Coal in the News

30Nov

Possible rail strike could send shockwaves through energy industry

Via The Hill: A strike by U.S. railroad workers could have dramatic impacts on energy delivery, with industry groups warning of logistical snarls and price increases for consumers. The potential strike — which Congress and President Biden are scrambling to avert — would predominantly affect commodities that can’t be transported by pipelines, such as coal and ethanol.  […]
08Nov

A costly energy crunch is coming to the US this winter

Via The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner: Americans know that inflation has hit hard. Food prices alone are up 10% this year. And energy costs are now a key problem — thanks to OPEC and Russia manipulating oil prices even as natural gas prices surge. To put it bluntly, the news isn’t good. Americans are going to […]
27Oct

U.S. faces costly energy crunch this winter

Via The Pottstown Mercury: Americans know that inflation has hit hard. Food prices alone are up 10 percent this year. And energy costs are now a key problem — thanks to OPEC and Russia manipulating oil prices even as natural gas prices surge. To put it bluntly, the news isn’t good. Americans are going to […]
26Oct

Regulatory Intransigence

What changes over the course of four years? Not much if you compare President Biden’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to its predecessor from the Obama era. Team Biden came into office determined to pick up right where the Obama EPA had left off, hellbent on using every tool available to dismantle the domestic coal fleet. […]
03Oct

Energy policy should support affordability

Via The Gazette: The U.S. is playing energy inflation whack-a-mole. Gasoline prices have retreated from wallet-draining summer highs, but consumers now find themselves looking at surging natural gas and electricity bills. The global energy crisis —driven by a warring Russia cutting oil and gas to western Europe — continues to batter energy markets and American […]
24Aug

The Inflation Reduction Act Could Push Power Grid Reliability Into a Tailspin

Via RealClearEnergy: Marketed by its champions as the answer to America’s economic woes and energy-driven inflation, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is anything but. Its market destabilizing subsidies, additional taxes and support for further regulatory overreach could devastate the nation’s remaining coal fleet and consequently the reliability and affordability of the nation’s supply of power. […]
19Aug

Inflation Reduction Act could threaten U.S. power systems

Via The Washington Times: From California to Texas to New England, America’s power grid reliability is in alarming shape. And there’s a common thread: The nation is taking apart its existing energy infrastructure far faster than it’s building reliable replacement generation. This is most apparent in the Democrats’ sweeping new climate and health care bill, […]
25Jul

Coal Is at the Heart of Efforts Overseas to Keep the Lights On

Via The White Mountain Independent: We must stop pretending our nation’s coal power plants are unessential. The loss of coal generation is undermining our energy security, contributing to inflation and risking rolling blackouts. What’s happening is that we are dismantling essential generating capacity far faster than it is being replaced with reliable alternatives. This haphazard, […]
23Jul

U.S. Should Begin Exporting More Coal to European Nations

Via The Wheeling News-Register: Against the backdrop of war in Ukraine, U.S. coal shipments to Europe are playing a quiet yet critical role in keeping the lights on from Rome to Amsterdam. If the shipments continue through the winter — and are ramped to replace the loss of Russian fuel — they will save millions […]
11Jul

Coal prices soar to record highs on strong demand from a Europe in crisis

Via The Washington Examiner: Domestic coal prices have shot to record territory as the global energy crisis and the European Union’s impending Russian coal ban drive European power customers to seek out imports from the United States. European countries contending with significantly pricier natural gas are staring down a shortage of gas supplies this winter, leading them to switch back to more of […]