Allegheny Energy in coal deal
Allegheny Energy Inc. said yesterday it has an agreement with Alliance Resource Partners LP to develop and mine Allegheny's coal reserve in Washington County, which Allegheny said would provide it with a long-term supply of coal for its power plants. Under a coal lease and purchase agreement, Alliance will seek permits to mine the coal and Allegheny will buy up to 2 million tons annually of the mine's output. Allegheny said it would receive estimated royalties of $5 million to $10 million annually, depending on production levels and coal prices. The mine is expected to open in 2010.

Online holiday shopping soars
Online shopping soared to $30.1 billion during the holiday season, a 30 percent gain from the same period a year ago. Results were based on a report released yesterday by Goldman Sachs, Nielsen/NetRatings and Harris Interactive, and reported by the Wall Street Journal Online. According to the report, shoppers spent most on clothing and apparel -- $5.3 billion. Tied for second place were computers and peripherals, and consumer electronics. Each brought in $4.8 billion in sales.

Harsco grows in U.S., Europe
Harsco Corp., of Camp Hill, said it bought the northern hemisphere mill-services operations of Brambles Industries Ltd., for $229 million to expand the services it offers the steel industry. The unit had revenue of about $195 million in fiscal 2005 and operates 19 locations in the United States, the United Kingdom, France and the Netherlands, Harsco said yesterday. Harsco said the purchase will expand its on-site mill services to 180 locations in 32 countries.

Also in business ...
Natural gas traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange yesterday fell for the fourth session in five. Gas for February delivery fell 41.4 cents, or 3.6 percent, to $11.223 per million British thermal units ... M. Benjamin Jones, an executive with Conway Del Genio Gries & Co. LLC, the management consultant firm hired by World Health Alternatives Inc. in November, has been named president of World Health ... PSB Industries Inc., a manufacturer of gas purification equipment and provider of warehousing, sandblasting and painting services, received a $1.45 million financial package from the state to renovate its Erie operations. The renovation will result in the creation of 21 jobs within a year.