Arch Resources Coal Reserves And Production Numbers

An underground mine. Pixabay Image.

This article presents the active mining complexes of Arch Resources located primarily in the U.S.

We will go over the coal reserves and production numbers of mines owned and operated by Arch Resources.

Before we go into the details of the mines, let’s briefly talk about the company.

Arch Resources (NYSE:ARCH) is one of the largest metallurgical coal producers in the U.S.

According to the company’s 2022 annual report, Arch Resources has a market share of about 12% in the U.S. for metallurgical coal, which was estimated to be around 65 million tons in 2022.

All of the company’s metallurgical coal is produced at operations located in West Virginia, an area well-known for metallurgical coal production in the U.S.

While Arch Resources’ focus is on the metallurgical market, it also produces thermal coal, a different type of coal used primarily for electric power generation.

Arch Resources’ thermal mining operations in the U.S. are located in Wyoming and Colorado.

Arch Resources’ total thermal coal shipment volume came in at roughly 70 million tons or a massive 90% of total volume in 2022, according to this article – Arch Resources Thermal And Metallurgical Coal Sales Figures.

As of Dec 31, 2022, Arch Resources operated 7 active mines located in 3 of the major coal-producing regions of the U.S.

That said, let’s head out to the following topics.

Arch Resources’ Metallurgical Mines

Data Presented In The Following Table Is Up To Date Until Dec 31, 2022.

Arch Resources owns and operates 4 metallurgical mines which are Leer, Leer South, Beckley, and Mountain Laurel.

All of the mines are located in West Virginia but in a different county.

These metallurgical mining complexes were active and in operation as of Dec 31, 2022, according to the company’s 2022 annual report.

Among the 4 metallurgical mines, Leer is the largest and most productive, occupying approximately 93,300 acres that are considered part of the Tygart Valley area.

Arch Resources’ Thermal Mines

Data Presented In The Following Table Is Up To Date Until Dec 31, 2022.

For thermal mines, Arch Resources owns and operates 3 mining complexes in the U.S., located primarily in Wyoming and Colorado.

The thermal mines are Black Thunder, Coal Creek, and West Elk.

They were active and in operation as of Dec 31, 2022, according to the company’s 2022 annual report.

Among the 3 thermal mining complexes, Black Thunder is the most productive and largest, having an area spanning 35,000 acres in Campbell County.

Arch Resources’ Underground Mines

Data Presented In The Following Table Is Up To Date Until Dec 31, 2022.

The majority of mines run by Arch Resources are underground mines.

In fact, all of Arch Resources’ metallurgical mines are of underground type.

West Elk is the only thermal mine that is operated underground.

The mining techniques employed in Arch Resources’ underground mines are longwall and continuous mining.

Arch Resources’ Surface Mines

Data Presented In The Following Table Is Up To Date Until Dec 31, 2022.

Arch Resources’ Black Thunder and Coal Creek mines are the only ones using surface mining methods.

None of the company’s metallurgical mines employs surface mining.

The mining equipment used in Arch Resources’ surface mining operations can be a dragline and/or shovel or truck.

Arch Resources’ Railroad Used – CSX Transportation

Data Presented In The Following Table Is Up To Date Until Dec 31, 2022.

These are Arch Resources’ mine complexes that use CSX Transportation to ship the coal.

In fact, all of the company’s underground metallurgical mines use CSX Transportation.

Before being loaded into the train, all metallurgical coal is processed through a preparation plant and then passed through a loadout facility.

The majority of Arch Resources’ loadout capacity is capable of loading a 15,000-ton train in less than 4 hours.

Arch Resources’ Railroad Used – UP And BN Transportation

Data Presented In The Following Table Is Up To Date Until Dec 31, 2022.

Arch Resources’ mining complexes that use the services of Union Pacific Railroad and Burlington Northern-Santa Fe Railway are all of the company’s thermal mines such as the Black Thunder, Coal Creek, and West Elk.

While most metallurgical coal is processed before being loaded into a train, some thermal coal is shipped raw which is without going through any processing step.

This type of thermal coal is loaded into the train as soon as it is mined via a loadout facility.

The highest capacity of a loadout facility is the one located at the Black Thunder mine and it can fully load a 15,000-ton train in about 2 hours.

Arch Resources’ Estimated Coal Reserves

Data Presented In The Following Table Is Up To Date Until Dec 31, 2022.

On a consolidated basis, Arch Resources’ coal reserves totaled 673 million tons as of Dec 31, 2022, for all of the mining complexes that the company owns and operates.

For metallurgical mining complexes, the Leer South mine is among the highest in terms of coal reserves, with proven and probable reserves topping 66.6 million tons as of Dec 31, 2022.

On the other hand, the Black Thunder is the largest in terms of coal reserves among all of the thermal mines owned and run by Arch Resources.

As of Dec 31, 2022, the proven and probable reserves of the Black Thunder mine were approximately 480 million tons.

On a side note, Arch Resources’ Coal Creek mine is set to be winding down soon as the coal reserves were set at nil as of Dec 31, 2022.

Arch Resources’ Reserves Ownership

Data Presented In The Following Table Is Up To Date Until Dec 31, 2022.

In terms of coal reserves ownership, they are owned or controlled entirely by Arch Resources.

Arch Resources’ Coal Quality Produced At The Mine

Data Presented In The Following Table Is Up To Date Until Dec 31, 2022.

Among the metallurgical mines, coal extracted from Beckley has the highest quality as it has the lowest volatile content compared to coal extracted from other metallurgical mines.

For example, coal extracted from mines such as Leer, Leer South, and Mountain Laurel has higher volatile content and therefore is lower in quality.

For thermal mines, Arch Resources’ West Elk produces the best coal as it gives significantly higher energy on a per-pound basis.

On the other hand, thermal coal extracted from Black Thunder is of the lowest quality as the energy released for coal extracted in this mine totals only 8900 BTU/lbs, the lowest among all the thermal mines owned and operated by Arch Resources.

Arch Resources’ Number Of Tons Sold

Data Presented In The Following Table Is Up To Date Until Dec 31, 2022.

In 2022, Arch Resources sold a total of 78 million tons of metallurgical and thermal coal from the 7 active mines that it operated and owned, representing a rise of 8% over 2021.

The total coal sold figures have been on the rise in the past 3 years, illustrating the growing demand for coal despite the pollution that coal produces and the world’s transition towards a greener future.

While Arc Resources has been winding down its thermal segment, the coal sold from the thermal segment still contributed the lion’s share of total coal volume, notably at 90% in 2022.

On the other hand, Arch Resources’ metallurgical coal sold totaled 7.8 million tons in 2022, representing about 10% of the total volume.

For the most productive metallurgical mine, Arc Resources’ Leer mine sits at the top, with roughly 4 million tons of coal sold in 2022.

Arch Resources sold roughly 62 million tons of thermal coal at the Black Thunder mine in 2022, making it the most productive thermal mine run and operated by the company.

Summary

To recap, Arch Resources owned and operated 7 active thermal and metallurgical mining complexes as of 2022.

While the company has been winding down its thermal operations, the majority of coal produced still comes primarily from the thermal segment.

Among the mines owned and operated by Arch Resources, Leer is the largest with an area that spans 93,300 acres.

From the point of coal reserves, Arch Resources had approximately 145 million tons of probable and proven metallurgical coal as of 2022 while thermal coal came in at 528 million tons.

References and Credits

1. All sales and financial figures presented in this article were obtained and referenced from Arch Resources’ reports, statements, SEC filings, earnings releases, etc., which are available in the following links:

a) ARCH Earnings Call Results

2. Featured images in this article are obtained from Pixabay.

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