Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
Tough coal market means big loss for Alpha Natural
NEW YORK (AP) — Coal producer Alpha Natural Resources Inc. said Wednesday it lost $2.2 billion in the second quarter as the industry struggled to compete with cheap natural gas and demand waned in some key markets.
Alpha recorded about $2.5 billion in pretax charges for restructuring and the declining value of some assets. But even without those charges, its loss was larger than Wall Street expected.
Revenue rose 15 percent to $1.85 billion but that also came in below expectations.
The coal industry has been battered this year by a combination of factors: Many U.S. utilities are favoring cheap natural gas to generate electricity instead of coal. Mild weather further reduced demand. And recession in many European countries combined with a slowdown in once red-hot Asian growth stifled exports. Alpha mines thermal coal used for power generation and metallurgical coal, used to produce steel.
Read more: http://www.seattlepi.com/business/article/Tough-coal-market-means-big-loss-for-Alpha-Natural-3771544.php#ixzz23NP4OKWm
Alpha recorded about $2.5 billion in pretax charges for restructuring and the declining value of some assets. But even without those charges, its loss was larger than Wall Street expected.
Revenue rose 15 percent to $1.85 billion but that also came in below expectations.
The coal industry has been battered this year by a combination of factors: Many U.S. utilities are favoring cheap natural gas to generate electricity instead of coal. Mild weather further reduced demand. And recession in many European countries combined with a slowdown in once red-hot Asian growth stifled exports. Alpha mines thermal coal used for power generation and metallurgical coal, used to produce steel.
Read more: http://www.seattlepi.com/business/article/Tough-coal-market-means-big-loss-for-Alpha-Natural-3771544.php#ixzz23NP4OKWm