Mine in southern West Virginia. The longwall plow, designed for mining low coal seams, can extract coal without cutting rock, Bucyrus said. Typically, operators must separate rock from mined coal at preparation plants.
Wyoming to Expand Coal Mining
UPI.com
March. 25, 2011
WASHINGTON, March 25 (UPI) -- The U.S. Interior Department announced plans to sell mining leases for federal lands in Wyoming's Powder River Basin holding about 750 million tons of coal.
"Coal is a critical component of America's comprehensive energy portfolio as well as Wyoming's economy," Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said in his announcement Tuesday with Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead.
"As the No. 1 coal producer from public lands, Wyoming provided nearly 40 percent of the domestic coal used to generate electricity last year and it's important that we continue to encourage safe production of this important resource."
The coal would take 10 to 20 years to mine.
Interior said the total bonus bids and royalty payments over the life of the leases are estimated to generate $13.4 billion to $21.3 billion, 49 percent of which would go to the state of Wyoming.
But the Interior Department's estimate of the economic benefits "was off by a factor of 10" and would more likely produce a total of approximately $2 billion, Marion Loomis, executive director of the Wyoming Mining Association told the Billings (Mont.) Gazette newspaper.
Loomis said he had accepted Salazar's numbers, which had widely been included in news reports of the Interior's announcement, until they struck him as inaccurate and calculations revealed an apparent decimal-shift of an error.
Interior said more coal development plans are pending in the Wyoming portion of the Powder River Basin: the South Porcupine, North Porcupine, North Highlight and West Highlight tracts, covering nearly 14,000 acres. The tracts contain an estimated 1.6 billion tons of mineable coal, or a total of 2.3 billion tons when combined with the tracts announced this week.
Environmentalists criticized the lease sales, saying that the Interior Department neglected to consider the impact of coal mining on climate change and health.
When burned, the 2.35 billion tons of coal threatens to release more than 3.9 billion tons of heat-trapping carbon dioxide, equal to the annual emissions from 300 coal-fired power plants, said environmental group WildEarth Guardians.
"We can't achieve a clean energy future by mining 2.35 billion tons of coal," said Jeremy Nichols, Climate and Energy Program director for WildEarth Guardians. "Rather than look ahead to our energy future, Secretary Salazar seems content to keep looking in the rearview mirror, keeping this country dangerously dependent on dirty energy."
But the Interior Department says the basin's coal contains 15 times less sulfur than eastern coal, so it burns relatively cleaner, releasing fewer greenhouse emissions.
Coal Spurs Growth, Jobs
Bluefield Daily Telegraph – Wilson Butt
April 3, 2011
While Mercer County struggles to create jobs, McDowell and Wyoming counties seem to be having some success.
The coal business is doing well. A massive new preparation plant located near Marianna is almost complete. The modern structure may be viewed from Route 97. It is impressive. The Massey-owned plant will provide much needed employment for the region.
The new plant will have the capability to process 700 tons per hour and will feature two 10,000-ton clean coal silos and a 25,000-ton raw-coal stockpile area at an estimated cost of $65 million. The project should be complete by this fall.
Atlantic Coal - Production Update - On track to reach 2011 production target
Mineweb.com
April 8, 2011
Atlantic Coal plc, the AIM listed open cast coal production and processing company with activities in Pennsylvania, USA, is pleased to announce a production update for the three months ended 31 March 2011 from the Stockton Colliery (‘Stockton'), its opencast anthracite operation in Pennsylvania.
During the quarter, Atlantic mined 120,850 tons of run-of-mine coal (‘ROM') and removed 658,785 bank cubic yards (BCYs) of overburden. 62,000 tons of ROM coal was washed which produced 28,376 tons of clean coal. Sales for the quarter were 31,238 tons at an average price of U$134.25 per ton. In excess of 90,000 tons of good quality run-of-mine coal is also held as stock. These levels are in spite of the winter weather which caused some production curtailment. The Company is increasing weekly working hours to increase production in the current quarter and remains on target to produce an estimated 450,000-500,000 tons of ROM for 2011.
Production Summary:
Run-of-minel (tons) |
Overburden
Removed (bcy) |
Production
Tonnage (tons) |
Coal
Sales (tons) |
Average
Price (US$) |
Revenue
(US$) |
| 120.850 |
658.785 |
28.376 |
31.238 |
134.25 |
4.2 |
The coal pricing environment remains strong and continues to benefit from the high alternative demand for coking coal. The Board believes that prices will at least equal the average price in the current quarter as a minimum dealer summer discount price will be offset by higher industrial prices.
Atlantic Managing Director Steve Best said, "This has been a positive period for the Company during which we have focussed on driving growth in the business through increasing production at Stockton and identifying consolidation opportunities in the Pennsylvanian anthracite fields. Our production profile for the last quarter was close to that of our best three months achieved in 2010, despite severe weather conditions experienced throughout the region, and I am confident that our committed investment at Stockton will continue to improve the mine economics and subsequently build shareholder value."
Notes:
Atlantic Coal plc is an AIM listed coal production and processing company focussed predominantly on open cast mining and the processing of anthracite coal in Pennsylvania, USA. The Company's primary asset is the Stockton Colliery, a producing surface coal mine and adjacent anthracite preparation plant encompassing an area of approximately 900 hectares located in Hazel Creek in North-East Pennsylvania, which has current Proven Reserves of 4.2 million tons run-of-mine coal.
Atlantic's strategy is to create a significant mid-tier coal company; both through the expansion of activities at Stockton and identifying additional sites in Pennsylvania to build its production and resource profile, primarily by acquiring defined assets in stable, recognised, high quality coal regions. The Board has identified opportunities to expand within the region and is involved in ongoing negotiations regarding adjacent sites, with the intention of acting as a regional consolidator in the Pennsylvanian Coal Field. Expansion within the local area has the potential to minimise upfront deal costs as a result of existing and proven infrastructure, equipment, facilities and market demand.
