Mining

SUEK-Kuzbass has commissioned a new fully automated longwall face.

The Indonesian government has cut its coal production target for 2015 to 400 million as low demand and weak prices hurt the industry.

Pennsylvania coal mining company, Atlantic Coal, has opened a new rail loading facility at its Stockton anthracite mine.

BHP Billiton has appointed Anita Frew to its board of directors and names Baroness Shriti Vadera as Senior Independent Director.

Deswik software wins an ABA100 for Product Innovation and Product Excellence in the Australian Business Awards 2015.

An AUS$355 million writedown on early-stage exploration assets hits an otherwise solid set of annual results from Australian production, Whitehaven Coal.

The board of New Zealand’s state-owned coal mine, Solid Energy, has placed the company into voluntary administration and proposed to sell its assets off over the next two and a half year.

Caterpillar collaborates with Arch Coal to implement advance automation technology in enhancing dozer productivity and safety at Black Thunder mine in Wyoming.

Foresight Energy temporarily idles longwall mining operations at its Deer Run Mine in Pennsylvania.

Ongoing weakness in thermal coal prices is increasing the financial stress on Australia’s coal mining and mining services companies.

The Sandvik board of directors have fired company President and CEO Olof Faxander, replacing him with current head of Wärtsilä.

A forecast from BMI Research on Botswana’s mining sector through to 2019 indicates diamond production and a growth in coal will support the sector but a lack of diversity may leave the country vulnerable to growing competitors.

BMI Research has forecast Polish coal mining to grow in the coming years, yet only a limited amount. But this will keep Poland a significant player in the European coal market.

A round-up of some of this week’s key news items from the international coal industry, from outlooks on the Clean Power Plan to the latest project developments.

Arch Coal will pay a US$2 million civil penalty and upgrade its Clean Water Act compliance systems under a settlement with the US Environmental Protection Agency and US Department of Justice.