Vale says write down of Mozambique coal venture won’t affect project

Coal mining shares rose on Thursday amid uncertainty over the future of nuclear power as Japan races to avert a meltdown at a power plant crippled by last week's earthquake and tsunami, Reuters reported: In afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange, Consol Energy (CNX.N) was up 4.9 percent at $54.96 and Alpha Natural Resources (ANR.N) rose 4.3 percent to $55.17. Peabody Energy (BTU.N) was 3.6 percent higher at $70.05, Massey Energy (MEE.N) was up 3.9 percent at $63.18 and Arch Coal (ACI.N) was 2.2 percent higher at $34.91.

As the safety concerns about nuclear power continue to grab headlines globally, the U.S. EPA has decided to clamp down on coal-fired […]

U.S. coal miner Consol Energy has agreed to a hefty $5.5 million fine and $200 million in pollution control to reduce mining […]

The six-week strike at Teck's Elkview coal mine is coming to an end, Canadian Press reported Tuesday morning. The Vancouver company and Local 9346 of the United Steelworkers of America have reached a tentative five-year collective agreement covering about 700 workers at the mine, located in southeastern British Columbia. The union ratification vote is to be completed by Saturday. If the new labour deal is ratified, Teck expects full production at the mine to resume by next Tuesday.

Reuters is reporting that FE Steel, the world's No 5 steelmaker, on Monday halted production at a plant near Tokyo and global fourth-ranked Nippon Steel suspended operations at two small plants: - JFE said shipments from its 10 million tonnes per year Higashi Nihon plant near Tokyo had virtually halted due to a power outage. - JFE resumed operations on Sunday of two blast furnaces at its Higashi Nihon plant, one of its two mainstay plants, which were idled after Friday's quake and tsunami.

According to a report from Reuters, Patriot Coal Corp. has halted production at its Rivers Edge metallurgical mine in West Virginia due to flooding in a sealed, mined-out area. An employee at its Rivers Edge mine discovered excess water behind two seals on March 7, which prompted the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) to issue an imminent danger order, the St. Louis, Missouri-based firm said in a regulatory filing. Patriot said the flooding, which followed heavy rain, led to an evacuation of the mine.

The Association of American Railroads said that freight railroads will get US$12 billion capital expenditure in 2011. The association released a state of the industry report on Wednesday, Great Expectations 2011. Capital expenditure is rising to keep up with demand for services, namely grain and coal transport.

Thom Beers, the man behind the popular reality television series Deadliest Catch and Ice Road Truckers, is now producing a series about coal mining in Appalachia. Coal premieres on Spike TV this spring with the first show airing at the end of this month. You can already see episodes on Spike TV's website.

The Wall Street Journal writes that Tata Steel Ltd. expects its raw material costs to increase around 15% in the next fiscal […]