Some observers are warning that as Beijing clings to more coal to construct its new economy, America may become a key provider of the fuel source—at its own economic peril.
“Given U.S. coal resources and the absence of a real clean economy policy strategy from Washington, the U.S. could easily wind up simply auctioning off our mineral wealth to China while losing the chance to become the world’s leading exporter of high-tech, Made-in-the-USA, clean energy technologies,” a critic of the coal export plan told SolveClimate News.
Critics contend that the boom is just beginning and caution that deeper U.S. involvement in the Asian coal trade will boost the cost of coal as domestic prices get increasingly linked to global commodity prices.
Several coal companies with stakes in Western mines are said to be following Ambre’s lead in expanding terminals for coal exports along the Columbia River, including Peabody Coal, Union Pacific and Cloud Peak Energy.