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news continued immediate impact" on processing permit applications, "and will set a template as we look into the future." MSHA's 'Examinations' Rule for Underground Coal Mines Goes into Effect The Mine Safety and Health Administration's final rule "Examinations of Work Areas in Underground Coal Mines for Violations of Mandatory Health or Safety Standards," which was published April 6, 2012, in the Federal Register, became effective August 6. The rule requires mine operators to identify and correct hazardous conditions and violations of nine health and safety standards that pose the greatest risk to miners. The rule requires that, during pre-shift, supplemental, on- shift and weekly examinations, underground coal mine operators, in addition to examining for hazardous conditions as in the exist- Tug Valley Mining Institute Awards Scholarships At the June 21, 2012, Tug Valley Mining Institute (TVMI) dinner meeting, four 2012 scholarship recipients were named. The two top $6,000 scholarship awards went to Arionna Hatfield, Belfry High School and Tyler Williams, Belfry High School. Two $1,500 scholarship awards went to Whitney Horton, Mingo Central High School and Christin Crum, Regional Christian School. The guest speaker was West Virginia first lady Joanne Tomblin. She encouraged the scholars to persevere and work hard to achieve their higher educational dreams. Mine Lifeline sponsored the meeting and Jeremy Abraham shared encouraging words for the coal industry regarding the political storm it is currently facing. Over the last 16 years, TVMI has awarded 94 students $213,250 in scholarship monies. The TVMI scholarship is open to students from Mingo, Logan, Wayne, Pike and Martin counties. The applications are available in November of each year and may be obtained from Marsha Williams at the First National Bank of Williamson or from the TVMI website, www.tugvalleymi.org. ing regulations, examine for violations of the nine specific health and safety standards. The rule also requires operators to record the actions taken to correct hazardous conditions, as in the exist- ing regulations, and violations of the nine standards. Additionally, operators must review with mine examiners, on a quarterly basis, citations and orders issued in areas where pre-shift, supplemen- tal, on-shift and weekly examinations are required. The nine standards address ventilation, methane, roof control, combustible materials, rock dust, equipment guarding and other safeguards. They are consistent with the standards emphasized in MSHA's 'Rules to Live By' initiative and the types of violations cited in MSHA's accident investigation report on the Upper Big Branch mine explosion as contributing to the cause of that deadly accident. NRG and GenOn to Merge NRG Energy and GenOn Energy plan to merge, creating the largest competitive generator in the United States with a diverse fleet of approximately 47,000 megawatts (mw) with asset concen- trations in the East, Gulf Coast and West, and a combined enter- prise value of $18 billion. "This combination ushers in a new era of scale, scope, and market and fuel diversification in the competitive power indus- try," said NRG President and CEO David Crane, who will continue his current positions with the combined company. "The greater depth and breadth gained through the combination with GenOn will put NRG in a uniquely strong position to fulfill the needs of American energy consumers in the 21st century." "NRG and GenOn are a great fit geographically and opera- tionally, and we look forward to working together to capture effi- ciencies from the scale associated with the transaction to deliver enhanced value to our Investors," said GenOn Chairman and CEO Edward R. Muller, who will join the NRG board of directors as vice chairman. The combined company will retain the name NRG Energy. An expanded core generation fleet will enable the combined compa- ny to duplicate in multiple core markets (principally in the East). The combined company will be dual headquartered, with finan- cial and commercial headquarters in Princeton, N.J., and opera- tional headquarters in Houston, Texas. Peabody, Kinder Morgan Sign Gulf Coast Coal Export Agreements Pictured from left to right: Bud Baldwin, president, TVMI; Whitney Horton, Mingo Central High; Tyler Williams, Belfry High; Arionna Hatfield, Belfry High; West Virginia first lady Joanne Tomblin; and Ray Scites, treasurer, TVMI. (Not pic- tured: Christin Crum, Regional Christian) Peabody Energy and Kinder Morgan Energy Partners announced long-term agreements to secure and expand the Gulf Coast export platform for Peabody's Colorado, Powder River Basin and Illinois Basin coals. Under the multi-terminal agreements, Peabody would gain additional access to export coal at Kinder Morgan's Deepwater Terminal and Houston Bulk Terminal (HBT) near Houston, and its International Marine Terminal (IMT) in Myrtle Grove, La., through 2021 and 2020, respectively. This would increase Peabody's Gulf Coast export capacity to approximately 5 million to 7 million tons of coal per year between 2014 and 2020. Peabody has also secured a rail service agreement with Union Pacific to transport the company's Colorado coal to Kinder Morgan's Houston terminals. The agreements allow for throughput flexibility among Kinder Morgan's Gulf Coast export terminals to serve Peabody's international customer base. The additional capac- ity also supports the planned expansion of Kinder Morgan's Gulf 10 www.coalage.com 100th Anniversary Special Issue August 2012