Largest U.S. Private Coal Company (Murray Energy) Files Bankruptcy Despite Trump’s Efforts to Help Industry
https://www.ecowatch.com/coal-company-bankruptcy-2641177361.html
By Jordan Davidson
The Trump administration’s efforts to prop up the coal industry hit another bump as one-time power giant Murray Energy filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, as NPR reported.
Murray Energy is the eighth coal company in a year to file for bankruptcy, the latest sign that the cost-fired power is losing its viability as consumers shift to cleaner modes of generating power that are surpassing coal’s ability to generate energy. The wave of bankruptcies has hit even as the Trump administration rolls back environmental regulations and tries to prop up the industry with subsidies, according to NPR.
The Ohio-based company was the country’s fourth largest coal producer in 2018, accounting for six percent of total production, according to the Energy Information Administration, as the AP reported.
Murray Energy is the nation’s largest privately held coal company. The New York Times reported that it has nearly 7,000 employees,17 mines in six states across Appalachia and the South as well as two mines in Colombia, and it produces more than 70 million tons of coal a year.
