Tunnel Ridge Coal Mine Ramping Up Operations in West Virginia

---

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Tunnel Ridge Mining LLC, a subsidiary of Alliance Resource Partners LP (NASDAQ:ARLP) (Tulsa, Oklahoma), has started operations at the company's underground Tunnel Ridge Coal Mine near Triadelphia, West Virginia. In 2011, the mine produced 275,227 tons in the testing stage and plans to ramp up to 5.5 million tons per year by next quarter.

The mine is coming online during tough times for coal miners as prolonged low natural gas prices are causing power generators to switch from coal to natural gas-fired power generation. Companies are starting to cancel coal contracts. Some experts claim U.S. coal production will drop by as much as 10% in 2012.

The Tunnel Ridge mine will utilize longwall mining equipment and is located at the former Valley Camp coal mine site, which ceased operations more than 30 years ago. The mine was designed by Matrix Design Group (Newburgh, Indiana). The engineering and construction firm on the project was Taggart Global LLC (Canonsburg, Pennsylvania).

In 2009, Alliance Resource Partners completed the $275 million Riverview Mine in Kentucky.

Industrial Info is tracking more than $2 billion worth of coal mining projects in the U.S. that are under construction. West Virginia accounts for about 25% of the coal mining projects under construction in the U.S., with six major projects under way. Arch Coal (NYSE:ACI), for example, is constructing the Tygart #1 underground coal mine near Grafton, West Virginia. The 3.5 million-ton-per-year longwall mine is expected to come online during the first quarter of 2014. Construction of the $325 million project began last year.

View Plant Profile - 1056672
View Project Report - 24000834 24001075

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.