“In the past two years, more than half of US coal production was attributable to the top four coal producers, the result of changes in regional production as well as decades-long trends towards the concentration of coal production around the top few companies,” the agency said.
Specifically, the four supplied 575 million tonnes, or 52% of total US coal production, in 2011.
More than 500 other companies supplied the other 48%.
So where is longwall giant Consol Energy on the list? Fifth, according to the EIA.
In fact, using preliminary 2012 data, officials said Consol contributed 34 million tons, or 35% less than fourth-place Cloud Peak.
“Although the four companies that comprise the top four have changed from year to year, the rising share of production held by the top four producers continues a longer-term trend that began in the 1990s with the continued expansion of mines in the Powder River Basin in the western United States and with the divestment of coal properties by oil and gas companies,” the agency revealed.
For comparison, the top four miners in 1990 and 1995 accounted for 22% and 35% respectively.
In 2002, when total coal production levels were nearly identical to 2011 production, the EIA said the top four coal producers made up 40% of total US production; it also increased to over 50% in 2011 and 2012, based on the agency’s preliminary 2012 data.
Split by region, production from Peabody, Arch, Alpha Natural Resources and Cloud Peak represented a combined 27% of Appalachian production in 2011, as well as 18% of interior production (such as the Illinois Basin) and 77% of western coalfields production.
Looking only at heat content of the produced coal, the results are also surprising. The group’s share of production was approximately 49% (versus a 52% share on a tonnage basis) in 2011 because of the lower heat content of western coal.
Even without that factor, the “big four” on a Btu basis are still Peabody, Arch, Alpha and Cloud Peak, the EIA said.
“These companies also maintain a high share of national production because of the decline in higher-Btu Appalachian coal's share of production; in 2011, its share of total production (measured in tonnes) was 31%, compared to 39% in 2000,” officials said.
The data shows that Peabody, which has been the top US producer for decades and owns operations in the western and Midwestern regions along with international properties, has expanded production at its existing mines by 62Mt, or 56%, in the period between 2000 and 2011.
While much of the growth came from its massive surface complexes in the Powder River Basin, the company’s portfolio also includes other states including Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado and others.
The EIA also cited the merger and acquisition movement of the coal industry over the last several years. Some of the larger ones have been the 2009 takeover of Foundation Coal Holdings (the fourth-largest producer in 2008) by Alpha Natural Resources.
“This action leapfrogged Alpha Natural Resources from the 14th-largest producer to the fourth-largest but with 16% more production in that slot than its predecessor, Foundation Coal,” officials noted in Wednesday’s report.
“Alpha Natural Resources then acquired Alpha Appalachia Holdings Company in 2011 (formerly AT Massey Coal, and its production rose by 35Mt, or 44%, year-over-year.”
Two massive Wyoming mines, Eagle Butte and Belle Ayre, also belong to Alpha, as does a sizable collection of Appalachian mines.
Another change in ranks for coal’s leaders also came in 2009, when Rio Tinto Energy (the second-largest producer in 2008) divested its Jacobs Ranch mine in Wyoming to Arch Coal.
“This move allowed Arch Coal, an eastern and western coal producer, to solidify its second-place position in 2009, although it had been in the top four since 1998 when the (then) newly established company first acquired Powder River Basin mines,” the EIA said.
PRB-focused Cloud Peak has remained in the top four since 2009, when it was spun off from Rio Tinto.
