Strikes at Cerrejon’s Guajira project and a shipping halt issued at Drummond’s Santa Maria port have prevented normal production at the two major mines, reports national newspaper Vanguardia.

Colombia is among the top coal-producing countries in the world and is the fourth-largest exporter globally.

Dow Jones reported that Colombia was exporting just one-fifth of its normal levels.

Colombian Chamber of Mines president Cesar Diaz told the newspaper that the US was the only other country in the region that would likely be able to meet the demand for coal from current customers such as the Netherlands, Denmark and Israel.

He said while other countries might have larger export numbers, the US was the only one with the reserves to meet the immediate demand.

Mining analyst Gabriel Bayonne agreed with Diaz, stating the US would benefit enormously from an extended disruption in Colombia’s coal exports, as gas had become the preferred energy source for power plants, causing an oversupply of coal.

He added that large American companies such as Peabody Energy, Arch Coal, Cloud Peak Energy and Alpha Natural Resources would gain the most.

According to a statement from striking union Sintracarbon, talks with Cerrejon resumed Tuesday afternoon and an agreement drafted to end the now 20-day strike.