29 Jan 2021 | 21:47 UTC — Houston
Weekly US coal train loadings climb to six-week high: STB
By Tyler Godwin
Highlights
Northern Appalachia loadings jump to 12-month high
Cumulative average US loadings down 16.2% on year
Houston — US coal train loadings rose to a six-week high in the week ended Jan. 22, as loadings from Northern Appalachia jumped to a 12-month high, Surface Transportation Board data showed Jan. 29.
Data filed to the STB by the four major Class I railroads -- CSX, Union Pacific, BNSF and Norfolk Southern -- show US loadings averaged 74.7 trains/day, up 7.1% from 69.7 trains/day in the prior week but 8.4% lower than the 81.5 trains/day averaged in the year-ago week.
Since Jan. 1, total loadings have averaged 69.8 trains/day, down 16.2% from 83.2 trains averaged in the same period a year ago.
Average PRB loadings rose to a six-week high 40.9 trains/day in the latest week, up from 37.8 trains/day in the prior week but down from 46.4 trains/day in the year-ago week.
Cumulative PRB loadings this year are at 39.2 trains/day, down from 47.9 trains/day averaged in the same period a year ago.
Central Appalachia loadings ticked lower to 12.3 trains/day, down from 12.4 trains/day a week earlier and 13.6 trains/day in the year-ago week.
Loadings from the CAPP region in 2021 have averaged 11.8 trains/day, down from 14 trains averaged a year ago.
Loadings in Northern Appalachia rose to a 12-month high 11 trains/day, up from 9.5 trains/day in the prior week and 10.5 trains/day in the year-ago week. It was the most loadings in a week since 11.3 trains/day in the week ended Jan. 17, 2020, and was also the first year-on-year increase in 12 months.
Cumulative loadings in Northern Appalachia have averaged 8.8 trains/day in 2021, down from 10.4 trains averaged last year.
Illinois Basin loadings were at 4.3 trains/day, flat from a week earlier, but up from 4.2 trains/day averaged in the year ago-week. It was the ninth time in the last 15 weeks that loadings from the Illinois Basin were higher than the year-ago week.
Since Jan. 1, Illinois Basin loadings have averaged 4.5 trains/day, flat from a year ago.
Loadings from outside of the primary basins rose to 6.2 trains/day, from 5.8 trains/day a week earlier, but down from 6.9 trains/day in the year-ago week.