Cramer Transcript: Alpha Resources Loss Is Nat Gas' Gain

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Debra Borchardt interviews Jim Cramer regarding Alpha Resources mine closures. A full transcript appears below:

The Street:
Jim, we've got to talk about Alpha Resources. They're closing four of their mines, laying off lots of people.

Jim Cramer:
Right.

The Street:
And because this type of coal, the power producing coal, not the coal for steel, there is less demand because power companies are going to natural gas, it's cleaner.

The Street:
Right. It is. It's cleaner, under $3, it's cheaper and if Obama is re-elected, I think Obama's EPA will call and say, listen, all these coal plants you bought, you built during the Carter years when Carter mandated that we should be the Saudi Arabia of coal, shut them, shut them right now, you got 18 weeks.

The Street:
You've been saying all along nat gas, nat gas....

Jim Cramer:
Yeah.

The Street:
Looks now they're finally....

Jim Cramer:
Yeah, I think they could go to 80 percent, I think, that coal had been...one of the things that people have to understand about fuel is that there's baseline fuel and then, there's the fuel for additional, like it's really hot and the air conditioner's going, natural gas had not been the baseline fuel in this country. It was considered beyond reliable. Suddenly, it's the baseline fuel. Coal is the next fuel. So coal is still in demand in India and China. A lot of countries need coal, but in our country, I think that coal is perceived to be a dirty fuel. The EPA is asking for a remarkable amount of money for these coal companies to take it from 98 percent to, I mean for the utilities, 98 percent to no emissions. So it's a pincer move by the EPA. They're making him pay a lot to be able to upgrade and they're also saying, listen, we're going to shut you down and I think Obama...it's going to amicable.

The Street:
Yeah. Good sign for nat gas.

Jim Cramer:
It's great for nat gas, but we have too much nat gas.

The Street:
That's why they're going to nat gas because they got a lot of it.

Jim Cramer:
We got too much of it.

The Street:
Great. Thank you.

Jim Cramer:
Thank you.

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