CURRENT declines in US coal production, battered by cheap natural gas, stand to cost railways US$5 billion, according Moody's Investment Service. As coal demand from utilities drops by more than 50 per cent by 2030, US railways could see 5.5 per cent loss in revenue based on 2018 industry standards, said Moody’s September 4 report. But if that decline is gradual, such as a thermal coal decline of seven per cent per year between now and 2030, then the resulting credit impacts to the railways will be "manageable," it said, reported New York's FreightWaves, US coal consumption is declining because cheap natural gas prices are competing against coal as a generating fuel. Federal mandates for air emissions have also resulted in utilities seeking other fuel sources for power generation.