NATURAL RESOURCES
AND MINING
The natural resources and mining sector experienced the biggest setback, losing jobs at an
average annual rate of 8 percent in the last three years. Most job losses took place in the coal
mining industry, which contracted at 11.1 percent per year. The oil and natural gas industry, on the
other hand, grew 6.5 percent per year. In the next five years, the sector as a whole is expected
to register a positive job growth of 0.5 percent per year. The coal mining industry will see limited
opportunities for growth. The highly productive thermal coal mines in Northern West Virginia and
lower-cost metallurgical coal mining operations in the state’s southern coalfields will be better
positioned to raise output and bring some idled workers back into the fold. Even with these
moderate improvements, the industry will see employment contract at an average annual rate of
nearly 2 percent per year through 2021.
On the flip side, the oil and natural gas industry is expected to add jobs at a rate of 4.6 percent per
year. Natural gas production will likely rise at nearly 10 percent per year. Production and job growth
will tend to be strongest during the late 2017-2020 timeframe as the price environment improves
in response to new pipeline capacity entering service and allowing stranded supplies from the
Appalachian Basin to reach markets seeing aggressive expansion in gas for electricity generation.
Longer term, prospects for liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports directly from Cove Point, MD, around
2018 will allow shipments of Marcellus Shale gas to flow to European markets where prices are higher.
Furthermore, the recent expansion of the Panama Canal also raises prospects for LNG exports since it
offers enhanced access to Asian markets where overall energy use continues to grow rapidly.
Figure 3.2: West Virginia Energy Sector Employment
Graph 3.2 WV Energy Sector Employment
Coal, Thousands
28
Graph 3.4 Natural Gas Production by County
Oil & Natural Gas, Utilities, Thousands
26
Oil & Gas
24
10
9
Coal
8
22
20 7
18 6
16
Utilities
5
14
4
12
3
10
Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics; WVU BBER Econometric Model
SOURCE: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and WVU BBER Econometric Model
SOURCE: WV Department of Environmental Protection
Graph 3.3 WV Coal and Natural Gas Production
Graph 3.3 WV Coal and Natural Gas Output
170
Coal Production (Millions of Short Tons, SAAR)
Natural Gas Production (Billions of Cubic Feet)
140
450
Coal
300
120
250
110
90
400
350
130
100
200
Natural Gas
150
100
80 50
70 0
SOURCE: U.S. Energy Information Administration
and WVU BBER Econometric Model
80
Graph 6.4 Top Destination States for Shipments
of WV Coal to Electric Utilities, 2008 vs. 2015
500
160
150
550
WEST VIRGINIA EXECUTIVE
SOURCE: U.S. Energy Information Administration