This Planet Gore reader digs the possibilities of coal:

Coal to methanol has some attractive features. There is a better total energy-cost-to-energy-delivered ratio for coal conversion than for corn or bioethanol. The U.S. has vast reserves of coal that do not compromise the food value of corn and other sugar products. If competitive, coal liquifaction and gassification, shale oil, and tar sands should come available from market forces. The BTU tax concept is worthy of discussion.
Some key problems for methanol acceptance may be that gas tanks will require more frequent refueling, and that methanol tends to absorb water from the atmosphere readily, which complicates storage and delivery. Also, the distribution infrastructure would have to expand significantly to deliver the larger volumes of fuel.