Generic Hero BannerGeneric Hero Banner
Latest Market News

BNSF coal train derails in Colorado, bridge collapses

  • Spanish Market: Coal
  • 16/10/23

A BNSF train carrying coal derailed off a bridge over a highway in Colorado, causing the bridge to collapse and killing a semi-truck driver.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) confirmed that 30 BNSF coal railcars derailed off a bridge that passes over Interstate 25 near Pueblo, Colorado, on Sunday at approximately 4:30pm central US time (5:30pm ET).

BNSF said it had no further details to share on the incident other than no crew members were injured. NTSB investigators arrived at the scene today to study the crash and determine its cause.

A semi-truck was beneath the bridge when it collapsed, and the driver of the truck was killed, the Colorado State Patrol said.

Pueblo is about 100 miles (161km) south of Denver and, according to maps on BNSF's website, along major routes for transporting coal from the Powder River basin and western bituminous regions through Colorado as well as parts of the US southwest and Texas.


Related news posts

Argus illuminates the markets by putting a lens on the areas that matter most to you. The market news and commentary we publish reveals vital insights that enable you to make stronger, well-informed decisions. Explore a selection of news stories related to this one.

25/03/25

Cerrejon to cut coal production by 5-10mn t in 2025

Cerrejon to cut coal production by 5-10mn t in 2025

Bogota, 25 March (Argus) — Colombia's second-largest coal producer Cerrejon will cut thermal coal production by 5-10mn t with immediate effect. This brings its full-year estimate to 11-16mn t for 2025, the Glencore-owned firm said today. The main reason for the reduction is "unsustainable prices for thermal coal transported by sea". Cerrejon produced 19mn t of steam coal in 2024, which means output could fall by 18.75-42pc on the year. Cerrejon has implemented numerous initiatives to respond to the current challenging market conditions, but said the decision to reduce production will help ensure the sustainability of operations and its ability to continue generating revenue for the region and the country. Thermal coal demand has become increasingly focused on Asian markets, including South Korea, India, Japan and China, and freight costs for Colombian coal to reach those markets of around $37/t are considerably higher than the $16-17/t to reach Colombia's traditional markets, such as Europe and Turkey. At the same time, international coal prices have dropped, further reducing Colombian coal's margins, Cerrejon president Claudia Bejarano said last week in Cartagena at the Colombia Genera conference. "We are losing our competitiveness completely," Bejarano said, adding that coal demand in natural markets for Colombia such as Europe is dwindling Argus ' fob Puerto Bolivar NAR 6,000 kcal/kg thermal coal assessment, which forms part of the Colombian API 10 benchmark, was assessed at $85.20/t at the end of last week, down from $93/t at the start of the year — it was as high as $102/t as recently as November. The drop in production will be followed by a reduction in the workforce, a source familiar with the matter said. The company said production cuts will not affect Cerrejon's current social or environmental commitments. The president of Colombian mining agency Alvaro Pardo told Argus that Colombia's thermal coal exports increased by 8.8pc in 2024, but revenues at the country's largest producers declined by 25pc, reflecting the difficult market conditions amid low coal prices and tight margins, Pardo said. Pardo said market conditions will be a factor in ending coal production over the long term, not the government. The government is concerned about falling international thermal coal prices because the operators of the country's large open-pit mines, including Drummond and Cerrejon, may hand back the coal titles to the government, as Glencore did with its Prodeco mine titles in 2021. By Diana Delgado Colombian coal loaded vs landing prices $/t Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Colombia not cancelling coal: Mining authority


24/03/25
24/03/25

Colombia not cancelling coal: Mining authority

Cartagena, 24 March (Argus) — Colombia will honour the terms of coal mining firms' contracts and is not forcing companies out of the industry, which is instead under pressure from market conditions, mining regulator ANM president Alvaro Pardo said. "Today, no thermal coal owner in the country can say that the state violated their rights," Pardo told Argus on the sidelines of the Colombia Genera conference in Cartagena. "We are respectful of their contractual rights." The administration of Colombian president Gustavo Petro has made several anti-fossil fuel statements, and is working on moving to less carbon-intensive energy sources — although it has not included coal in its list of strategic minerals and intends to honour existing coal mining licences until the end of their terms, Pardo said. Instead, market factors are likely to end coal production before the government does, he added. Colombia's thermal coal exports increased by 8.8pc on the year in 2024, but revenues of Colombia's largest thermal coal producers declined by 25pc over the same period, reflecting the difficult market conditions of lower coal prices and tighter margins, Pardo stressed. The government is concerned with the drop in international thermal coal prices because it fears that the large open-pit coal mines including Drummond and Cerrejon may hand back the coal titles to the government as Glencore did in 2021. With global coal prices falling this year, coal demand has also shifted to Asian markets, such as South Korea, India, Japan and China, but freight costs for Colombian coal to reach these markets are around $37/t, compared with $16-17/t to traditional markets such as Europe. "Europe is no longer demanding Colombian coal nor is Chile," Pardo said. When asked whether the government may consider cutting royalties on coal mining firms, Pardo said ANM will not reduce royalties. But the Colombian mining association has stressed that the Colombian mining sector, including coal, has the highest tax rates among peers. The government recently slapped an additional 1pc surcharge on coal exports. The government will not grant new contracts to large open-pit thermal coal mines, Pardo said. The IEA predicts that global coal demand will plateau through 2027, although it reached a record high in 2024 of 8.77bn metric tonnes (t). Anticipating the downturn, the Petro administration is looking at how to convert mining areas to other uses such as for renewable energy, tourism or production of other minerals, Pardo noted. By Diana Delgado Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Electricity drove surge in energy demand in 2024: IEA


