Kentucky Coal Association

06/08/2026

Global investment in coal is climbing. The International Energy Agency projects coal investment will reach roughly US$180 billion in 2026 — its highest level since 2012, and up about 4% over last year. Much of it is flowing to the metallurgical coal the world's steelmakers depend on. The U.S. Department of Energy committed US$625 million in 2025 to recommission and modernize coal plants. The capital is following the demand.

06/05/2026

The cost of coal delivered to U.S. power plants is projected to ease to $2.36 per million BTU in 2026, down from $2.42 at the end of 2025, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration's May Short-Term Energy Outlook. With mining and transportation costs holding steady, coal stays one of the cheapest and most dependable fuels a power plant can buy.

06/05/2026

Thankful for President Trump's support of the industry!

There's good news out of Washington today for coal country. The federal government has committed nearly $700 million to American coal — including upgrades to keep 13 plants running across ten states, with Kentucky right in the mix. It's backing for the men and women who keep our lights on, and a reminder that the country still counts on what they do. 🇺🇸

06/03/2026

Kentucky will receive $69.5 million in federal abandoned mine land reclamation grants for fiscal year 2026 — the nation's fourth-largest share, allocated by historic coal production. Announced May 18 by the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, the money puts reclaimed mine land back to work for manufacturing, energy, and new infrastructure.

06/01/2026

U.S. coal exports are projected to rise about 5% in 2026, an increase of roughly 4 million short tons, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration's May Short-Term Energy Outlook. Those exports include both the metallurgical coal that makes steel and the thermal coal that powers plants overseas.

05/29/2026

Anglo American has agreed to sell its Australian steelmaking coal mines to Dhilmar Limited for up to $3.875 billion — $2.3 billion upfront, the rest tied to future met coal prices. The deal puts a hard number on what high-grade metallurgical reserves are worth as steelmaking feedstock.

05/27/2026

S&P Global reports grid power flowing to U.S. data centers rose 22% last year and could reach 17% of all U.S. electricity by 2030. A new study from North Carolina State University and partners finds utilities are turning in part to underutilized coal plants to meet that round-the-clock demand — dispatchable capacity that runs day and night, regardless of weather. That power is already built and on the grid.

05/25/2026

On Memorial Day, the Kentucky Coal Association honors the men and women who served. For generations, the coal mined in Kentucky's mountains has helped power the nation through its hardest years, and the mining communities that produced it have sent their own to serve in the US military. Today we honor their service.

05/22/2026

Per EIA's May STEO, electric-power coal inventories are projected to grow 12% to 123 million short tons by year-end 2026, rebuilding stocks ahead of winter peak. Coal's share of U.S. electricity generation holds at 17% in 2025 and 16% in 2026 — the dispatchable baseload backstop for grid operators across MISO, PJM, and SERC.

05/21/2026

Free public viewing today, 2–8pm, UPIKE HPE Building.

A coal seam is an ancient forest pressed into stone — layer on layer of Eastern Kentucky, built up over millions of years into the black band at the center of the region's story. It is the subject K–12 students have spent all week exploring at the 2026 CEDAR Regional Coal Fair.

The fair opens to the public one final time today, Thursday, May 21, from 2:00 to 8:00 PM on the 7th-floor pavilion at the University of Pikeville. Admission is free.

207 projects fill the hall — students from six Eastern Kentucky school districts and three private academies, working on the science of coal and reclamation, its history, and the future of the communities it built, across seven subject areas.

Come spend an hour and see what the next generation of Eastern Kentucky is working on.

UPIKE HPE Building · 7th Floor Pavilion (Kentucky College of Optometry)