BRISTOL, Va., Dec. 8, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Alpha Natural
Resources, Inc. (NYSE: ANR) operating affiliates announce that the
WARN notices for eight coal mines in West
Virginia have expired and the mines and their approximately
750 workers will continue to operate. The longer-term plans
for these mines will continue to depend upon market prices and
demand.
In accordance with requirements of the Worker Adjustment and
Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, notices were issued on
July 31 at 11 different West Virginia surface mine sites, plus certain
support operations, advising workers that their facilities were
expected to idle. Eight of those mines received WARN
extension notices on Sept. 26, two
were idled due to sustained weak market conditions and government
regulations challenging the Central Appalachian mining industry,
and one other (Alex Energy's Edwight mine) continued to operate
without extending its WARN notice.
As of today's announcement, the mines that will continue to
operate include Highland Mining's Superior, Reylas, Freeze Fork and
Trace Fork surface mines in
Logan County; the North surface
mine in Mingo and Logan Counties; Black Castle Mining's surface
mine in Boone County; and Republic
Energy's Republic and Workman Creek surface mines in Raleigh County. Additional technical and other
support services for these mine operations also saw the WARN
extension notices expire without a reduction in force.
Alpha Chairman and CEO Kevin
Crutchfield credited the efforts that the mine operators and
their workers undertook in reducing their costs to compensate for
weak coal prices. Crutchfield said, "Many of these sites have made
significant progress in improving efficiencies and finding cost
savings. They were proactive in presenting ideas that helped
move the mines toward enhanced contributions to earnings before
interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) while
continuing to operate safely and in an environmentally sound
way."
Alpha President Paul Vining said
that in addition to reducing the cost of extracting the coal, sales
opportunities have improved in some locations. Vining said,
"Though demand for Central Appalachian thermal coal has declined,
there is residual demand for the coal these mines produce and we've
booked enough sales to allow the mines to continue operating."
Vining did express concern that the coal sales market is
changing, increasing the likelihood of a more volatile
market. Vining said, "The market is moving toward a spot
market, away from longer-term agreements that coal suppliers and
customers have worked with in the past. We're certainly
mindful of the low stockpiles some utilities have on hand and are
trying to ensure we are ready to respond should demand
increase."
Vining said that buying coal as it is needed may not be an
effective strategy if the U.S. has another cold winter, demand
spikes and the rail system continues to struggle with performance.
Already this year, PJM Interconnection – the regional transmission
organization that coordinates wholesale electricity for 13 states
(more than 60 million Americans) – set a new record for November
demand, breaking the previous record set just last year.
Another cold winter could put pressure on utilities' ability to
procure fuel, whether coal or gas, on a prompt basis.
The cost efficiencies gained by these Alpha-affiliated
operations were important in allowing the mines to continue to
produce in a safe, cost-efficient manner and they remain ready to
serve the continuing needs of our nation's coal-fired utility
fleet.
About Alpha Natural Resources
Alpha Natural Resources
is one of the largest and most regionally diversified coal
suppliers in the United States.
With affiliate mining operations in Virginia, West
Virginia, Kentucky,
Pennsylvania and Wyoming, Alpha supplies metallurgical coal to
the steel industry and thermal coal to generate power to customers
on five continents. Consistent with its Running Right
process, Alpha is committed to being a leader in mine safety and an
environmental steward in the communities where its affiliates
operate. For more information, visit Alpha's website
(www.alphanr.com).
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SOURCE Alpha Natural Resources, Inc.