CONSOL Energy readies for major mine expansion

CONSOL Energy readies for major mine expansion

CONSOL Energy Inc. has submitted permit applications for a proposed expansion of its Enlow Fork mine near Washington, Pennsylvania. The $500 million project will give CONSOL Energy an additional 7 million tons of annual coal production capacity. Work on the underground slopes and shafts as well as some related surface facilities is expected to begin in mid-2006. Initial production of coal from the expansion area will begin in 2010. With 17 bituminous coal mining complexes in six states, CONSOL Energy Inc. is the largest producer of high-Btu bituminous coal in the United States.