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The instruments are readily accessible from outside the refuge alternative. The agency also outlined changes to procedures and training in the safety alert, including self-contained self-rescuers (SCSRs), training and airlock purging. Recently completed National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) research has shown that carbon monoxide can exceed safe levels inside the airlock, and, therefore, miners must continue to use their SCSRs while purging the airlock. Miners must not remove their SCSRs until all miners are in the main chamber and the air monitoring devices indicate that it is safe to do so. Also, mine operators must train miners on the benefits provided by breathable air, harmful gas removal, and air monitoring components; the location and use of air monitoring components; and the use of SCSRs when entering a refuge alternative. Finally, refuge alternative manufacturers are revising airlock purging procedures based on the number of air changes rather than targeting a specific carbon monoxide level in the airlock. NIOSH research has shown that waiting for the carbon monoxide concentration to reach a specific level may result in insufficient air for purging the airlock when subsequent groups of miners enter the airlock. MSHA said it is working with refuge alternative manufacturers to update their training manuals to address these changes to the purg- ing procedures. Mine operators must train miners in the revised purging procedures when they receive the updates from refuge alter- native manufacturers. Vectren Grows Coal Production Vectren Corp., an Indiana-based electric and natural gas utility, expects to produce nearly 2.5 million additional tons of high-sulfur thermal coal in 2014, increasing total production to 7.3 million tons, thanks to the continued ramp-up of its new Oaktown No. 2 underground mine and productivity improvements at its Prosperity deep mine. Oaktown 2, located near the company's Oaktown No. 1 under- ground mine in Knox County, started up last spring. With a full year of production under Oaktown 2's belt, Vectren is forecasting the two Oaktown mines to turn out more than 5 million tons this year. The rest will come from Prosperity, a Pike County mine that has struggled recently with thin coal seams and difficult mining conditions. But a revised mining plan implemented last year at Prosperity is bearing fruit, according to Jerry Benkert, Vectren executive vice presi- dent and CFO. "We are pleased with the changes we have made, but we want to make more improvement in costs at Prosperity," Benkert told analysts during a February 20 conference call to discuss fourth-quarter and 2013 earnings. "Obviously, mining conditions change all the time in an underground mine, but we are pleased where we are." Carl Chapman, Vectren chairman, president and CEO, said that, operationally, the company intends to "ramp up to full production at the second Oaktown mine, Oaktown 2, and continue to drive down operational costs at Prosperity." The three mines are owned by the com- pany's Vectren Fuels subsidiary and are operated by contract miners. Chapman said Vectren already has committed the sale of 6.8 million tons of coal in 2014, or about 90% of its projected sales of 7.6 million tons, at a price of $44.50/ton. Vectren expects to sell about 2.1 million tons of coal to its electric utility, Vectren South, this year. And, the company has sold about 5.5 million tons, or about 70% of its anticipated sales, in 2015 at a price of $45.50/ton. Looking ahead, Vectren continues to believe the Illinois Basin will benefit from reduced coal volumes in Central Appalachia. Scrubbers are being installed on larger, more efficient power plants by electric utilities, the company said, boosting the demand for high-sulfur Illinois Basin coal. Benkert said Vectren is seeking state regulatory approval to spend $70 million to $90 million on pollution controls at its coal- burning power plants to comply with the Environmental Protection Agency's new Mercury and Air Toxics Standard (MATS) rule that takes effect in April 2015. Vectren's coal mining sector lost $16 million in 2013, but the compa- ny is forecasting a loss of only $4 million in 2014 before possibly turning a profit in 2015 and beyond. Duke Energy Exits Merchant Power Business in Midwest Duke Energy Corp., the nation's largest electric utility company, is selling ownership stakes in 13 coal-burning and natural gas- fired power plants in the Midwest representing 6,600 megawatts n e w s c o n t i n u e d C A L E N D A R O F E V E N T S April 15-17, 2014: 116 th National Western Mining Conference & Exhibition , Colorado Convention Center, Denver, Colo. Contact: Jody Gibbs, Colorado Mining Association marketing direc- tor; Email: jgibbs@coloradomining.org /; Tel: 303-575-9199. April 29-May 1, 2014: Coal Prep 2014 , Lexington, Ky. Contact: Penton; Tel: 800-925- 5007; Web: www.coalprepshow.com. May 11-14, 2014: CIM 2014 Convention , Vancouver, British Columbia. Contact: Lise Bujold, director of events; Tel: 514-939-2710 ext. 1308; Email: lbujold@cim.org; Web: www.cim.org/en.aspx. June 12-13, 2014: MEMSA Technical Symposium, Sheraton Sand Key, Clearwater Beach, Fla. Contact: www.miningelectrical.org/this-year-s-meeting.html. June 20-22, 2014: Seminar on Sustainable Development in Indian Mineral & Earth Resources Sector , New Delhi, India. Contact: Faculty of Engineering and Technology, AKS University; Web: www.aksuniversity.ac.in. June 29- July 1, 2014: 110 th Rocky Mountain Coal Mining Institute Conference and Annual Meeting, Keystone Resort and Lodge, Keystone, Colo. Contact: RMCMI; Tel: 303-948-3300; Fax: 303-954-9004; Email: mail@rmcmi.org; Web: www.rmcmi.org. July 22-24, 2014: Queensland Mining & Engineering Exhibition 2014 , Mackay Showground, Mackay, Queensland, Australia. Contact: Tel: +1 201-251-2600; Fax: +1 201 251 2760; Web: www.queenslandminingexpo.com.au. August 2-8, 2014: 10 th Mine Ventilation Congress , Sun City, South Africa. Contact: IMVC 2014 Congress Secretariat; Tel: 27 (0)21 683 2934; Fax: 27 (0)21 683 0816; Email: info@imvc2014.org; Web: www.imvc2014.org. September 23-25, 2014: IMEX 2014 , Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nev. Contact: Tim Fearney, show director. Tel: +1 678-822-9804; Email: tfearney@min- ing-media.com; Web: www.imex2014.com. October 29-31, 2014: M&E; Indonesia 2014 , Jakarta International Expo; Contact: Tel: +1 201-251-2600; Fax: +1 201 251 2760; Web: www.miningandengineeringin- do.com/. 14 www.coalage.com March 2014 CA_pg04-23_V2_CA_pg06-23 3/12/14 12:31 PM Page 14