With an estimated 275 billion tons of potentially minable coal reserves in the United States, this nation will stay warm and well-lit for the next 250 plus years, even if we continue to use coal at the same rate at which we use it today. Happily for the companies that mine the black stuff, many Americans realize that they would be smart to make a coal investment. Currently Asian consumption, mainly China and India, out paces any other region in the world in terms of coal usage. Both countries remain huge importers of coal, making them engines of economic growth for exporters. If you’re financially savvy, you’ll realize that with domestic and international coal demand on the rise, the time to make a coal investment is now.

Most of the time we don’t even think about the role electricity has in our lives. As we lead our busy lives, leaving lights on in every room, we don’t often stop to think about our need for cheap and reliable power. Coal is just that, cheap and reliable. So for those Americans out there living paycheck to paycheck, a small energy bill is the only thing they can manage. The technology to mine coal easily has been around for decades and transporting it around the country, and around the world, is quick and accessible. Anti-coal activists are quick to remind skeptics that the mining, transportation, and combustion of coal contribute to poor air quality and respiratory disease, and the risky nature of mining coal sometimes results in death and injury for miners. While coal isn’t the cleanest form of energy available today, it is the cheapest and most reliable, making a coal investment a smart one.

Ultimately the potential to generate profit, and profit from a coal investment, is quite large. Coal will most likely remain the fuel of choice domestically for years to come. Especially since oil and natural gas prices will always remain high and continue to rise in the coming years, and nuclear as well as hydroelectric power generation is constrained in terms of technology. Basically, our continued use of coal to generate electricity promotes greater U.S. energy security since our reserves are so large. By making a coal investment, investors could help potentially create over a million jobs in the next decade. According to smart investors, even those that are conscious of carbon emissions, it’s clear that coal is absolutely a smart energy investment choice that provides a huge potential for financial gain.