Coal Mining NAICS 2121

Mar 27, 2025 - Not Retiring

• The scheduled retirement dates of dozens of coal-fired US power plants are being canceled as growth in energy demand and changes in environmental regulations keep the plants online, The New York Times reports. Wyoming’s 66-year-old Dave Johnston Power Plant – one of the oldest in the US that’s situated on the edge of the nation’s largest coal mine – was slated to close in 2027, but its planned retirement was canceled. According to a NYT analysis, utilities have extended the life of nearly a third of coal units with planned retirement dates. A 2023 study by Energy Innovation showed that 99% of operating US coal plants were more expensive to operate than replacement by local wind, solar, and energy storage resources. Some 780 coal units have retired since 2000 leaving the US with about 400, according to new data from the Global Energy Monitor cited by NYT.
• The highly-concentrated US coal mining industry is undergoing further consolidation as a result of the merger of two of the largest US coal producers. Amid a wave of industry deal making, CONSOL Energy and Arch Resources merged in January to form Core Natural Resources (CNR) with large and non-overlapping thermal and metallurgical coal operations, according to a press release. Newly-merged CNR owns 11 mines, including Pennsylvania’s Bailey, Enlow Fork, and Harvey mines and the largest underground mine complex in North America. “Through this transformational combination, we have created a global leader exceptionally well-positioned to compete and succeed in two significant, high-potential market segments – the global metallurgical and global high-rank thermal coal markets,” the company’s CEO Jimmy Brock said in a statement. Both companies sold an aggregate of 101 million tons of coal in 2023 that was used in steelmaking, power generation and industrial uses.

• Peabody Energy, one of the nation’s largest coal mining companies, is joining with RWE Clean Energy to repurpose reclaimed land previously used for mining for solar energy projects, Coal Age reports. The partnership brings together RWE’s experience in developing and operating clean energy projects and Peabody’s significant land resources to develop 10 potential projects on reclaimed land in Indiana and Illinois, according to Coal Age. RWE will acquire seven of the projects and enter into a joint venture with Peabody to continue development of the three others. Combined, the renewable energy projects planned for the reclaimed lands could generate enough electricity to power the equivalent of over 850,000 homes across the region, Coal Age reports. “The development of utility-scale solar and storage projects on reclaimed land previously used by our coal mining operations is consistent with our mission and beneficial for all our stakeholders,” says Peabody’s chief development officer.
• Employment by coal mines shrank 3.1% year over year in February following a 1.8% YoY increase in the average industry wage in January to $37.44 per hour, a penny short of its record high in December, according to the latest US Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Mining capacity utilization rose to 90.8% in December, its highest level in almost two years, according to the Federal Reserve. Meanwhile, producer prices for coal mining firms ended the year on a flat note, up just 0.4% compared to December 2023, according to the BLS.