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news continued Continued from pg 6... ture between Xstrata Coal Donkin Ltd. and Erdene Resource Development Corp. In association with the filing, Xstrata hosted com- munity meetings in both Donkin and Sydney, Nova Scotia. A decision is expected on the EIS by the second quarter of 2013. The Donkin pro- ject proposal includes the construction and operation of an under- ground coal mine with a lifespan in excess of 30 years. Underground operations would include multiple continuous miners producing approximately 3.6 million mtpy raw coal. A coal handling and prep plant capable of processing 2.75 million mtpy of clean coal. It is anticipated that the coal will be transported to international markets via a newly constructed barge-to-ship load-out facility. Xstrata still plans to sell its portion of project, as originally announced in April. Newcastle Exports Continue to Grow Asian demand for Australian coal remains strong. New South Wales Ports Minister Duncan Gay said total trade throughput for the 2011-12 financial year amounted to 128.6 million metric tons (mt), or an increase of 12.2 % on 2010-11. "Coal exports reached 121.9 million mt which was 13.6 million mt more than achieved in the 2010-11 financial year," Gay said. "The Asian region market was again the main export destination for coal with Japan, China, South Korea and Taiwan being the major customers." In related news, the Port of Newcastle opened a new $3.5 mil- lion operations center housing state-of-the-art maritime vessel tracking systems. "The Port of Newcastle is recognized as being the world's largest coal export port," Gay said. "This modern building ensures Newcastle Port Corp. will maintain its operational excel- lence and be able to handle increasing exports and imports. The three-story Port Center is built on the eastern side of the Pilot Station near the entrance of Newcastle harbor. Last Saar Coal Mine in Germany Closes The Bergwerk Saar coal mine in Ensdorf, Germany, was shut down June 29, 2012, Gettyreported. Operated by RAG AG, Bergwerk Saar is the last mine in the Saar region that has a mining tradition dating back to 1730. Together with the coal mines of the Ruhr region, the Saar mines played a crucial role in the industrialization of western Germany and once employed tens of thousands of miners. China Coal Majors Struggle Amid Falling Coal Prices The slowing economy and waning demand for coal have triggered an 11 consecutive-week price drop after a decade of robust development, arousing great concerns among China's coal enterprises, Xinhua Onlinereported. However, industry analysts believe the situation for the world's largest coal consumer won't last long. Stockpiles at the Qinhuangdao Port in Hebei province rose the most in six months on slowing demand. Data from the China Coal Transport and Distribution Association showed that coal with an energy value of 5,500 kilocalo- ries per kilogram slid by 1.96% to $100/mt after 10 weeks of decline. According to the CCTDA report, in the last two months, the price slumped 23% from the same period in 2011, indicating unusually weak industrial demand. Sales of coal resources in coal-rich regions such as Shanxi, Shaanxi and Inner Mongolia have been seriously affected as a result. ˛ 8 www.coalage.com the Tug River complex in eastern Kentucky and West Virginia, and the Deane and Rob Fork complexes in eastern Kentucky. The company's overall production during the second quarter was not significantly affected by the shutdowns. Rhino produced just over 1 million tons in the three months ended June 30, down slightly from 1.1 million tons in the first quarter of 2012. The com- pany remains on track to produce at least 4 million tons this year. During the latest quarter, Rhino produced 171,000 tons of steam coal and 99,000 tons of met coal in Central App. Northern Appalachia, with 477,000 tons of steam coal, was the company's most productive region in the second quarter. Rhino also produced 220,000 tons at its Castle Valley opera- tion in Utah, where the underground mine in June recorded its first 100,000 ton-plus sales month under Rhino's stewardship. Meanwhile, the Rhino Eastern joint venture between Rhino and Patriot Coal Co. produced 98,000 tons of met coal in the second quar- ter. Rhino Eastern is located in Raleigh and Wyoming counties, W.Va. In a July operational update, Rhino said the impact of Patriot's bank- ruptcy filing earlier this year on Rhino Eastern remained uncertain. Rhino said it expected the joint venture to continue normal operations. In a subsequent July filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, David Zatezalo, Rhino president and CEO, said the com- pany expected to settle its 2013 met coal contracts late in the third quar- ter of 2012. Zatezalo said the U.S. coal market is "cyclically depressed, and while our steam coal is well contracted through 2014, our metallur- gical coal is contracted annually." Pennsylvania Coal Groups Form Alliance Marshaling the resources of two coal advocacy groups, the newly formed Pennsylvania Coal Alliance aims to tell coal's story at a time when the black mineral is under attack on several fronts. The Alliance is the summer marriage between the venerable Pennsylvania Coal Association and Families Organized to Represent the Coal Economy (FORCE). They joined forces and tapped former Republican State Senator John Pippy to lead the consolidated effort. Pippy, 41, is a veteran legislator in the Keystone state, having served as senator from 2003 until his retirement from politics June 30 and, before that, pulling a seven-year stint in the state House of Representatives. Pippy is CEO of the Alliance. George Ellis, who served as president of the now-defunct coal association, stayed on as president of the Alliance and serves as the group's principal lobbyist. Ellis said Pippy's long tenure as a lawmaker, combined with his training as an environmental engineer, makes him "uniquely qualified to lead the Alliance as we begin a new chapter. It has become clear recently that we need a stronger, more unified voice as our industry works toward technical advances to become even cleaner—while remaining the most affordable energy sources for Pennsylvanians." The Alliance plans to protect and grow the state's coal industry that provides 9,000 direct mining jobs and 41,500 indirect jobs, generating $7.5 billion in economic benefit annually. Pennsylvania produces more than 60 million tons of coal a year. The industry applauded an executive order signed in July by Republican Governor Tom Corbett that is designed to expedite permitting decisions by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Management. "Permitting in many ways is taking a lot longer than it has in the past," Pippy said in an interview. "Through the executive order, we believe it definitely is a strong, positive step in the right direction. In some cases, it will have an 100th Anniversary Special Issue August 2012