digital divide network - article database

A warmer-than-usual winter and cheap natural gas prices have conspired to claim the scalp of yet another US coal operation, this time at one of Consol Energy’s West Virginia mines.

The company said on Tuesday it will idle its northern West Virginia Blacksville No. 2 longwall mining unit, while cutting back on continuous mining operations too.

This is the latest in a growing line of production cuts, with competitor Arch Coal announcing earlier this month it would temporarily halt output at its Dugout Canyon mine, at least for the first half of the year, after having already retrenched workers at its eastern Kentucky mines.

Patriot Coal also said earlier in February it would close another of its mines, this time in West Virginia, after power producers switched from burning coal to natural gas.

Henan Hongxing Mining Machinery Co., Ltd is a joint-stock mining machinery manufacturing enterprise integrated in scientific research, production and marketing. It is located at the High & New Technology Industries Development Zone of Zhengzhou,China with an area of 50 thousand m2 which includes 15,000 m2 of standard heavy duty industrial workshop. Equipments are more than 160 pieces, including large and medium sized metal processing, riveting and installing equipments. There are more than 660 workers including 80 administrators with secondary and senior occupational titles and engineering technicians. In order to promote the competitive strength, the advanced technologies have been introduced from America, Germany, Japan and Australia, which established the international advanced production line, first-class modern testing base as well as research centers of sand maker, mill and mine-selecting equipment. Scientific management, advanced processing technology and innovative manufacturing theory make the company become the mining machinery manufacturing and exporting base in China.

Analysts at Jeffries Research had warned back in January that US coal producers would disappoint with their fourth-quarter results, and that lower demand would hurt their 2012 results.

“We believe that at very low gas prices coal could potentially lose another 15-million to 20-million tons in 2012,” Peter Ward wrote at the time.

However, he said he was not at bearish as some other analysts that predicted the coal industry losing another 60-million to 80-million tons to power producers burning natural gas instead.

Henan Hongxing Mining Machinery Co., Ltd is a joint-stock mining machinery manufacturing enterprise integrated in scientific research, production and marketing. It is located at the High & New Technology Industries Development Zone of Zhengzhou,China with an area of 50 thousand m2 which includes 15,000 m2 of standard heavy duty industrial workshop. Equipments are more than 160 pieces, including large and medium sized metal processing, riveting and installing equipments. There are more than 660 workers including 80 administrators with secondary and senior occupational titles and engineering technicians. In order to promote the competitive strength, the advanced technologies have been introduced from America, Germany, Japan and Australia, which established the international advanced production line, first-class modern testing base as well as research centers of sand maker, mill and mine-selecting equipment. Scientific management, advanced processing technology and innovative manufacturing theory make the company become the mining machinery manufacturing and exporting base in China.

Consol’s Blacksville No. 2 mine produced 4.3-million tons last year, and the company said it anticipated the operation would see its output hit 400 000 t/m lower than usual, as long as the production cutback remained in place.

The miner said it did not know how long this would last for, and that the output reduction would not involve layoffs.