Kentucky produced 2.3% more coal in the fourth quarter of last year than in the prior year, according to the state Energy and Environment Cabinet.
All of those gains, however, were in western Kentucky. Production still declined in the east. And while the western coalfield gained a few jobs, the eastern region shed more than 400.
Ken Troske, an economics professor at the University of Kentucky, said coal for electricity generation has been trending down for more than a decade.
“Yeah, it eventually bottoms out, it stops declining,” he said. “And once it stops declining, then, you know, small things can happen, then all of a sudden, bump it up.”
Kentucky now has fewer coal workers than it did during the low of the COVID-19 lockdowns.
The latest state data show 3,600 coal workers, the lowest on record and a nearly 10% decline year-over-year. Kentucky last saw a net gain in coal employment in 2023.
Yet, the data show Kentucky produced more than 5.7 million tons of coal from September to December. That’s the first increase in production since 2023.
Production hit a low in the second quarter of 2020 at 4.3 million tons. At that point, the industry employed 3,900 workers, a few hundred more than it does now.
A breakdown by region shows western Kentucky faring better. The west saw an 8% increase in production and a 1% gain in employment.
Eastern Kentucky saw its production fall 5.4% and its employment fall 15.7%.
One bright spot: Kentucky recorded no coal mine fatalities in 2025, according to the Mine Safety and Health Administration.
Coal has seen a slight increase in use for electricity generation in the past year as natural gas prices have risen. The overseas export of coal to make steel has declined though, leading to layoffs at mines in central Appalachia.
