Wyoming coal could be in for a rough year

Energy

Wyoming coal could be in for a rough year

Experts say the Powder River Basin’s multi-year resurgence is finally starting to fade.

by Wyofile
17 hours ago



Snow and arctic temperatures snarled coal train traffic in the southern Powder River Basin in January 2023. (Alan Nash)
by Nicole Pollack, WyoFile

After enjoying a respite that lasted for a couple of years, the coal industry tipped back into its long-term downward trajectory in 2023. Early signs suggest that the progressive decline could worsen in the new year.

Wyoming has led the United States in coal production since 1986. It supplied more than 41% of the country’s coal last year, federal data shows. But the state’s coal output has plummeted since it peaked 15 years ago. Wyoming’s mines produced barely over half as much coal in 2022 as they did in 2008 — and the numbers for 2023 trended even lower.

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in less electricity use, causing coal demand to drop by more than usual in 2020. “In 2021, it started rebounding, and then in 2022, coal did really well, because gas prices were really high after Russia invaded Ukraine,” said Michelle Solomon, a senior policy analyst at the think tank Energy Innovation. “And then in 2023, gas prices moderated and coal kind of went down again.”

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