For the week ended September 28, US mines produced 19.7 million tonnes, 2.1% higher than estimates and about 2.7% above totals from the same week in 2012.
Using the Mississippi River as a divider, the EIA said that coal production in the east totalled 8.3Mt. Eastern mines include the Appalachian, Alabama and Illinois basins.
Production west of the waterway, which includes the Powder River Basin region, was 11.3Mt.
The agency said that year to date, the nation’s coal industry had produced a total 747Mt, down 2.2% from the comparable year to date last year.
Figures for the week in progress will be available October 10.