From the third picture, can I assume the lower building is their breaker?

In an opertion like this, AB or any of the independents, who owns the mineral rights? Somewhere I read that Reading owns much of the land and mineral rights and leases them to the independent operators, in return the mines sell the mine run coal back to Reading.

I have trouble imagining that an independent mine doesn't have some sort of contract to sell production. To peddle it by the truck load would add another level of complexity, Sales. And I don't see most of the miner types being good salesmen.

What Banks? No pics of Boo?


Kidding. Nice job on that.

Am I correct in assuming all the sales go through Mike, who runs the breaker?
(Not on same location.)
Mike isn't very sociable, but he is a smart cookie.

~S

I don't think there are any independants on reading land at all at the moment. Maybe one the more I think about it. Reading is terrible to lease from they hardly pay anything for the coal you mine. Some of the best to get leases from is Schuylkill County itself, the water company down that way is really good, and there are some landowners that work good with the Independant guys. Most landowners really don't care who you sell the raw coal to which isn't a problem because you can sell anything you can get out of the ground. That lower building at RS&W isn't a breaker all the do in there is just pick out any obvious rock before it goes to the breaker. As far as RS&W's coal going to Mikes I don't know if it is now or not. Last year it wasn't I know that.

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"We don't look for any money all we look for is a little help and the only help we get is for the government to shut us down and if you go to the gas station and buy the gas you'll see why..........................you'll see why"

I think FKZ is on Reading territory yet.... and then who was Brownie talking about that got wacked for selling coal to an independent breaker instead of back to Reading? maybe it was FKZ.. I don't know.

They just sell it to whatever breaker will give them the best price pretty much..

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This ain't longwall... this is long hole!

That's interesting, I didn't consider the county owning large tracts of Public land.

Out west here, most public land is state or federal owned. In the hill country just east of me there is tons of federal land.

But, counties don't own land, more that what the builds sit on and the landfill.

I could be wrong but when I ride in the strippings outside Treverton it is posted by Reading and Shingara's mine is their on the mountain.

fkz is on reading but its shut down right now.

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PA Coal - FKZ was one of Shingera's ... So is Chestnut.. but I think that one might be shut down too...? I can't remember now. They go through stages..

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This ain't longwall... this is long hole!

oh okay, thanks banks. FKZ is right outside Locust Gap right?

correct, if youre heading down 54, it would be on the left just after the bend in the road before locust gap. make the left into "town" and there is a dirt road that goes back to it. guess they are not too friendly to strangers though........

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FKZ is not shut down it is running but is about the only one on Reading land. Chesnut is running but I don't think that is Reading land. I don't think Reading pays more than 40.00 a ton for raw coal. Most of the other breakers will pay at the minimum 75.00 a ton with a few paying close to 100.00 for raw coal.

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"We don't look for any money all we look for is a little help and the only help we get is for the government to shut us down and if you go to the gas station and buy the gas you'll see why..........................you'll see why"

i thought they were one of the few that randy said got it for the fan deal.

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Thats kind of blown past now... They appealed it and won for the 24/7 law, and something happened with the 2 hour pre-pre-shift that RS&W was back to work.. So FKZ must be too...

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This ain't longwall... this is long hole!

i see.

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The Federal Judge that is going to hear the case granted the operators the go ahead to do buisness as usual at least untill it goes to court. If the Judge does that he already has his mind made up. MSHA's arguments were totaly lame on this one and the IMA has all of there ducks in a row so this should go well.

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"We don't look for any money all we look for is a little help and the only help we get is for the government to shut us down and if you go to the gas station and buy the gas you'll see why..........................you'll see why"