The Coastal Challenge

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Abstract
The winds of change have been blowing through China's coal industry since last year. The change is concerning industry integration and rooted in state policy.On one side,13 large-scale coal bases will be built up on the provincial level through government-backed mergers.On the other side,the total number of coal firms will be kept below certain levels using a system based on scale.For instance,the government is making an effort to keep the number of small-scale operations below 10,000. In the center of the storm are the private mine owners,all of which are feeling the pressure.They are taking their money from the coal industry,an industry which has been marked by high profitability,extensive management style,low-qualified staff and technology,and investing it in other industries. The term'coal bosses' which usually refers to these mine owners in China,sounds like a negative title,as it is always associated with keywords like'Hummers','grand villas','mistresses','mine tragedies' and'pollution'. It is a question of to be or not to be.Today's transition of the'coal bosses' is not made with the drive of asset management but with a policy with one single choice.They might be able to get away from those above-mentioned keywords by getting into other industries,or they might just disappear like dust in the wind. China Entrepreneur brings to you the frontline,with stories from coal-rich provinces like Shanxi,Sha'anxi and Hebei.The breathtaking leap made by these'coal bosses' is one of the more spectacular sights in the Chinese business world of 2009.