Weekly US coal production slides 2.3% on week, falls 7.1% on year: EIA

Houston — Weekly US coal production fell to 10.89 million st in the week ended Feb. 6, down 2.3% from a week earlier and 7.1% lower than the year-ago week, according to a Feb. 11 US Energy Information Administration report.

It was the fifth time in the last eight weeks that all four major basins saw weekly decreases, while the latest figure was the lowest total for the corresponding week in more than 11 years. It was also 22.9% below the five-year average.

Despite lower production, utility stockpiles remain higher on a days-of-burn basis, as bituminous stocks were at a record-high 140 days cover at the end of November, while subbituminous stocks were at an eight-month high 114 days, up 28.4% and 37.3% year on year, respectively, according to the latest EIA data. However, US stockpiles totaled an estimated 136.34 million st, as of Feb. 4, up roughly 0.8% from a year earlier, according to S&P Global Platts Analytics.

For the latest week, estimated coal production in Wyoming and Montana — primarily made up of production from the Powder River Basin — fell to 5.06 million st, down 2% from the prior week and 3.8% below the year-ago week.

Since Jan. 1, the states have produced 26.96 million st, down 8.4% from the same period in 2020.

In Central Appalachia, estimated weekly coal production declined to 1.21 million st, down 3.3% from a week earlier and 14.6% below the year-ago week.

Year-to-date production in Central Appalachia dropped 18.4% year on year to 6.49 million st.

Coal production in Northern Appalachia totaled 1.47 million st, down 1.5% from the prior week and 11% below the year-ago week. Year-to-date production is 15.7% below a year ago at 7.8 million st.

In the Illinois Basin, estimated weekly coal production was at 1.27 million st, down 3.2% from the previous week and 17.8% from the year-ago week. Cumulative production is at 6.81 million st, down 21.6% year on year.

Through the first six weeks of the year, US coal production totaled an estimated 58.14 million st, down 11.5% year on year.