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American Consolidated Natural Resources

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American Consolidated Natural Resources Inc.
Company typePrivate
IndustryCoal mining
Founded1988; 36 years ago (1988)
HeadquartersSt. Clairsville, Ohio
Key people
Robert E. Murray (founder)
ProductsCoal
Websitewww.acnrinc.com

American Consolidated Natural Resources,[1] previously known as Murray Energy, is a US-based coal mining company. It is the fourth largest coal producer in the country, and the largest privately-owned coal company.[2][a] Founded in 1988 by Robert E. Murray, the company filed for bankruptcy in 2019. The company gained notoriety following the collapse of the Crandall Canyon Mine in 2007, following a number of citations and fines for safety practices at the site.

According to The Guardian, Murray Coal was responsible for 0.15% of global industrial greenhouse gas emissions from 1988 to 2015.[3]

History

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Murray Energy was founded by Robert E. Murray in 1988 through the acquisition of the Powhatan No. 6 mine in Alledonia, Ohio. The company was established in nearby St. Clairsville, Ohio.[4][5] The Powhatan mine, which closed in 2016, was the only mine operated by a Murray Energy Corporation independent operating subsidiary that is unionized.[6][7] The company also operated the nearby Century Mine, which closed in 2022.[8] Murray Energy Corporation produces approximately 30 million tons of bituminous coal each year and employs approximately 3,000 people in the United States.[9]

In 2013 the company acquired Consol Energy Inc, consisting of five mines and a fleet of more than 600 barges and other ships.[10]

According to the company's website, as of 2019, they employed some 7,000 workers in the US and South America.[11] The company is headquartered in St. Clairsville, Ohio.[12] It is the largest privately owned coal company in the US, and fourth largest overall, with the three larger coal companies all being publicly traded rather than privately owned.[4]

Crandall Canyon Mine collapse

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In August 2007 six miners were trapped at the Crandall Canyon Mine in Utah, of which Murray Energy's independent operating subsidiary UtahAmerican Energy had been a part-owner for 12 months. Prior to the collapse, the Crandall Canyon Mine had received 64 violations and $12,000 in fines.[13][14][15] At the time, Murray Energy's owner, Robert, claimed that the safety violations were trivial and included violations such as not having enough toilet paper in the restroom.[13] However, some news agencies reported troubling violations at other Murray operations. CNN specifically cited Murray's Illinois Galatia mine, which had almost 3,500 safety citations in the prior two and a half years.[16]

On July 24, 2008, the U.S. government's Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) announced its highest penalty for coal mine safety violations, $1.85 million, for the collapse. The government fined Genwal Resources $1.34 million "for violations that directly contributed to the deaths of six miners last year," plus nearly $300,000 for other violations. The government also levied a $220,000 fine against a mining consultant, Agapito Associates, "for faulty analysis of the mine's design."[17]

Following the Crandall Canyon tragedy, the Mine Safety and Health Administration also was faulted by its parent agency, the U.S. Department of Labor, both for lax oversight before the collapse and for its handling of a haphazard rescue effort that left three more people dead.[18] An independent review of MSHA's role in Crandall Canyon by retired MSHA managers Earnest Teaster and Joseph Pavlovich, found that the agency failed to properly consider bounce activity in the mine prior to approving the mining plan, failed to properly evaluate the roof control plan and failed to follow established mine rescue protocols at all times at Crandall Canyon Mine. Specifically, the authors wrote that, "MSHA's failure to adequately evaluate the roof control plans contributed to the August 6 accident."[19] An independent review of MSHA's actions at Crandall Canyon also faults the agency for failing to control access to the mine, concluding that "MSHA improperly allowed media representatives and family members to enter the rescue area, and allowed an unlimited number of persons underground during the rescue operation."[19]

Bankruptcy

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Murray Energy announced in October 2019 that the company was filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and that Robert Murray would step down as CEO, but remain with the company as chairman of their board.[4] Murray was to be replaced by his nephew Robert Moore, formerly of Murray Energy subsidiary Foresight Energy, which is not part of the bankruptcy.[4][12] Murray Energy emerged from bankruptcy on September 16, 2020, selling almost all of its assets to a new holding company, now owned by its former creditors: American Consolidated Natural Resources Inc.[1][20] Robert Murray was Chairman of the Board of Directors for the new company until his death in October 2020.[1]

