In 2022, 10,219 people were working in West Virginia's coal industry in total. Of that number, around 12 percent of the employees worked in underground coal mines.
Coal-mining in West Virginia
Coal-mining in West Virginia totaled 13,962 jobs in 2018, with 10,767 jobs located in underground mines and 3,195 jobs dedicated to surface mines. In 2020, two out of ten leading underground coal mines by production are in West Virginia. In the Appalachian region, where West Virginia is located, there were nearly 34,000 coal mining jobs in 2020, down from nearly 30,620 in 2018.
West Virigina's standing as a U.S. coal producer
In 2009, coal was extracted from 51 different coal seams in the state, and there are 65 seams located in the region that are considered economically viable. While West Virginia is not the first largest producer of coal in the United States, it nevertheless remains one of the largest producers in the United States, only surpassed by Wyoming. In 2020, Wyoming produced 218.6 million short tons of coal, and West Virginia produced some 67.3 million short tons. Despite being one of the largest producers in the United States, coal consumption is greater in many other U.S. states than in West Virginia.
Coal-mining employment in West Virginia from 2011 to 2022, by mine type
Includes all employees engaged in production, preparation, processing, development, maintenance, repair shop, or yard work at mining operations,
including office workers. Excludes preparation plants with less than 5,000 employee hours per year, which are not required to provide data.
This statistic was assembled using several editions of the report.
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EIA. (October 18, 2022). Coal-mining employment in West Virginia from 2011 to 2022, by mine type [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved December 10, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/215786/coal-mining-employment-in-west-virginia/
EIA. "Coal-mining employment in West Virginia from 2011 to 2022, by mine type." Chart. October 18, 2022. Statista. Accessed December 10, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/215786/coal-mining-employment-in-west-virginia/
EIA. (2022). Coal-mining employment in West Virginia from 2011 to 2022, by mine type. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: December 10, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/215786/coal-mining-employment-in-west-virginia/
EIA. "Coal-mining Employment in West Virginia from 2011 to 2022, by Mine Type." Statista, Statista Inc., 18 Oct 2022, https://www.statista.com/statistics/215786/coal-mining-employment-in-west-virginia/
EIA, Coal-mining employment in West Virginia from 2011 to 2022, by mine type Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/215786/coal-mining-employment-in-west-virginia/ (last visited December 10, 2024)
Coal-mining employment in West Virginia from 2011 to 2022, by mine type [Graph], EIA, October 18, 2022. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/215786/coal-mining-employment-in-west-virginia/