24/03/25
24/03/25

Electricity drove surge in energy demand in 2024: IEA

London, 24 March (Argus) — Electricity demand drove a jump in overall global energy consumption growth in 2024, lifting it well above the average pace of increase in recent years, energy watchdog the IEA said today. Global energy demand rose by 2.2pc in 2024 — higher than the average annual demand increase of 1.3pc between 2013 and 2023 — according to the Paris-base agency's Global Energy Review . Global electricity consumption rose by 4.3pc, driven by record-high temperatures that led to increased cooling demand, growing industrial consumption, the electrification of transport and from data centres and artificial intelligence, the IEA said. Renewables and nuclear covered the majority of growth in electricity demand, at 80pc, while supply of gas-fired power generation "also increased steadily", it said. New renewable power capacity installations reached around 700GW in 2024 — a new high — while renewable power sources and nuclear together made up 40pc of total generation in 2024, it said. Global gas demand rose by 2.7pc in 2024, with an increase in "fast growing Asian markets", the IEA said. It noted growth of more than 7pc and 10pc in China and India, respectively. But "growth in global oil demand slowed markedly in 2024", the organisation said. Oil demand rose by 0.8pc — compared with 1.9pc in 2023 — and oil's share of total energy demand fell below 30pc last year "for the first time ever". A rise in electric vehicle (EV) purchases was a key contributor to the drop in oil demand for road transport, and this offset "a significant proportion" of the rise in oil consumption for aviation and petrochemicals, the IEA said. The rate of increase in coal demand slowed to 1.1pc in 2024, half the pace seen in 2023. "Intense heatwaves" in China and India "contributed more than 90pc of the total annual increase in coal consumption globally", for cooling needs, the IEA found. Renewables limit rise in emissions The IEA repeatedly noted the significant effect that extreme weather in 2024 had on energy systems and on demand patterns. Last year was the hottest ever recorded, beating the previous record set in 2023. "Weather effects contributed about 15pc of the overall increase in global energy demand", the IEA said. Global cooling degree days were 6pc higher in 2024 on the year, and 20pc higher than the 2000-20 average, it said. But the "continued rapid adoption of clean energy technologies" restricted the rise in energy-related CO2 emissions, which fell to 0.8pc in 2024 from 1.2pc in 2023, the IEA said. Energy-related CO2 emissions still hit a record high of 37.8bn t in 2024, but the rise in emissions was lower than global GDP growth, it said. "The majority of emissions growth in 2024 came from emerging and developing economies other than China," the IEA said. Emerging and developing economies accounted for more than 80pc of the increase in global energy demand last year, it said. By Georgia Gratton Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Upper Mississippi River reopens for transit


20/03/25
20/03/25

Upper Mississippi River reopens for transit

Houston, 20 March (Argus) — The first towboat arrived at St Paul, Minnesota, today, marking the start of the 2025 navigation season on the upper Mississippi River, according to the US Army Corps of Engineers (Corps). The Neil N. Diehl passed through Lock 2 at Hastings, Minnesota, with nine barges, crossing into St Paul on 19 March. Tows reaching St Paul signify the unofficial start of the navigation season, as St Paul is the last port to open on the Mississippi River after winter ice thaws each year. This is considered an average start time for the navigation season, which typically opens the third week of March. The first tow to reach St Paul in 2024 arrived on 17 March. The Corps released the final Lake Pepin ice measurements of 17in on 12 March and was unable to take new measurements this week since the ice had melted significantly. Lake Pepin measurements help determine when the ice will be thin enough for barges to transit up river. By Meghan Yoyotte Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Turkish lira at all-time low against dollar


19/03/25
19/03/25

Turkish lira at all-time low against dollar

London, 19 March (Argus) — Turkey's lira currency fell to record lows against the US dollar today, after the arrest of Istanbul's mayor provoked concern about instability. The depreciation could cause imports of dollar-denominated commodities to become more expensive, although reaction was mixed across markets. The lira went as low at 40/$1 in early trading, from below 37/$1 on Tuesday 18 March, before easing to around 38/$1 later in the day. The lira has been slowly depreciating against the dollar for many years, but the sharp fall today came after Ekrem Imamoglu, one of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's main political rivals, was held on suspicion of corruption and aiding a terrorist organisation. Turkey is a significant importer of natural gas, crude and LPG, as well as coal and petcoke, although demand for many commodities will be muted currently because of the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan. Early indications from the coal and petcoke markets were that all import trades had halted as the lira hit the record low. In polymers markets the focus is on whether demand recovers after Ramadan ends on 30 March. But a trading source in Turkey said the fall is not enough for "massive changes" to imports of oil products. The OECD forecasts headline inflation in Turkey at 31.4pc this year, the highest among its members, easing to 17.3pc in 2026. The IMF has forecast Turkey's economy will grow by 2.6pc this year, after an expansion of 2.7pc in 2024. By Ben Winkley, Aydin Calik, Joseph Clarke, Amaar Khan and Dila Odluyurt Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Generic Hero Banner

Business intelligence reports

Get concise, trustworthy and unbiased analysis of the latest trends and developments in oil and energy markets. These reports are specially created for decision makers who don’t have time to track markets day-by-day, minute-by-minute.

Learn more