The West Virginia Consensus Coal Production Forecast is a combined production forecast comprised of four component forecasts. A consensus approach to forecasting seeks the wisdom of the crowd in producing an expectation for output from the coal industry. The Consensus Forecast is used to provide the best expectation of tax revenues to be collected
for mandatory reclamation activities conducted through the Special Reclamation Fund and the Special Reclamation Water Trust Fund.
This report describes recent historical coal production trends for the State of West Virginia including the individual industries that comprise the major segments of demand for coal produced in West Virginia. Each of the component forecasts used to form the Consensus Forecast is described, with information about assumptions and resulting projected levels of production for West Virginia. The process used to produce the Consensus is also described, including the weightings applied to each of the component forecasts. The West Virginia Consensus Coal Production Forecast is calculated for the years 2017 through 2040.