Funding of climate change denial

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The bankruptcy filing revealed that funding had been given by the company to a number of organisations that promote climate change denial. These include the Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow, the Center for the Study of Carbon Dioxide and Global Change, the International Climate Science Coalition, the Heartland Institute, and the Competitive Enterprise Institute.[21]

Notes

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  1. ^ The three larger coal US coal companies, Peabody Energy, Arch Coal, and Cloud Peak Energy, are all publicly traded rather than privately owned.[2]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Former coal CEO Robert Murray files for black lung benefits". ABC News. The Walt Disney Company. Associated Press. October 1, 2020. Archived from the original on October 2, 2020. Retrieved October 2, 2020.
  2. ^ a b Swart, Broghan (November 8, 2019). "Is Murray Energy the nation's largest coal company?". PolitiFact. Archived from the original on August 6, 2020. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  3. ^ "Guardian: Top 100 producers and their cumulative greenhouse gas emissions from 1988-2015". The Guardian. Archived from the original on January 18, 2021. Retrieved July 30, 2020.
  4. ^ a b c d Telford, Taylor; Grandoni, Dino (October 29, 2019). "Murray Energy files for bankruptcy as coal's role in U.S. power dwindles". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 7, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  5. ^ Stevens, Pippa (October 29, 2019). "Murray Energy joins growing list of coal companies to declare bankruptcy". CNBC. Archived from the original on November 5, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2019. Robert Murray began working in coal mines at 16. He went on to found the St. Clairsville, Ohio-based company in 1988 and grew the company through a series of acquisitions.
  6. ^ Junkins, Casey (August 23, 2017). "Murray Energy Powhatan No. 6 Mine Officially Closed Near Beallsville". Wheeling News-Register. Archived from the original on November 12, 2019. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  7. ^ "Murray Energy Powhatan No. 6 Mine Closing". Coal Age. May 4, 2016. Archived from the original on August 24, 2017. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  8. ^ Defrank, Robert A. (May 5, 2022). "Century Mine To Close in June; More Than 100 Jobs To Be Lost". The Intelligencer and Wheeling News Register. Archived from the original on May 5, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  9. ^ Egan, Matt (August 22, 2017). "Trump rejects cry for help from coal execs". CNN Money. Archived from the original on June 29, 2018. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  10. ^ "Consol selling West Virginia coal mines to Murray Energy". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The Associated Press . October 28, 2013. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  11. ^ "Company Overview". Murray Energy. Archived from the original on November 12, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  12. ^ a b Brady, Jeff (October 29, 2019). "Major Coal Producer And Trump Booster Files For Bankruptcy". NPR. Archived from the original on November 13, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  13. ^ a b Gehrke, Robert (Aug. 8, 2007). "Murray's meltdown: Angry, rambling briefing draws rebukes" Archived November 12, 2019, at the Wayback Machine. The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved on August 14, 2007.
  14. ^ "Murray's Illinois mine has 2,787 violations since 2005" Archived 2007-10-11 at the Wayback Machine. The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved on August 10, 2007.
  15. ^ Goldman, Russell (Aug. 8, 2007). "Mine Owner Faces Old Foes After Collapse" Archived July 7, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. ABC News. Retrieved on August 10, 2007.
  16. ^ "CNN Delves Into Robert Murray's Safety Record...17 Days Later " Archived March 8, 2017, at the Wayback Machine. The Huffington Post. Retrieved on August 30, 2010.
  17. ^ "Feds blame mine operator for fatal collapse". CNN. July 24, 2008. Archived from the original on January 13, 2013. Retrieved November 12, 2019.
  18. ^ Year after mine collapse, many failures clear, Associated Press, Aug. 6, 2008, Retrieved 2008-08-06
  19. ^ a b Teaster, E., Palovich, J., (July, 2008) Independent review of MSHA's actions at Crandall Canyon Mine; U.S. Department of Labor
  20. ^ "MURRAY ENERGY EMERGES FROM BANKRUPTCY AS AMERICAN CONSOLIDATED NATURAL RESOURCES". Coal Age. Steve Fiscor. September 17, 2020. Archived from the original on October 20, 2020. Retrieved October 2, 2020.
  21. ^ Friedman, Lisa (December 17, 2019). "A Coal Baron Funded Climate Denial as His Company Spiraled Into Bankruptcy". The New York Times. Retrieved February 19, 2020.
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