The New Lingo of Fines Recovery
With the solutions now available, terms like waste could be losing their meaning by jesse morton,...
Technology Lets Blasters Load Precise Rounds
Advances with electronic initiation systems, blast design software and monitoring systems improve...
Making Underground Equipment Moves Easier
A new low-profile diesel generator could be a game-changer for room-and-pillar sections in West...
Advanced Conveyors Move More Coal Cost Effectively
Two new Illinois Basin installations were engineered for high-performance by steve fiscor, editor...
Hauler Maintenance in Theory and Practice
Experts say software and automation advances provide key tools to target longtime goals, but don’t...
Designing Dams in a Climate of Uncertainty
Despite recent news of floods and failures, experts say impoundments built on sound science should...
Kentucky Miners Blocking Coal Train Receive Pay, End Protest
After a three-day standoff, coal miners in Pike County, Kentucky, who were blocking the railroad track demanding back pay, ended their protest. The four miners were paid and agreed to leave the tracks. The miners camped out...
Tri-State Will Retire All Coal Generation in Colorado, New Mexico by 2030
Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association announced the retirement of its remaining New Mexico coal-fired power plant by the end of 2020 and its remaining Colorado coal plants and coal mine by 2030. This includes the...
CONSOL Energy Invests in CFOAM
CONSOL Energy recently acquired a 25% stake in CFOAM Corp. for $3.5 million. The company also provided a $1.1-million-term loan to CFOAM LLC for working capital and invested another $400,000 to acquire a first lien note,...
FERC Directs PJM to Expand Minimum Offer Price Rule
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) directed PJM Interconnection LLC (PJM) to expand its current Minimum Offer Price Rule (MOPR) to address state-subsidized electric generation resources, with certain exemptions....
Murray Energy Announces Re-org Plan
Murray Energy’s recent restructuring proposal includes plans to sell off substantially all of its assets, but a new Murray entity will act as a stalking horse bidder for the assets. The largest privately owned U.S. coal producer...
Lively Grove Mine Hits Record Production Mark
On December 11, the Lively Grove mine in Marissa, Illinois, reported a record production day. While maintaining the highest standards of safety and compliance, with no injuries or citations, the team cut 4,785 feet to extract...
Siemens Will Deploy Key Solutions at Bajaj’s India Power Plant
Global technology major Siemens said it has been awarded a major contract to equip Lalitpur Power Generation Co. Ltd. (LPGCL), a Bajaj Group company, with advanced digital solutions for its power plant located in Lalitpur area...
Indonesia Reviewing Domestic Market Coal Obligation Rules
Indonesia is reviewing rules that require coal miners to sell a portion of their coal to local buyers. Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Coal and Minerals. “We are thinking of ways to avoid harming the domestic sector,...
Paul’s Fan Expands
Paul’s Fan Co. is growing and it is relocating to the Southern Gap Industrial Park shell building now under construction in Buchanan County, Virginia. It and the 40 new full-time jobs it is projected to create were celebrated...
Philippi-Hagenbuch Honored as Illinois’ 2019 Manufacturer of the Year
Philippi-Hagenbuch Inc., a global leader in off-highway truck customization, was awarded the 2019 Barry L. MacLean Manufacturer of the Year award by the Illinois Manufacturers’ Association (IMA). The third-generation,...
Komatsu’s Dawes to Chair MINExpo INTERNATIONAL 2020
The National Mining Association (NMA) announced that Jeffrey Dawes of Komatsu will chair MINExpo INTERNATIONAL 2020. A longtime leader within Komatsu and the industry, Dawes is vice president of Komatsu’s Global Mining Business...
Load-indicating Bolt
Maxbolt Load Indicating Fasteners can reduce downtime, premature wear, and catastrophic joint failures, according to Valley Forge & Bolt. An extremely accurate and durable load-monitoring device is inserted into each...
Nidec Expands Line of Motors
Nidec Motor Corp. is launching new TITAN horizontal totally enclosed fan cooled (TEFC) motors that are available in 6800, 7000 and IEC 450 frame sizes. The motors, which are available with a self-contained sleeve bearing system,...
H-E Parts Wins Glencore Contract
H-E Parts International was recently awarded a one-year supply agreement with Glencore Coal Assets Australia Pty Ltd. (Glencore), which incorporates the supply and overhaul of new and service exchanged radiators for Glencore’s...
Renewables Are Getting Pushed from the Nest
Several snippets of good news arrived as we were wrapping up the final edition of Coal Age for 2019. The International Energy Agency (IEA) released Coal 2019. In it, the agency seemed reluctant to report that a rebound in global...
Justifying the Investment
These are uncertain times for many in the coal business. Price swings for both thermal- and metallurgical-grade coals are disrupting plans. As markets shift, coal operators need to be prepared to both make ends meet by...
Improved Access Reduces Conveyor Maintenance Time
Virtually every vehicle on the road today is designed with a hood that can be easily opened for access to the engine, so mechanics can perform routine service and diagnose/address problems that arise during its lifespan....
Best Practices for Annual Hearing Tests by amanda azman and joseph schall
Listen well to this cautionary tale about the surprising results from Bill’s annual hearing test. Bill has worked at the Yourtown mine in various positions for 17 years. Because of his tasks, for the past 15 years, he has been...
Stainless Steel Belt Cleaner Reduces TCO
A new, secondary conveyor-belt cleaner has been engineered specifically for challenging applications where traditional designs fail to deliver the necessary performance or wear life. The CleanScrape Secondary Cleaner (CS2) from...
VCEA 2019 Excellence in Mining Awards Presented
A total of 11 awards of excellence were presented to Southwest Virginia coal companies during the Virginia Coal and Energy Alliance’s 48th annual Fall Meeting and “Excellence In Mining Awards,” recently at the Russell County...
Contura Subsidiary Receives National Reclamation Award
Contura Energy announced that one of its affiliate operations, Paramont Contura LLC’s 88 Strip surface mine, earned the 2019 Outstanding Reclamation Award in the coal category given by the National Association of State Land...
Campaigning on a Platform of Job Losses and Power Outages
Presidential hopeful Michael Bloomberg recently announced that if elected he will phase out coal power in the U.S. by 2030. He made this proclamation standing in the pouring rain in front of a retired coal power plant, telling...
No Solution at All
by conor bernstein Questions continue to arise about the cost and technical feasibility of moving to an emissions-free grid by 2050. Or, in the case of the Green New Dealers, making that jump even sooner. At a recent hearing on...
Bureau of Mines
Albert W. Deurbrouck, 87, of South Park, Pennsylvania, USA, passed away on November 26, 2019. He enjoyed a long career working as a mining engineer, specializing in coal preparation at the Bureau of Mines, where he had the...
U.S. Senate
The U.S. Senate voted to confirm Aurelia Skipwith as director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Skipwith has served as deputy assistant secretary for Fish and Wildlife and Parks at the Department of the Interior since April...
Revisions to Coal-fired Power Regulations Remain Unresolved
As 2019 winds down, a number of environmental regulations impacting the coal industry are in flux under the mounting pressure of various lawsuits and proposed rewrites by the President Donald Trump administration. While...
Drugs, MSHA Enforcement, Maslow’s Hammer
Without a doubt, the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) is an enforcement agency. It walks, talks, thinks and acts like an enforcement agency. It sees itself as an enforcement agency. Enforcement is its favorite tool,...
