Alpha halts output at Cumberland coal mine

Market: Coal
16/07/13

Washington, 16 July (Argus) — Alpha Natural Resources was forced to halt production at its Cumberland longwall mine in western Pennsylvania due to “adverse geologic conditions in the mine's headgate area,” the company said yesterday.

The Northern Appalachian mine operated by subsidiary Cumberland Coal Resources will be idled for several weeks and that coal shipments have ceased from the facility. The outage yesterday follows another idling at the Cumberland mine in the second quarter that was a result of high methane levels and lasted for several days.

Alpha Natural Resources did not immediately return a request for comment today on the nature of the geologic conditions.

Brean Capital said the mine is a major earnings driver for the company “and any down time there tends to have a significant impact on the company's financial performance.” The Cumberland mine produced about 1.97mn short tons (1.79mn metric tonnes) in the first quarter, according to Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) data.

The temporary production halt at the Cumberland mine could further tighten the Northern Appalachian thermal market. As of May, Northern Appalachia stockpiles had fallen below normal levels for four consecutive months, Brean Capital said. Alpha is expected to address the production halt in the company's upcoming second-quarter earnings call on 2 August.

Alpha yesterday also announced it is idling 1mn st/yr of Central Appalachian coking and steam coal production, citing global oversupply and unfavorable prices.

On 7 June, a federal appeals court upheld an MSHA review commission's December 2007 determination that Cumberland Coal Resources had substantially violated federal safety rules at the mine. The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit unanimously upheld the MSHA review commission's decision that company's failure to adequately maintain emergency lifelines was a violation of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977, regardless of the likelihood of an actual emergency.

An MSHA special investigator had cited the company for failing to maintain lifelines at the mine in a manner that miners could effectively use to escape an emergency. Cumberland had argued that the review commission had applied the wrong standard when it reversed an administrative law judge's determination that the violations were not significant and substantial, according to MSHA.

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Alpha halts output at Cumberland coal mine

Related news posts

Japan’s energy demand falls on economic slowdown

Japan’s energy demand falls on economic slowdown

EU may crank up coal and steel research funds in 2027

EU may crank up coal and steel research funds in 2027

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