The nation’s largest coal producers want to merge two mines which supply a majority of Wisconsin’s coal.
Peabody Coal owns the North Antelope Rochelle mine and Arch Coal owns the Black Thunder mine. Both of the mines are located in Wyoming and supplied more than half the amount of coal burned last year in Wisconsin. The coal companies say the merger will allow them to cut costs in order to compete with renewable energy sources. It’s unclear what affect the merger would have on Wisconsin utilities and their customers.
For now, representatives of the state’s largest coal-burning utilities say the companies are still evaluating the effects of the merge.
