Positive news about the environment is as common as a well-fed polar bear. So enjoy. Thanks to a decrease in coal use in North America and better technology to make the fossil fuel less harmful, the amount of mercury in the atmosphere is on the decline—and our air, our oceans, and even...

Don’t be fooled: there’s no denying that BOTH regulations and low natural gas prices have combined to reduce the use of coal. Even though coal has been the basis of electricity since its inception, the U.S. power industry has been announcing coal retirements at an unprecedented rate....

China will send inspection teams to investigate and severely punish illegal expansion by coal and steel firms as part of its efforts to slim down the two industries, the country’s cabinet said on Thursday. With most of the country’s steel and coal enterprises making losses in 2015,...

Donald Trump’s surprise victory in the presidential race on Nov. 8 put some extra topspin on what had already been a surprising investment success for vulture investor George Schultze: Arch Coal. Shares in the St. Louis coal producer jumped 35% by the end of the week to over $85, not bad for...

BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s biggest miner, expects soaring prices of iron ore and coking coal to moderate even as China pushes ahead with efforts to restructure its steel sector. Prices have been supported in recent months by restocking and short-term supply disruptions, Chief Executive...

Spot metallurgical coal topped $US300 a tonne for the first time since flooding in Australia curbed output from the world’s biggest seaborne exporter five years ago. Hard coking coal rose to $US307.20 a tonne on Tuesday, extending a surge that has seen the price quadruple since the start...

A file picture of workers operating an excavator at a coal depot in Heilongjiang province. Photo: Reuters China aims to cap coal-fired power generating capacity at 1,100 gigawatts by 2020, higher than the current ceiling but accounting for less of the country’s total power supply as the...

A file picture of workers operating an excavator at a coal depot in Heilongjiang province. Photo: Reuters China aims to cap coal-fired power generating capacity at 1,100 gigawatts by 2020, higher than the current ceiling but accounting for less of the country’s total power supply as the...

BEIJING—China’s government said it would raise coal power capacity by as much as 20% by 2020, ensuring a continuing strong role for the commodity in the country’s energy sector despite a pledge to bring down pollution levels. In a new five-year plan for electricity released...

BEIJING—China’s government said it would raise coal power capacity by as much as 20% by 2020, ensuring a continuing strong role for the commodity in the country’s energy sector despite a pledge to bring down pollution levels. In a new five-year plan for electricity released...