Coal exports head for new high; India latest buyer

As U.S. coal exports head for a new record, a New Jersey energy company has signed a deal to sell Kentucky and West Virginia coal to India. Under the deal, Kentucky coal companies will export about 9 million tons of coal annually for 25 years to India.

The deal between India's Abhijeet Group and FSJ Energy LLC comes on the heels of a massive two-day power failure across India in late July when 600 million people lost electricity. The blackout was attributed to the collapse of three regional grids. UPI reports that about 70 percent of India's electricity comes from coal-fired power plants and while India does produce coal, domestic production cannot keep up with demand. (Read more) See the story as reported from FirstPost, an Indian newspaper, here.

U.S. coal exports "are rising because U.S. demand for coal is falling as electric utilities burn more natural gas, which has plummeted in price, instead of coal," CBS Money Watch reports. "At the same time, demand for coal is rising in developing countries such as China and India as those countries work to bring electricity to millions who don't have it." (Read more)