September 14, 2017 - In another welcomed boost to the coal industry, a large-scale two state mining project is taking shape.

The new Berwind Mine Expansion Project, which is based in McDowell County, West Virignia, but includes parts of Buchanan and Tazewell counties in Virginia, is expected to create upwards of 250 coal mining jobs. Work on development of the Berwind Coal Reserve site started in July.

The mine expansion project “is taking off and promises to put miners, mining suppliers, and other mine employees to work,” U.S. Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Va., said last week. “I believe this project, in bringing jobs to the Ninth District, will benefit not only the coal industry, but our communities as a whole.”

The mine is being developed by Ramaco Resources of Lexington, Ky., and is expected to produce about 834,000 tons a year of metallurgical coal used for steel, roads, bridges and building construction, according to Kallanish Energy Daily News & Analysis.

It covers about 31,200 acres and is estimated to hold 72 million tons of proven and probable reserves, the energy report said. An initial production of about 161,000 tons is expected in the fourth quarter of 2017.

The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) issued the final reclamation and mine permit for the project earlier this year. With hope production can begin soon at the site.

News of the progress on the Berwind Mine Expansion Project is welcomed. Anytime unemployed coal miners are put back to work, it helps the regional economy as a whole.

The announcement is another sign that the coal industry is indeed “rebounding,” a point emphasized Wednesday by Hal Quinn, president and CEO of the National Mining Association, during the opening ceremonies for the 2017 Biennial Bluefield Coal Show.