This summer’s rising coal generation in the U.S. underscores global reality: the security, reliability and affordability of coal won’t be easily replaced. Even in nations and on electricity grids that have actively worked to push coal aside – such as the U.S. – the remaining coal fleet continues to underpin efforts to keep the lights on and ACs running. With inflation pushing up the cost of necessities of all kinds, the affordability provided by coal is helping check power prices on those grids that are lucky enough to still have significant coal capacity.
How is that both California and Texas – the two wealthiest states in the wealthiest nation on earth – can’t seem to keep the power on? Or, how is that electricity reliability in the United States, in the 21st century, seems to suddenly be getting worse when it should be getting better? According to two members of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), one current and one former, an important part of the answer is wholesale market failure and the inability to properly value the resources that ensure reliability.
 
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When Senator Manchin talks, or tweets, Washington listens. And last week when he took Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm to see West Virginia’s energy industry up close, he made clear his vision for coal in the energy transition. He tweeted, "Maintaining good-paying traditional energy jobs as we reduce emissions is possible through innovation, not elimination. @NETL_DOE [the National Energy Technology Laboratory] is developing tech including carbon capture, utilization and storage that can help us balance the economy & environment while meeting our energy needs."
Join us for a fun-packed meeting!
Speakers
Wei Wang, Executive Director, RRC
Anthony Marchese, CEO, Texas Mineral Resources
Legislative Panel
Ty Embrey, Mike Nasi, Mance Zachary
Cheryl Allison, Education Director
Activities
Golf and Fishing
Silent and Live Auctions
Sponsorships and Exhibits available!
Good Friends, Good Food, Good Fun!
Contact Cathy Pierce for more information:
Email, click here. | P: 903-238-6624
Learn more!
We are in the process of developing a social media campaign for our Facebook and Twitter social media channels – #TheFutureIsBright – to highlight how you, a TMRA member, are supplying the power and materials that ensure a bright future as we move through 2021.
Email Christian Goff at cgoff@pureenergypr.com to learn more or to submit your photo.
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You can Sponsor A Teacher anytime during the year. This Sponsor A Teacher program gives all members/companies an opportunity to support TMRA’s successful teacher education program. A contribution of $1,500 will sponsor one teacher for a workshop that covers teaching materials, meals, lodging, etc. This is your chance to promote our industry by sponsoring a teacher! To learn more, click below.
The federal government could get carbon capture projects up and running faster if it issued new rules, tweaked its permitting requirements, and supported the industry with its buying power, the White House Council on Environmental Quality said recently in a report to Congress. The report offers a menu of policy options for lawmakers to mull as they consider ways of promoting carbon capture, utilization, and sequestration (CCUS) technologies, which remove carbon from the air.
Coal company Westmoreland Mining Holdings LLC added the latest request to a stack of petitions asking the U.S. Supreme Court to weigh in on EPA’s authority to regulate greenhouse gases.
One of the most significant challenges in mining is miners’ dust exposure, which is why personal and environmental monitoring of dust is used in mines. However, the regulatory-approved monitoring process from the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) can often take weeks to obtain results. This can make it difficult to pinpoint when, where and how exposure to dust is occurring. This is why Peabody has been testing a new, real-time method of dust monitoring at surface locations to be used in conjunction with MSHA-approved processes.
Cyberattacks are of increasing concern, with cyber criminals and state actors carefully selecting vulnerable targets to maximize disruption. Increasingly, these hacking events target physical infrastructure, aiming to cut access to U.S. energy sources and utilities. There’s no doubt that attacks on energy infrastructure will continue, impacting U.S. communities, the economy and our nation’s security. Fortunately, a diverse energy portfolio—one that includes coal—can reduce that risk. Coal is the insurance policy the U.S. grid needs, providing storable, dispatchable fuel diversity and security for our nation.
On July 13, enCore Energy Corp. hosted 14 elementary, middle, and high school teachers at their Kingsville Dome project. Thank you enCore Energy Corp. for being such an integral part of our award-winning Teacher Workshop program, which teaches educators the true facts about mining. We appreciate you! Learn more about TMRA's Teacher Workshops below.
Did you know that Texas lignite mining is a multistep process: 1) find the lignite 2) uncover the lignite 3) remove the lignite and 4) reclaim the land – to "as good as or better than" it was. Click below to learn more about Texas mining.
How we manage the energy transition will have huge implications for the reliability and affordability of our energy supply and the millions of workers who are the foundation of our current energy system. While there are strong voices — including from labor — calling for caution during the transition, the President Joe Biden administration has made it clear it wants to hit the accelerator. And to many observers, it is making promises about jobs it can’t keep.
The Biden administration recently set an ambitious goal of slashing emissions 50% by 2030 and being carbon neutral by 2060. The President’s plan to combat climate change hinges on electrification and advanced energy technologies that rely heavily on minerals. To achieve this ambitious goal, policymakers must address the disconnect between the growing demand for minerals and policy proposals that will exacerbate our supply constraints and increase our over reliance on imports.
In an exciting new development for the coal industry, at the joint West Virginia Coal Association/West Virginia Coal Mining Institute Meeting held in Morgantown, WV., last week, it was announced that: "coal can not only meet the Biden Administration’s aggressive requirements for greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction, but it can actually be burnt with net-negative emissions." This was described in a presentation by Ken Humphreys, CFO and Senior Vice President, Technology and Finance, Net-Negative CO2 Baseload Power, Inc.
Stay Connected with TMRA Social Media!
We are building our social media presence and we invite all TMRA members and interested parties to join the conversation! Click below to get started today!
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Jan 2021
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TMRA has added events for 2021 to its meeting calendar that now goes through the end of the year. Click below to see all events and stay updated!
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We are always looking to share news that is relevant and timely for TMRA members. If you have a submission and would like more information on deadlines, the type of content we are looking for and how to submit an idea, please reach out to Senior Content Strategist at rryals@naylor.com!
As the owner of a business that is influenced by the mining economy, you have an interest in the issues that impact the industry. TMRA helps to keep members updated and informed. Please click below to learn more about the many benefits of being a TMRA member.
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