EKB News

Big coal producers say, while the bulk of U.S. coal goes to electric power plants, and massive piles of unused coal outside of U.S. plants grow, the rising demand for metallurgical coal, an ingredient in steelmaking, is a foreign phenomenon. Officials say booming Asian economies are hungry for energy. Alpha Natural Resources, the top U.S. producer of metallurgical coal, is planning to up production one million tons next year, while orders are coming in from Eastern and Western Europe. As U.S. mines continue to idle and producers don't expect things to improve before next year and maybe closer to 2011, there is a recovery in world steel output. A half-dozen U.S. producers reported stronger than expected third-quarter profits based on sales in China, where steel plants are operating at more than 90% capacity.