Coal

Analysis & Projections

U.S. coal consumption from the Short-Term Energy
Outlook ›

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Short-Term Energy Outlook, monthly.
Warm weather and low natural gas prices dampen spot electricity prices this winter ›

The combination of one of the warmest winters (November-March) in decades and low spot natural gas prices contributed to low wholesale electric prices at major market locations during the winter of 2011-2012 (see chart below). Warm weather kept electric system load low across the East Coast and helped dampen the need for coal-fired generation. Natural gas generation was up significantly to take advantage of low natural gas prices. Reduced nuclear generation due to outages and reduced hydropower generation both served to moderate declining electricity prices in much of the country.

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Today in Energy, May 18, 2012.
U.S. coal production by quarter ›

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Quarterly Coal Report.
U.S. coal production in 2012 falls below five-year range ›

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Today in Energy, March 23, 2012.
Watch animation of international coal production ›

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Today in Energy, December 7, 2011.

Energy In Brief Articles

What is the role of coal in the United States?

Due to its relatively low cost and abundance, coal is used to generate about half of the electricity consumed in the United States. Coal is the largest domestically-produced source of energy. Coal use, however, results in higher amounts of carbon dioxide per unit of energy than the use of oil or natural gas.

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Coal Explained

Where our coal comes from

In 2010, the amount of coal produced at U.S. coal mines was 1,085.3 million short tons. Coal is mined in 26 States. Wyoming mines the most coal, followed by West Virginia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and Montana.

Use of electricity

Most of the electricity in the United States is produced using steam turbines. Coal is the most common fuel for generating electricity in the United States. In 2010, 45% of the Country's nearly 4 trillion kilowatthours of electricity used coal as its source of energy.

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Weekly Coal Production Report

This weekly report provides estimates for U.S. coal production by State based on railroad car loading data: the weekly version of the report contains data for the latest week; and the monthly version of the report contains data for the latest month.

Quarterly Coal Report

Released April 18, 2012

Provides detailed quarterly coal and coke data for October-December 2011 and aggregated quarterly historical coal and coke data for 2005 through 4th Quarter 2011. With the exception of coal production, and electric utility stocks and consumption, all data for 2011 are final.

Monthly Energy Review, Coal

Released April 27, 2012

This report includes monthly statistics for coal production, consumption by sector, imports, exports, stocks by sector, and waste coal supplied.

State-level coal estimates through 2010

Released March 23, 2012

Annual State-level estimates of consumption, prices, and expenditures for coal gas from the State Energy Data System.

Annual Energy Outlook 2012 Early Release Overview

Released January 23, 2012

In the AEO2012 Reference case, domestic coal production increases at an average rate of 0.3 percent per year, from 22.1 quadrillion Btu (1,084 million short tons) in 2010 to 23.5 quadrillion Btu (1,188 million short tons) in 2035.

Annual Coal Report

Released November 30, 2011

Provides final 2010 data for U.S. coal production, number of mines, prices, productivity, employment, productive capacity, and recoverable reserves. Final U.S. coal production for 2010 was 1,084.4 million short tons, about the same as the 2009 total of 1,074.9 million short tons.