West Virginia is dangling tax incentives for coal miners in an attempt to revive operations in the heart of Coal Country. At least one miner, Contura Energy Inc., isn’t swayed just yet.
Contura runs 23 surface and underground mines in the state, and incentives signed into law last week haven’t yet persuaded the company to open more, Chief Executive Officer Kevin Crutchfield said.
“We’ve got a pretty solid plan for West Virginia as we look ahead with the projects that we’ve already announced,” he said Wednesday in a call with analysts, adding that the company would rather “look at projects on their own merits.”
West Virginia Governor Jim Justice signed bills on March 27 that established a rebate for coal-mining equipment and reduced a key tax on the industry.
While Arch Coal Inc. rallied on the move and trade groups praised it, Contura’s response stands to highlight the challenges policy makers face in bolstering an industry trying to grapple with a shrinking market. Demand for the fuel is declining in the U.S., and companies have little interest in expanding — particularly into the business of thermal coal burned at power plants.
For the rest of this article: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-04-03/west-virginia-s-trying-to-revive-coal-one-miner-isn-t-convinced