Feb 19, 2020 3 min read

Corporate concerns are looming over big plans for one of Greene County’s biggest employers.

Construction of an impoundment for coal waste at Cumberland Mine, a $61 million project, is still on Contura Energy’s to-do list. Spending for that is still supposed to begin this year.

But the Tennessee-based owner of the mine has been streamlining costs, and last week Chief Executive Officer David Stetson, in a conference call with analysts, cited finances and the upcoming contract renewal with United Mine Workers of America employees as factors that could impact that capital improvement proposal.

Stetson, according to the Pittsburgh Business Times, also mentioned the possibility of selling Cumberland, the Franklin Township complex that primarily sources thermal coal – or steam coal – for production of electricity.

Coal, of course, is a beleaguered industry, limited by environmental requirements and beset by suppressed prices due to declining demand. Numerous mines and companies have shut down nationwide in recent years, as have coal-fired power plants.

Cumberland Mine, slightly west of Waynesburg, is still going, however. It employs more than 700 and ships more than six million tons of coal per year from its mine and preparation plant nearby.

Cumberland is Contura’s only Pennsylvania mine. The company, headquartered in Bristol, Tenn., also has 23 in West Virginia and eight in Virginia.

Contract negotiations with the UMWA workers at Cumberland began recently. Chuck Knisell, vice president of International District 2 in Uniontown, said the collective bargaining agreement “generally” lasts five years and the current pact will end July 31.

Knisell lamented the financial environment in which the talks are being conducted. “It’s simply the reality of what the steam coal market is, which is down. It’s difficult for investors to invest in steam coal. There’s money to be made in the steam coal market, but prices are down.

“We’re definitely in a huge slump. We hope natural gas prices go up, which would help. But right now, it’s survival of the fittest.”

He said Cumberland Mine has “a tremendous amount” of coal reserves.

As for the talks, Knisell said the union “is optimistic we’ll reach a good contract with Contura Energy and have long-term employment at Cumberland Mine.”

Contura was created in July 2016 as part of the bankruptcy reorganization of Alpha Natural Resources, the mine’s previous owner. Contura acquired certain coal assets from Alpha, including Cumberland Mine, as part of the restructuring plan in court.