POWER October 2015 - 45
FUELS
5. Mining more efficiently. Like a high-tech semi-automated deli slicer, longwall mining
(here, at Alpha's Cumberland Longwall operation in Northern Appalachia) employs a mechanical
shearer to extract high volumes of coal from long rectangular blocks of medium to thick seams.
Hydraulic shields temporarily hold up the roof of the mine while a rotating cutting drum mechanically
advances across the face of the coal seam, ripping and slicing the coal from the face.
Chain conveyors then move the loosened coal to the surface. Courtesy: Lee Buchsbaum
China actually does begin to retrench, that
only leaves India-a much longer sail from
the Pacific Northwest.
At its height, " In 2012 the U.S. exported
114 million metric tons (mmt) of coal (126
million short tons)-12 percent more than the
previous high set in 1981. The rapid rise of
U.S. coal exports exceeded the Department
of Energy's forecast, published in the 2012
Annual Energy Outlook, by 30 percent, " John
Hanou of Hanou Energy Consulting told
POWER. " Exports this year are likely to be
around 75 million metric tons in 2015. They
are likely to drop by another 10 million in
2016 and another 10 in 2017, " said Hanou.
Though Peabody and Arch's mammoth
PRB mines (Figure 3) help to generate
positive cash flow as mines elsewhere lose
money, Alpha's mines in the region are more
costly to run. Output there has trended down
over the past five years. " It would not surprise
me if Alpha lowers production, mainly
to avoid what we call shutdown economics, "
said Hanou.
Closing a mine, he noted, also means reclaiming
it, and reclamation is expensive.
Alpha's reclamation costs in Wyoming
alone are over $411 million, according to
the Casper Star-Tribune, not including what
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POWER October 2015
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of POWER October 2015
Contents
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POWER October 2015 - Contents
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