I’d be curious to know how much of the coal from that region was ever used to generate electricity for public utilities. My understanding is that Pennsylvania coal was used almost entirely as fuel for steam locomotives, and as coking fuel for steel mills. I suspect the transition from steam to diesel locomotives and the decline of the steel industry in Pennsylvania were bigger factors in the decline of the anthracite coal industry than anything else.
I’m curious too, and any native, old-timer here could tell you with authority, but I know more about racehorses than I do about coal.
(That said, I know a Starnesville when I see one, and central PA, sitting on an enormous field of black gold, is full of them.)
Profile of the Pennsylvania Coal Industry
Reserves
The Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates the demonstrated US coal reserve base at 496 billion tons distributed geographically among 31 states; with 27 billion tons in Pennsylvania. At current consumption levels, coal supplies will be available for at least the next 250 years. In fact, on an energy equivalent basis, the 5,441 quadrillion BTUs of US coal surpasses the 4,446 quadrillion BTUs of Middle East oil.
Production
Pennsylvania is the fourth leading coal producing state, mining 68 million tons last year. Almost 80 percent of this output came from 39 underground mines and the remainder from 377 surface mining and reprocessing sites.
Economic Value
In addition, the Pennsylvania mining industry constitutes a major source of employment and tax revenue. Last year, it created 49,100 direct and indirect jobs with a total payroll in excess of $2.2 billion. Taxes on these wages netted over $700 million to the coffers of federal, state and local governments.
Markets
The steam coal market is the largest customer for Pennsylvania coal. About 75 percent of Pennsylvania’s annual bituminous coal production goes to the electricity utility sector.
Coal has been and will continue to be the major fuel of choice for electricity generation. Fifty percent of the United State’s electricity is generated by coal and coal accounted for 56 percent of the total amount of electricity produced in Pennsylvania last year.
Source: http://www.pacoalassn.com/pa-coal-industry-profile.html