Alpha Natural Resources to close last Kentucky mine

[TexasTowelie]

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — An Alpha Natural Resources spokesman says the company plans to lay off 117 people when it shuts down a Kentucky coal mine in November.

Spokesman Steve Hawkins tells the Lexington Herald-Leader (http://bit.ly/2c3rNQj ) that the company has issued a required 60-day layoff notice at the Process Energy Mine in Pike County, which is set to be closed on Nov. 7.

Hawkins says dismal market conditions are the reason for the layoffs.

He says the Process Energy mine is Alpha's last active mine in Kentucky. The Bristol, Virginia-based company has 18 mines in West Virginia.

Read more: http://hosted2.ap.org/KYELI/17d86d55771f487888e4caf787b1e0bd/Article_2016-09-12-KY--Alpha-Kentucky%20Layoffs/id-d5547ad0faf04a128f6d769980418970

[tonyt53]

1. Alpha, like the other big cola companies, invested heavily in buying "met" coal operations.

"Met" coal (used for steel manufacturing) took a huge hit with the downturn in steel production in China. China was the major market for met coal. The major coal companies placed a big bet on met coal and now they want to blame everybody else, but mostly Obama. Hell, he's been blamed for everything else.

Now politicians, including Trump are saying that they are going to eliminate those clean air rules. That included the rules put into place in 2006 by the Bush EPA that has led to the majority of the closings of coal-fired power plants. A power producer can make 35%-38% more profit by switching to natural gas. So, are they going to now make them start firing up those old coal-fired plants and shutting down the gas-fired plants?