American Consolidated Natural Resources, previously known as Murray Energy, is a US-based coal mining company. It is the fourth largest coal producer in the country, and the largest privately-owned coal company. Founded in 1988 by Robert E. Murray, the company filed for bankruptcy in 2019. The company gained notoriety following the collapse of the Crandall Canyon Mine in 2007, following a number of citations and fines for safety practices at the site. According to The Guardian, Murray Coal was responsible for 0.15% of global industrial greenhouse gas emissions from 1988 to 2015. History Murray Energy was founded by Robert E. Murray in 1988 through the acquisition of the Powhatan No. 6 mine in Alledonia, Ohio. The company was established in nearby St. Clairsville, Ohio. The Powhatan mine is the only mine operated by a Murray Energy Corporation independent operating subsidiary that is unionized. Murray Energy Corporation produces approximately 30 million tons of bituminous coal each year and employs approximately 3,000 people in the United States. In 2013 the company acquired Consol Energy Inc, consisting of five mines and a fleet of more than 600 barges and other ships. According to the company's website, as of 2019, they employed some 7,000 workers in the US and South America. The company is headquartered in St. Clairsville, Ohio. It is the largest privately owned coal company in the US, and fourth largest overall, with the three larger coal companies all being publicly traded rather than privately owned. Crandall Canyon Mine collapse In August 2007 six miners were trapped at the Crandall Canyon Mine in Utah, of which Murray Energy's independent operating subsidiary UtahAmerican Energy had been a part-owner for 12 months. Prior to the collapse, the Crandall Canyon Mine had received 64 violations and $12,000 in fines. At the time, Murray Energy's owner, Robert, claimed that the safety violations were trivial and included violations such as not having enough toilet paper in the restroom. However, some news agencies reported troubling violations at other Murray operations. CNN specifically cited Murray's Illinois Galatia mine, which had almost 3,500 safety citations in the prior two and a half years. On July 24, 2008, the U.S. government's Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) announced its highest penalty for coal mine safety violations, $1.85 million, for the collapse. The government fined Genwal Resources $1.34 million "for violations that directly contributed to the deaths of six miners last year,"