Blaschak Anthracite, a leading Pennsylvania anthracite operator, announced that the company’s owners, led by majority shareholder Milestone Partners, completed the sale of Blaschak in a management-led buyout to Saint Nicholas Investor Group, LLC on July 19. Saint Nicholas Investor Group is led by Blaschak management and outside Board members and is also comprised of other […] The post Milestone Sells Blaschak to Saint Nicholas Investor Group appeared first on Coal Age ..read more

C-BATT, a joint venture between X-BATT and CONSOL Innovations, a subsidiary of CONSOL Energy, has launched the next phase of its effort to accelerate the development and commercialization of next-generation battery anode materials. C-BATT is combining X-BATT’s revolutionary battery technology with CONSOL Innovations’ domestically sourced carbon resources to bring its tunable silicon-carbon composite battery material, […] The post C-BATT to Revolutionize Battery Industry with American-mined Carbon appeared first on Coal Age ..read more

The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) reported a fire occurred in an underground coal mine on June 27, 2024, after a large quantity of polyurethane foam was injected into a roof cavity. This was the fourth uncontrolled heating event attributed to polyurethane foam application in four years, according to the agency. Polyurethane-based foam products produce heat from an exothermic chemical reaction. MSHA said injecting large quantities of polyurethane to fill voids can cause underground mine fires. MSHA is recommending that underground coal operators develop a site-specific plan for v ..read more

Glencore said on July 4 that it received approval from the Government of Canada under the Investment Canada Act (ICA) for the acquisition of a 77% interest in Elk Valley Resources (EVR) from Teck Resources. This was the final regulatory approval for the transaction, which is now expected to close on July 11, 2024. EVR is expected to produce 24 to 26 million metric tons (mt) of metallurgical grade coal in 2024 from four surface operations: Elk Valley, Fording River, Greenhills, and Line Creek. Last year, Teck’s met coal production represented $8.5 billion of the company’s total $15 billion in ..read more

In a significant victory for the reliability of the nation’s electricity grid, the U.S. Supreme Court granted state and industry requests to stay enforcement of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Ozone Transport rule. This is the first major court ruling on EPA’s suite of rules designed to prematurely retire coal plants. While pursuing the case in the D.C. Circuit Court, last October, the National Mining Association (NMA) and others filed an emergency application for immediate stay of EPA’s final rule pending the outcome of the court case. Securing a stay in cases like this is es ..read more

TerraSource Global has acquired Peninsula Iron Works. PIW is a rebuilder and parts manufacturer for capital equipment and large assemblies. Services include new builds from in-house or customer designs, value-add and refurbishments, maintenance and repair on new or previously repaired work, and contracted services for manufacturing large and complex components. “Peninsula Iron Works has a long history of success providing high-quality, U.S.-based manufacturing that complements TerraSource Global’s industrial processing equipment,” said Kevin Hambrice, CEO at TerraSource Global. Founded in 1917 ..read more

Komatsu sold Continental to Stellex in March 2021. (Photo: Continental) Precision Pulley & Idler (PPI) announced it has agreed to acquire Continental Global Material Handling from Stellex Capital Management. Continental, based in Winfield, Alabama, has been a leader in bulk material handling for decades. The transaction is expected to close quickly. “Continental has earned its position as one of the most well-respected brands in the industry,” said Matt Buckingham, president and CEO of PPI. “We believe the two businesses are stronger together than apart. The combination of PPI and Contin ..read more

Cat and Komatsu will each provide one truck each to both BHP and Rio Tinto for these trials. BHP will trial the Cat trucks, while Rio Tinto will trial the Komatsu trucks. The results from the trials will be shared between the two mining companies. In an industry first, Rio Tinto and BHP will collaborate on the testing of large battery-electric haul truck technology in the Pilbara, Western Australia, to accelerate the potential for its future deployment. The two companies will work with Caterpillar and Komatsu to conduct independent trials of their battery-electric haul trucks, including test ..read more

Conveyor fires can happen anywhere, at any time, even outdoors in the cold. (Photo: Martin Engineering) To create a fire there must be three elements: oxygen, heat and fuel (aka, the fire triangle). One factor that makes conveyor fires so hazardous is that the belt itself can be the fuel. According to a study of belt fires conducted by National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH),1 any of the standard neoprene, PVC, chloroprene and BELT-approved SBR belts can ignite. Although some belts were self-extinguishing, the conclusion is that there is no non-flammable belt, particula ..read more

Regards from BSA Camp Daniel Boone in North Carolina. Our Scout Troop was here for a week chilling while the eastern U.S. was experiencing the “heat dome,” which most of us used to refer to as summer prior to the media hype associated with climate change. Back in the day, when the U.S. mined and burned a billion tons of coal, which wasn’t that long ago, the industry would debate whether the additional, seasonal burn rate for electric utilities really mattered. Do you remember those days? Industrial demand from manufacturing, which is linked to economic activity, was so important in those froth ..read more