Genscape Coal Burn Index Up 2% for Last Week

    US consumption of coal rose 2% from the previous week but was 18% below the same week last year, a source at power industry data provider Genscape said Friday. In the populous East, coal consumption for the week ended Thursday was up 4% from the previous week. But it was down 16% from the same week a year ago. In the West, coal demand was down 3% from the previous week and off 11% from the same week a year ago. Week-to-week changes reflect the transition from winter to summer and, in some regions, fuel switching to cheap, plentiful natural gas. The year-to-year shifts illustrate the steepness of the recession in commercial and industrial demand, Genscape has said. The regional indexes are calculated separately from the national index. They do not always add up to a number equaling the separately calculated US total, Genscape has said.

Region      June 11   Last wk  Yr ago  Pct wk  Pct yr
Nation      18.03     17.67    22.04    +2      -18
East        16.71     16.00    20.01    +4      -16
West         1.89      1.95     2.14    -3      -11