Oakland, Maryland-based Mettiki Coal, a subsidiary of Alliance Resource Partners and a mining producer of low/medium-sulfur coal for use as steam coal, is reacting to “a series of planned and unplanned outages at the Mount Storm Power Station, a key customer’s plant,” and has announced the closure of its Mountain View mine in Davis, West Virginia.
The closure will impact 199 employees, with layoffs scheduled for April 1, 2026.
According to a company statement, “We have recently been informed that the plant expects additional outages during 2026, and based upon current demand projections and contractual commitments for 2026, they are not in a position to commit to purchase any additional tons from Mettiki for the foreseeable future. Due to the mine's location and the low-volatile quality of the coal it produces, Mettiki’s livelihood depends on this customer purchasing a minimum of 1 million tons per year for it to be viable under its existing operating plan. With no clear alternative customer to absorb production, issuing WARN Act notices became an unavoidable step.”
Change is constant, and it's coming. There will always be a tomorrow, no matter how much you may try to ignore it. There are no guarantees in life, nor promises of a bright future. We see good people being laid off through no fault of their own. Just because something terrible hasn't happened yet doesn't mean it won't. It can happen to anyone, at any time, anywhere. No one is guaranteed to wake up tomorrow and still have a job by evening. While many employees can read the writing on the wall, why do most assume it’s targeted at someone else? Are you now wondering, Am I Next?