US Coal

Dec 4, 2018 - EIA expects total U.S. coal consumption in 2018 to fall to 691 million short tons (MMst)

U.S. coal production increased 6.4% year over year to 774.6 million short tons (MMst). U.S. coal consumption 

decreased 1.9% from the 2016 level to 716.9 MMst.

The United States is a net exporter of coal. However, some coal is still imported, mostly for power plants on the eastern and southern coasts of the country, where it is cheaper to ship in coal by sea from South America than transport it from mines in the northern and western United States.¹

In the second quarter of 2018, the U.S. exported 30.9 million short tons of coal (17% of total production)² to dozens of countries around the world. The largest markets were India (15.6% of all exports), Netherlands (9.2%), South Korea (8.2%), Japan (8.0%), and Brazil (7.0%).²

In the second quarter of 2018, the U.S. imported 1.5 million short tons of coal, mostly from Colombia (68%), Indonesia (17%), and Canada (14%).²

https://www.americangeosciences.org/critical-issues/faq/how-much-coal-does-us-export-and-import

Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader