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Charleston, W.Va. – With the passage of several bills this Legislative Session, state policy makers took unprecedented steps to stabilize the region’s electric grid and encourage the development of energy using West Virginia coal.
“All West Virginians should thank their legislator and the Governor for prioritizing the reliability of our electric grid and the maximization of our in-state coal resources,” said Chris Hamilton, president of the West Virginia Coal Association. “The package of legislation they passed and the Governor signed will help protect us against us against calamitous weather events, like winter storm this past December that almost brought down the grid, and ensure jobs for our miners and continued economic activity for our communities.”
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Charleston, W.Va. – A new study released last week by PJM Interconnection, the grid operator covering West Virginia and multiple other states in our region, forecasts that the amount of planned electric generation retirements by 2030 exceed the amount of potential new generation able to be brought online.
According to the study, entitled Energy Transition in PJM: Resource Retirements, Replacements & Risks, “the projections…indicate that it is possible that the current pace of new entry [new generation] would be insufficient to keep up with expected retirements and demand growth by 2030”.
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CHARLESTON, W.Va. ─ America's Coal Associations today condemned President Biden's Environmental Protection Agency for its actions earlier this week to disapprove State Implementation Plans (SIPs) for 19 states throughout America.
EPA disapproved state submitted plans that have been pending since 2019 in an effort to implement more stringent and punitive standards by circumventing the Clean Air Act’s rulemaking process for developing new standards.
Representatives from America’s Coal Associations called EPA’s disapproval action,” The height of callousness and contempt for an American industry and American workers who have given this great country so much and continue to supply reliable, resilient, and secure baseload power to support Americas electric grids, and base fuel for infrastructure buildout and steel making.
“To completely dismantle SIPs that have taken years to design and develop, which address individual state ambient air standards that are fully compliant with applicable federal air standards, and ensure maximum environmental protections demonstrates the Agency's arrogance and disregard for governors and state legislatures across America.”
ACA calls upon governors, state legislators, and congressional representatives to join to encourage Congress and state attorneys general to take whatever action is necessary to stop the Biden Administration from destroying America’s industrial community.
America’s Coal Associations, comprised of the organizations below, collectively account for 261,000 coal industry workers and $381 billion dollars of economic activity.
For additional information, contact Chris Hamilton at (304) 342-4153.
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Charleston, W.Va. – In submitted comments to the House Ways & Means Committee, which is holding a Congressional Field Hearing today in Petersburg, W.Va., the West Virginia Coal Association laid blame for high energy costs and unreliable supply at the feet of anti-coal/anti-fossil fuel Democratic leaders and offered policy proposals to ensure our nation’s electric grid remains stable and resilient.
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CHARLESTON, WV – America’s Coal Associations issued the following statement in response to the release of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation’s 2022 Long-Term Reliability Assessment:
“NERC’s annual assessment is clear – majority of America’s electrical grid faces risk of resource shortfall through 2027 thanks to a rapid retirement of America’s coal fleet and dependence on intermittent power sources such as wind and solar. Dispatchable resources like coal are five to six times more dependable than wind and twice as dependable as solar. Given NERC’s mission toassure the effective and efficient reduction of risks to the reliability and security of the grid,everyone, including both state and federal officials, must take these warnings seriously.
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Charleston, W.Va. – West Virginia Treasurer Riley Moore received the Consumers’ Research “Consumers’ Champion Award” recently for his efforts to defend West Virginia residents and businesses from harm being imposed through the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) movement.
Chris Hamilton, President of the West Virginia Coal Association and Immediate Past Chairman of the West Virginias Business & Industry Council, said, “Treasurer Moore deserves the highest praise for his efforts to push back against discriminatory ESG policies and for sparking a national movement to do the same.”
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CHARLESTON, W.Va. ─ In response to comments by President Joe Biden over the weekend stating that “we’re going to be shutting [coal] plants down all across America” America’s Coal Associations issues the following response:
President Biden's insistence that coal plants and coal miners be shuttered serves as an affront to the 381,000 hard working men and woman across America who work in some capacity with coal mining.
Aside from the callousness, the President’s remarks reflect recklessness and total ignorance of coal's value to our nation’s independence, defense and security.
Mining is among our country’s most honorable professions, contributing significantly to our industrial job base and to local, regional, and national economies. Our miners are an essential part of our nation’s fabric with many of their spouses working as teachers, nurses, Sunday School teachers and every imaginable profession throughout our society.
Our industry fully supports clean air and a clean environment. We take great pride in our environmental compliance record and overall stewardship of the land. Our mining operations are among the world’s best and our industry’s record in the US is superior to similar mining complexes around the world. The technological advancements employed at our mines and electric manufacturing facilities are second to none.
Our nation’s infrastructure and national defense systems depend on coal as does the secured delivery of household and industrial electrical supplies. Continuous base load electric generation that only coal provides keeps the electric grid secured and ensures our country’s energy independence.
Coal is what built our country into the world superpower it is, and coal will continue to be a strong economic driver for years to come. Frankly, our miners deserve more from their government and their President! God Bless our “Freedom miners” and families.
America’s Coal Associations are supportive of an all-of-the-above energy strategy but believes the United States should not trade one energy job for another or unnecessarily shorten the life of these foundational contributors to our economy and industrial job base.
For additional information, contact Chris Hamilton at (304) 342-4153.
The following State Coal Associations and Groups have signed on to the above response:
- Emily Arthun, Executive Director, American Coal Council
- Randy Eminger, Executive Director, Energy Policy Network
- Nick Williams, President, Illinois Coal Association
- Tucker Davis, President, Kentucky Coal Association
- Mike Cope, President Ohio Coal Association
- Rachel Gleason, President, Pennsylvania Coal Alliance
- Matt Bell, President Reliable Energy, Inc. (Indiana)
- Judy Colgan, Executive Director, Rocky Mountain Mining Institute
- Chuck Laine, President, Tennessee Mining Association
- Ches Blevins, President, Texas Mining and Reclamation Association
- Travis Deti, Executive Director, Wyoming Mining Association
- Chris Hamilton, President, West Virginia Coal Association
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CHARLESTON, W.Va. ─ In response to the launch of a natural gas industry-led initiative to replace coal with natural gas to purportedly assist our European allies, the West Virginia Coal Association called the organization’s mission “irresponsible” and “counter to the welfare of European citizens and the global and US economies”.
Chris Hamilton, President of the West Virginia Coal Association said, “Our European allies are struggling to acquire the fuel they’ll need for consumer home heating and industrial purposes. They require all means necessary – coal, gas and intermittent sources – to power their economies for the foreseeable future. Calling for the eradication of coal is nothing more than a political hook on their part to incentivize gas pipeline development in America.”
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By: Chris Hamilton, President & CEO WV Coal Association
West Virginia historically has enjoyed among the lowest cost electric rates in the country, a trend which continues today despite universal higher energy costs.
The fact that West Virginia relies heavily on coal based electric generation is the primary reason West Virginians have a lower base rate than the majority of Americans.
Generation from existing coal assets in West Virginia can be as much as 50% less expensive than buying power in the wholesale electricity market or the power produced by generating sources other than coal.
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