Energy prices continue to tumble on recession fears and a US dollar rally. For investors that are long-term bullish on energy markets, this represents a great buying opportunity, says Andrew Snyder. He expects coal producers like Massey (NYSE:MEE), Peabody (NYSE:BTU) and James River Coal (NYSE:JRCC) to see big increases in their valuations in the coming year.

The recent buyout of Alpha Natural Resources Inc. (ANR) by Cleveland Cliffs Inc. (CLF) could ignite more than $50 billion worth of M&A deals in the U.S. coal industry over the next few years as Mainland China rushes to solve a major energy shortfall.

Crude oil is grabbing the headlines but it’s coal and uranium that together provide nearly half the world’s power.

So it follows that as worldwide demand for electricity skyrockets - as it will - the shares of companies that provide these two key fuels also will take flight.

An updated version of my quantitative model giving 25 short plays, as well as a few long/short hedged trades.

Todd Sullivan of Value Plays discusses how he sells puts as an added strategy when practicing value investing in this article featured in Forbes. He provides details on his latest put selling for Altria and Peabody.

America has a growing demand for electricity and is currently the largest consumer of electricity in the world. In our homes, our businesses, and industries, Americans spend more than $210 billion on electricity each year. In fact, electricity and food are the two largest commodities bought and sold in America.

Electricity demand has continued to increase since the 1970s. While we are more efficient in our use of energy, demand has grown largely due to the introduction of new technologies — such as the Internet — which consumes about 8 percent of U.S. energy. Between 1970 and 1999, electricity use grew by more than 130 percent, and will continue to climb: According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), America's energy demand is anticipated to grow over 45 percent in the next 20 years. What is the main fuel for all this electricity? Coal, it fuels about 40 percent of the world's electricity and over half of America's electricity (this amount continues to climb annually), which is more than all other sources combined.