At a time when it seemed nearly impossible for mining companies of any size and shape to attract financing of any kind it took the market by surprise when Chinalco (ACH) announced that it was injecting $19.5 billion into mining powerhouse Rio Tinto (RTP). Little did we know, back on February 12^th, that the financing would come from the Bank of China, a troubling development to say the least.

While it may sound hypocritical or me to criticize the Chinese for using sovereign funds to effect a large scale corporate acquisition from my perch atop Mount Govermore here in the United States, it does not excuse the fact that artificially low interest rates secured by Chinese manufacturers in recent years have contributed greatly to the global economic downturn. After all, if the Chinese government had not given loans to so many business owners at interest rates which would have made the Japanese blush, many of the problems of global overcapacity might have been mitigated. While it is easy to blame the U.S. for all of the world’s problems and laud the productivity of the Chinese, let us not forget the distortions they imparted upon the world’s economy over the past decade.

Arch Coal (ACI) and the coal industry at large are standing by waiting to solve our energy problems; trouble is, nobody is paying any attention to them. At a time when politicians are stumbling over one another in order to condemn big oil, it is ironic to see so little mention of companies, like Arch Coal, who are at the forefront of the battle to create zero-emission coal plants by the end of the next decade.

While Patriot Coal (PCX) has only been on its own for little more than 4 months, the company has the pieces in place to sustain what has been a strong move in the company's stock since its spinoff from Peabody (BTU) in October (56.59% as of close yesterday). Of course, this coincides nicely with a healthy coal market which has seen high grade Coal prices on tightening due to global supply constraints and demand growth. On the surface, it may seem like Peabody and Patriot are therefore just the short term beneficiaries of supply constraints in the coal market, but look a little deeper and you will see two companies specializing in two different areas with some of the best human and physical capital in the industry.