How much coal is left in West Virginia?

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WOWK) — Coal has been a major part of West Virginia’s economy and identity for decades, but as a non-renewable resource, it can only last so long.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates that as of January 1, 2023 , the United States’ total coal reserves are around 470 billion short tons (U.S. tons). This total is considered the Demonstrated Reserve Base (DRB), which is the sum of coal in both measured and indicated resource categories of reliability.

Only 250 billion short tons are considered recoverable, meaning the amount that can be recovered with existing technology. 12 billion short tons are recoverable reserves at producing mines, meaning the recoverable coal from mines that produce more than 25,000 short tons a year

Of the DRB coal in the U.S., West Virginia is believed to have about 6 percent, around 28.2 billion short tons, making it one of the top DRB coal states in the country. The state also has 15 percent of recoverable coal at U.S. producing mines , equaling around 1.8 billion short tons.

Most of West Virginia’s coal production comes from underground mines , also called deep mine, while the rest comes from surface mining.

It is uncertain how long the existing U.S. coal reserves will last, but it is estimated based on coal production in 2022 that recoverable coal reserves in the U.S. will last another 422 years, and 20 years from recoverable reserves at producing mines. As coal production changes, so will the timeline.

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